Naxos first flourished during Early Cycladic II period (about 2700 - 2300 BC), during which, along with the small nearby islets, it evolved into one of the most important commercial and cultural centres of the period. During the later phases of the Bronze Age, there were a variety of changes and upheavals in the Aegean which resulted in new centres rising to prominence on other islands (Thera, Milos, Paros) and Naxos lost its leading position in the Aegean.