Thriasio Plain

The Thriasio Plain owes its name to the ancient deme of Thria (Greek: Θρία), one the demes of ancient Athens. The largest town in the plain was Eleusis (modern-day Elefsina), location of the famous Eleusinian Mysteries. In Greek mythology, when the goddess Athena won the contest for control of Attica over Poseidon, Poseidon flooded the plain in wrath, until called to order by Zeus.[1]

In antiquity, as today, the area was connected to central Athens by two passes: the Sacred Way (Greek: Ιερά Οδός) to the west, today used by the main Athens–Corinth highway, and another pass to the northwest nowadays used by the Attiki Odos highway.[2] During the Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC) the Thriasio Plain was ravaged by the Spartan army of King Archidamus II in his campaign against the Athenians.[3]

Today it is largely an industrial area, hosting some of Greece's major industrial facilities, such as its largest oil refineries and steel mills. There are four cities in the Thriasio Plain: Elefsina (anc. Eleusis), Mandra, Magoula, and Aspropyrgos. The plain hosts a major air force base outside of Elefsina, as well as a major station of the Athens Suburban Rail. As of 2010, there are plans to create a major center for the transshipment of commercial goods unloaded in the nearby port of Pireas (Athens port) to the rest of Greece and neighboring countries.[4]

The Thriasio plain has a Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification: Csa) bordering a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification: BSh) with mild winters and very hot summers. The Thriasio Plain is particularly vulnerable to high temperatures due to its topography[5] and has experienced the highest temperatures ever recorded in Greece and continental Europe[6] with 48.0 °C in Elefsina and 47.5°C in Aspropyrgos in 1977 and 2007 respectively.

38.078°N 23.583°E / 38.078; 23.583