century lexicographer Harpocration.) In the Roman period Kythnos was a place of exile for important persons. In addition, in antiquity there were several temples on the island, which resulted in the island being visited by travelers from various regions (e.g. Egypt, Asia Minor, Italy, etc.). The painters Timanthis and Cydias were born in Kythnos in antiquity. Later Kythnos became part of the Byzantine Empire. Crusader and Venetian Era In 1207, Kythnos was annexed to the Frankish overlord Marco Sanudo's Aegean Duchy of the Archipelago (or of Naxos). During this period, it was known as Thermia, a name derived from the hot mineral springs occurring on the northeastern coast at the village of Loutra (which means "baths" in Greek). These medicinal baths were renowned at least since Roman times and were a fashionable spa and resort area. The island was ruled as an appanage of the Duchy of the Archipelago from the 16th century until the fall of the Duchy, where it became de facto independent. In 1600, Thermia also became the new name of a Latin bishopric on the Cyclades, formerly known as Roman Catholic Diocese of Ceo (now a Latin Catholic titular see). The island capital remained at Kastro of Oria or Katakefalo, which was rebuilt as a Frankish fortress and was known as the Tower of Thermia (Bent, 1885, reprinted 2002). After a period of depopulation in the early 15th century some Albanian communities moved from nearby Euboea. They were assimilated into the local Greek population. Ottoman Era Following a siege, the Turks were victorious over the last Venetian overlord, Angelo III Gozzadini, in 1617. According to a myth recounted by J.L. Bent in his 1885 travelogue on the Cyclades, Kastro fell only because of a treacherous ploy by the Turks: a young woman, heavy with child and apparently in pain, approached the entrance and begged to be admitted; the watchman's daughter opened the gate for her—and for the Turks hiding nearby. Bent writes that this version is preserved in a popular island ballad. After its fall to the Turks, Kastro was abandoned and the new capital was located inland, as the name Messaria suggests. Later, this town became known as Hora (the generic Greek name for a capital town, also spelled Chora). During this period Kythnos was a poor, under-populated place, still beset by pirates and suffering frequent epidemics. In 1791 a Greek school was opened in