Abstracts
Julien Beck (Université de Genève)
L’occupation néolithique de Kataliondas-Kourvellos : état de la question Les deux campagnes de fouille menées en 2010 et en 2011 à Kataliondas-Kourvellos par l’Université de Genève permettent de dresser un premier bilan relatif à l’occupation néolithique du site, en regard des hypothèses formulées après la prospection de 1972 d’une part, et des récents développements concernant le Néolithique de Chypre d’autre part. The question of the Neolithic occupation of Kataliondas-Kourvellos Preliminary results from the 2010 and 2011 excavation campaigns at Kataliondas-Kourvellos by the University of Geneva shed a new light on the site’s Neolithic occupation, regarding hypotheses made after the 1972 survey on the one hand, and recent developments in the Neolithic of Cyprus on the other hand.
Luca Bombardieri (University of Florence), Caterina Scirè Calabrisotto ( INFN-Labec), Francesca Chelazzi ( University of Glasgow) The site area of Erimi-Laonin tou Porakou (Limassol) has been systematically excavated from 2008 as a joint research project of the University of Florence, in collaboration with the Department of Antiquities, Cyprus. A focus investigation was dedicated to the analysis of funerary evidences from the southern Cemetery area (Area E), where a series of single chamber graves were excavated along a series of terraces sloping from the top mound towards southeast. As far as the typology is concerned all the tombs show single irregularly rounded chambers with a cave-like section and highlight a wider dimensional variability. The offering goods deposits display a wide repertoire of ceramics and small objects. The small finds and ceramic assemblages, with regards to their typology and decoration patterns, point to a standard South Coast production, mainly ranging from the EC II/III to MC III/LC I period, thus drawing a sequence of use contemporary with the stratigraphic deposits evidenced on the top mound Workshop Complex (Area A). During the fieldwork seasons 2010-2011, charcoal samples, from the Workshop Complex, and bone samples, from the skeleton remains of two burials (Tombs 228, 230), were opportunely taken for radiocarbon analyses. Radiocarbon dating was performed at the AMS beam line at the INFN-LABEC Laboratory. The results can be compared with the archaeological evidence, in order to outline a chronological sequence for the cemetery area at Erimi-Laonin tou Porakou, thus collecting further data for the study of development and pattern of occupation of Early to Late Cypriote period in the Kourion area.
Aurélie Carbillet (Université Lumière-Lyon 2)
Les modèles de bateau constituent une production originale de la coroplastie chypriote au sein de laquelle ils occupent une place non négligeable. On dénombre en effet plus d’une centaine d’exemplaires dont la majorité a été découverte dans des tombes, déposée auprès du défunt. Cette pratique semble attestée du Bronze Moyen jusqu’au début de l’époque classique ; elle ne l’est cependant que sur un nombre restreint de sites et particulièrement, pour l’Age du Fer, à Amathonte qui offre, de loin, la plus forte concentration de découvertes. Ces artefacts sont généralement mis en relation avec les activités maritimes telles que la navigation commerciale et la pêche ; leur présence dans des tombes aurait ainsi pour vocation de refléter l’activité de marin et/ou de pêcheur du défunt. C’est là, nous semble-t-il, minimiser la portée de ces objets. Bien qu’elle ne soit pas à écarter, cette hypothèse est loin d’être satisfaisante au regard de la multiplicité des modèles, de leur iconographie et des contextes dans lesquels ils sont découverts. En effet, de l’époque archaïque à l’époque classique, des modèles de bateau ont également été mis au jour en contexte cultuel (Amathonte, Salamine) et palatial (Amathonte), suggérant leur association à une divinité ainsi qu’au pouvoir royal, mais aussi le rôle tenu par ces terres cuites dans certains cultes de ces cités. Cette communication entend ainsi revenir sur la fonction de ces artefacts et éclairer la symbolique à laquelle ils se rapportent ainsi que les concepts qu’ils véhiculent. Plus qu’un reflet de l’activité de marin, ces objets, déposés dans les tombes, renvoient vraisemblablement à la navigation eschatologique, comme le suggère, par exemple, la position adoptée par les personnages parfois représentés à l’intérieur de ces bateaux. Nous le verrons, cette pratique et l’idéologie à laquelle elle se rattache, semblent en outre trouver leurs origines dans les coutumes funéraires égyptiennes, apportant ainsi un nouveau témoignage de l’influence de la Vallée du Nil sur certaines populations de l’île et sur leurs croyances.
