Paximada

Paximada

Native name: Παξιμάδα
The Dionysades group of islands seen from Sitia.
Paximada
Geography
Coordinates	35°22′37″N 26°10′26″E / 35.377°N 26.174°ECoordinates: 35°22′37″N 26°10′26″E / 35.377°N 26.174°E
Archipelago	Cretan Islands
Administration
Greece
Region	Crete
Regional unit	Lasithi
Demographics
Population	0 (2001)

Paximada (Greek: Παξιμάδα, "rusk") is the northernmost island of the small Dionysades group of islands off Sitia on the northeast coast of Crete. The group also includes Dragonada, Gianysada, and Paximadaki. Administratively this group comes within the Sitia municipality in Lasithi.

This island is part of an environmentally protected area with many rare plants and animals including the falcon, Falco eleonorae, which finds sanctuary here.^[1][2]

The Dionysades were once a place of worship of the ancient Greek god Dionysus. Archaeologists have found artifacts on this island group, from ancient and early Christian eras, indicating that the islands may have been inhabited in the past.

References

1. Βορειανατολικό άκρο της Κρήτης Διονυσάδες, Ελάσα και Χερσόνησος Σιέρο (Greek)
2. Chances and limits of floristic island inventories : The Dionysades group (South Aegean, Greece) re-visited.