Minoan Crete was a civilization that experienced great social and economic prosperity during its peak around the period known as Late Minoan 1 (LM 1) (Sheppard Baird 2009 ). However, the Minoan population ended abruptly and seemingly simultaneously 430 years later, leaving archaeologists and historians searching for the cause (Castleden 1990, 143). The main reason why archaeologists are studying the reason for the fall is because if a date were known, a more precise historical chronology could be produced which would provide a more accurate chronology of ancient history during this period (Barber 1990, 221). Since Sir Arthur Evans developed the concept of the Minoan civilization, many reasons for the fall have been proposed, each with its own evidence and supporters (Sheppard Baird 2009). It was in 1939 that Syridon Marinatos, a prominent 20th-century archaeologist from Crete, first suggested that the Thera volcano was the reason for the disappearance of the Minoans (Castleden 1990, 143). From this initial thought came many other hypotheses about the causes of destruction, such as tsunamis, economic and agricultural decline, and foreign invasion. However, due to advances in science and further studies of Thera and Minoan history, this volcano no longer seemed the only plausible cause of the demise of the Minoan civilization (Sheppard Baird 2009). Thera was located on the present island of Santorini, 120 km north of Crete, and for hundreds of years there was little or no activity. It was only three thousand five hundred years ago that the historic eruption occurred (Cecil 2011) (Ancient Greece org 2010). There were three phases in the eruption, first the pumice was expelled which covered Akrotiri in a rang layer...... middle of paper ......h: a new view of the “Palace of Minos” at Knossos, Routledge , London.Cecil J.,2011 The Fall of the Minoan Civilization, BBC-History, BBC http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/greeks/minoan_01.shtml accessed: 30 April 2012.Hood S., 1971 The Minoans: the story of Bronze Age Crete, Praeger Publishers, Michigan.MacDonald C. Driessen J.,1997 The Troubled Island: Minoan Crete before and after the Santorini eruption, Université de Liège, Histoire de l'art et archéologie de la Ancient Greece. Platon N. 1966 Crete, Archaeologia Mundi series, Frederick Muller Limited, London. Pyle DM, 1989 Thera and the Aegean world III, Ther Thera Foundation, London. Sheppard Baird W., 2009 The Bronze Age Eruption of Santorini and Late Minoan IB Destruction Event, Minoan Atlantis http://www.minoanatlantis.com/LM_IB_Destruction.php accessed: April 30 2012.