Sail
to Eternity. Cypriot terracotta boat models and their association with the
eschatological sailing
Models of boat form an original production of the Cypriot coroplastic art corpus within
which they hold a significant place. In fact more than one hundred of pieces
are known, the majority of which was discovered in graves as a deposit for the
deceased. This practice seems to be attested from the Middle Bronze Age to the
beginning of the Classical period but only on a restricted number of sites and
particularly, for the Iron Age, at Amathous: this city offers by far the largest
concentration of discoveries.
These artifacts are generally put in connection with maritime
activities such as commercial navigation and fishing; as such their
presence in graves would reflect the activity of sailor and\or fisherman of the
deceased. To our opinion, this hypothesis tends to minimize the significance
of these objects. Although we cannot rule out this idea, it is far from being
satisfactory regarding the multiplicity of the models, their morphological
diversity, their iconography and the contexts in which they are discovered. From
the archaic to the classical period, models of boats were found in
religious (Amathous, Salamis) and in palatial (Amathous) contexts, suggesting
their association to a divinity as well as to the royal power, but also the
role they played in some cults of these cities.
This communication aims at going back to the
function and to the symbolism of these artifacts as well as to the concepts
which they convey. More than a reflection of the sailor activity, these objects
deposited in graves take us back to the eschatology and the concept of
funerary navigation, as suggested, for example, by the position adopted by the characters
sometimes represented inside these boats. As we will see, this
practice and the ideology with which it is connected seem to find their
origins in the Egyptian burial customs, so bringing new evidence of the
influence of the Nile Valley on certain populations of the island and on their religious
beliefs.
Bérénice Chamel (Université Lumière-Lyon 2), Modwene Poulmarc’h (Université Lumière-Lyon 2), Yasemin Yilmaz (Université Bordeaux 1), Gaëlle Granier (Université de la Méditerranée), Emmanuelle Vila (Université Lumière-Lyon 2), Eftychia Zachariou (Department of Antiquities, Cyprus), Françoise Le Mort (Université Lumière-Lyon 2)
Apport de l’anthropologie à la compréhension des pratiques funéraires aux époques hellénistique et romaine : le cas de la tombe d’Ambeli tou Englezou à Polis Chrysochous (Chypre)A l’occasion de la construction d’un complexe touristique dans la partie ouest de l’île, en 1997, une fouille de sauvetage dirigée par E. Zachariou a permis la mise au jour d’une tombe (MP 339) creusée dans la roche, au lieu dit Ambeli tou Englezou, sur le site de Polis Chrysochous. Cet ensemble funéraire est daté des périodes hellénistique et romaine. Les modes de traitement des défunts à ces périodes sont, à ce jour, peu connues à Chypre car très peu d’études anthropologiques ont été effectuées. Cette tombe, qui a subi des pillages, comporte une chambre principale rectangulaire orientée Ouest-Est de laquelle partent quatre chambres funéraires secondaires (A, B, C, D) et cinq loculi (1, 2, 3, 4, 5). L’accès à la chambre principale s’effectue par un dromos incliné qui comporte un escalier taillé dans la roche. Les ossements recueillis sont en très mauvais état. Néanmoins, le nombre minimum d’individus a pu être estimé à 65 dont 47 adultes dont le sexe n’a pas pu être déterminé, 17 sujets immatures tous âgés de plus de 2 ans et un individu d’âge indéterminé. Les loculi contiennent chacun les restes d’un adulte tandis que le nombre minimum d’individus contenu dans les chambres secondaires varie de 2 à 12. La chambre principale, quant à elle, a livré au moins 26 individus. Les défunts étaient accompagnés d’un mobilier funéraire abondant. Des restes fauniques ont également été retrouvés dans les chambres funéraires. Une comparaison avec les résultats des analyses anthropologiques effectuées sur les ensembles funéraires contemporains de Chypre et des régions voisines est proposée.
