About the Book
There are hundreds of Greek islands. Why did Mykonos become, in just a few decades, one of the world's top vacation spots? Part of the answer can be found in these remarkable images, which show the natural beauty and traditional island culture that initially attracted artists, writers, and celebrities like Jackie Kennedy.
These photographs, taken in 1955 and 1957--many for National Geographic--re-create a daylong visit to Mykonos in the days before cars, running water, and electricity. We disembark in the Old Harbor and wander the picturesque streets of Chora (the main town), watching the townspeople at their daily tasks. We visit St. Panteleimon Monastery on a festival day, and take a caique (a traditional wooden boat) to see the ruins on the neighboring island of Delos.
Every photograph is reproduced as a full-page tritone of surpassing quality, and accompanied by a detailed caption. This book will fascinate modern-day visitors to Mykonos, as well as those who trace their roots to the Greek islands.
About the Author: Robert McCabe was born in Chicago in 1934. He started taking photographs in 1939 with a Kodak Brownie given to him by his father, who published a tabloid newspaper in New York. In 1957, he photographed widely in the Cyclades at the request of the National Geographic Magazine, and he continues to photograph in Greece today. His fifteen published books encompass Greece, Cuba, China, Antarctica, and Central Park, and his forthcoming projects include The Last Monk of the Strofades, The Greeks and Their Seas, Santorini Before the Earthquake, Kasos 1965, A Portrait of Patmos, and The Waterways of France. He believes that photography is the perfect medium for what he calls poetic realism.
