The First Diver

The first known diver in history

Story of the First Diver

Perhaps one of the first famous divers in history is the greek Skyllias from Skione, a breath-hold diver who played an important role in the war between Greece and the Persian Empire, around the year 490 BCE.

Diving for treasure

In ancient times, diving was an activity strictly for the lower classes and the main objective was to use marine creatures as food rather than the greed to find gold and other valuable objects.
During the Medic Wars, Skyllias and his daughter Hydna served persian king Xerxes (486-465 BC), rescueing for him several underwater treasures.

Skyllias and Hydna

But when king Xerxes threathened to attack Greece with his fleet, Skyllias and Hydna took advantage of a storm and and approached the persian base to cut off the ships anchor lines, leaving the fleet defenseless and at the mercy of the storm. Finally, the storm dragged the ships against the rocks destroying them and leaving the persian army helpless and defeated.
Although there are is not much information about this heroic deed, the Amphictyonic League ( an ancient religious association of Greek tribes) dedicated statues of Skillias and Hydna at the sacred site of Delphi.