Contribution of anthropology to the understanding of funerary practices during the Hellenistic and Roman periods: the example of the tomb from Ambeli tou Englezou at Polis Chrysochous (Cyprus) In 1997, during the construction of a tourist complex in the western part of the island, a tomb (MP 339) carved into the rock had been revealed by a rescue excavation conducted by E. Zachariou, in a place called Ambeli tou Englezou, at the site of Polis Chrysochous. This funerary complex dates back to Hellenistic and Roman periods. Funerary gestures are so far little known in Cyprus for these periods as very few anthropological studies have been performed. This tomb which has been looted, includes a rectangular main chamber west-east oriented from which extend four secondary burial chambers (A, B, C, D) and five loculi (1, 2, 3, 4, 5). Access to the main chamber is via a sloping dromos with a staircase carved in the rock. The state of preservation of the skeletal remains is very poor. Nevertheless, the minimum number of individuals could be estimated at 65, including 47 adults of indeterminate sex, 17 immature individuals more than 2 years old and one individual of unknown age. Each loculus contains the remains of one adult individual, whereas the minimum number of individuals in the secondary burial chambers varies from 2 to 12. At least 26 individuals were recovered from the main chamber. The dead were accompanied by a large number of grave goods. Faunal remains were also found in burial chambers. Our results will be compared with those from other anthropological studies performed on contemporary funerary complexes from Cyprus and neighbouring areas.
Constantinos Constantinou (University of East Anglia)
7th to 5th millennium Eastern Mediterranean: Identifying Contacts between Cyprus and North Levant after the Break-down of PPNB Interaction SphereMy study will seek to investigate the extent of social and economic behavior in the Eastern Mediterranean through the course of the late Neolithic period (ca 7500 BC to 4000 BC). The area of focus is the island of Cyprus and the adjacent Eastern Mediterranean littoral which is contemporary Syria. The reason for choosing this study is partly due to previous research I did during my MA on the potential contacts (cultural or anthropological) of Pre Pottery Neolithic societies of Cyprus with the adjacent mainland. This research focused on the period immediately preceding this present study and demonstrated that contacts existed between Cyprus and the mainland as early as 9000 BC and continued to be observable in the archaeological record until 7000 BC. This research was bolstered by the results of research published by Peltenburg (2001, 2003, 2007), which concluded that Cyprus was colonized from mainland Syria or south-eastern Anatolia during the late 10th or early 9th millennium BC. The way in which Cyprus was colonized and the subsequent ''naturalization'' of mainland populations on the island is of tremendous importance for our understanding of island colonisations generally and relationships between the Eastern Mediterranean littoral and Cyprus specifically. With this in mind, my research intends to investigate the ways in which contact continued into the later Neolithic, specifically, whether similarities in economic and social behaviours of the Cypriot and mainland populations can be documented after the initial colonisation phase during the Pre Pottery Neolithic B.
Anna P. Georgiadou (Université de Provence - University of Athens)
À propos de la production céramique géométrique d’Amathonte : essai de caractérisation Le corpus de la céramique amathousienne s’est considérablement enrichi depuis ces dernières années notamment grâce aux nombreuses fouilles de sauvetage et fouilles programmées effectuées dans la région. Si des publications récentes ont permis de définir la production céramique amathousienne de la période archaïque et de mettre en évidence son originalité, on ne peut pas en dire autant pour la période géométrique qui demeure mal connue. Par une étude du matériel céramique provenant de différents contextes amathousiens (tombes, palais, dépôt) datés du Chypro-géométrique, cette communication entend ainsi définir et caractériser cette production locale tout en soulignant ses particularités – traits locaux qui la distinguent sensiblement des productions contemporaines des autres régions de l’île. On the Geometric Pottery Production of Amathous The corpus of the Amathousian pottery has been considerably increased during the last years due to numerous salvage and systematic excavations conducted in the region. Even if the recent publications have achieved to define clearly the pottery production of the archaic period from Amathous and have revealed its original character, it is difficult to claim the same about the Cypro-Geometric period, which still remains not well known. The present paper, based on a study of the ceramic material from different contexts of the Cypro-Geometric period (tombs, palace, depository assemblage), aims to define and characterize the local pottery production by indicating the particularities- regional elements that evidently differentiate it from the contemporary productions of the other regions of the island.
