 Akrotiri was buried by the massive Theran eruption in the middle of the second millennium BC (during the Late Minoan IA period); as a result, like the Roman ruins of Pompeii after it, it is remarkably well-preserved.Frescoes, pottery, furniture, advanced drainage systems and three-story buildings have been discovered at the site.The earliest excavations on Santorini were conducted by French geologist F. Fouque in 1867, after some local people found old artifacts at a quarry.