Artemis Georgiou (Merton College, University of Oxford)
Settlement Histories of Cyprus in the twelfth century BC The politically and economically powerful polities which flourished during the Late Bronze Age in the Eastern Mediterranean ended in crisis. At the end of the thirteenth century BC, and by the beginning of the twelfth the palace-based societies of the Hittite Empire and Mycenaean Greece collapsed, while most of the prosperous Syro-Palestinian states suffered severe conflagrations and were eventually abandoned. Cyprus, being located in the crossroads between the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean, holds a focal point in discussions involving these so-called ‘Crisis Years’. Early attempts to comprehend the island’s response to the Mediterranean-wide crisis failed to take into consideration Cyprus’ individual character: its first organisation in urbanised centres was much belated, compared to the centuries-old state formation of the mainland polities, and was evidently stimulated by the external demand for Cypriot copper. The Late Bronze Age political geography of the island encompassed a number of polities, as a rule located along the coast. These operated at a regional level and were in control of the local resources and the trade of copper. The impact of the general ‘Crisis’ on Cyprus was neither devastating nor uniform over the entire island. Enkomi and Sinda appear to have suffered some destructions, while destruction-less abandonments are observed at Toumba tou Skourou, Maroni-Vournes, Kalavasos-Ayios Dhimitrios. The short-lived settlements of Pyla-Kokkinokremos and Maa-Palaeokastro were newly founded during this period. Unlike the rest of the Mediterranean, a significant number of sites, most notably Kition and Palaepaphos, present an apparent political and material continuity from the end of the Late Bronze to the Early Iron Age. The aim of this paper is to highlight the divergent and regional responses of the Late Cypriot polities to the twelfth-century ‘Crisis’, and reproduce their individual settlement histories.
Jan-Marc Henke (University of Vienna)
New Evidences for the Definition of Workshops of Cypriote Terracottas at East Aegean Findingspots and its Chronological Background Archaic Cypriote terracottas are a very large group of finds at many East Aegean findingspots. In the hitherto scientific research the classification and dating of the terracottas still depends on the stilistical and chronological system applied by Einar Gjerstad in the first half of the 20th century. The system was challenged by Gerhard Schmidt in 1968. According to stratigraphical evidence from the Heraion of Samos Schmidt proposed a higher dating of the styles, so that the import of Cypriote terracottas reached the East Aegean from about 670/60 until 560 B.C. for more than one century. Since this time the scientific research goes on to conform both systems, while Schmidt’s chronological order is being preferred. First at all Sabine Fourrier declined both systems in 2007 and exposed Gjerstad’s different chronological styles as contemporary regional styles on Cyprus. In consequence of new researches in the Heraion of Samos and in the sanctuary of Aphrodite at Miletus the paper goes forward to show the possibility of arranging the corpus of Cypriote terracottas in the East Aegean in a new way. At first it can be shown that the origin of most of the terracottas depends on a very small number of workshops, mostly located close to the area of Salamis on Cyprus. Hitherto this was suggested for the Cypriote plaque shaped figurines but can also be shown now for the plenty of hollow moulded terracottas. By contrast to Schmidt's system, new evidence in Miletus allows to contain the chronological limits of the import of most of the terracottas to a very short period of about two or three decades in the 7th century B. C. According to this the results establish a new perspective on the appearance of Cypriote terracottas in East Aegean sanctuaries and raise new questions about the background of the offerings. So there are some new clues for its dedication by the local East Aegean population rather than by Cypriotes merchants. Although there never will be an incontrovertible proof.
Hesperia Iliadou (Neapolis University, Cyprus), Philippe Trélat (Université de Rouen)
Tracing the Market Place: commercial and artisan activity in Nicosia between the Latin and Ottoman eras This paper will draw information from traveller’s accounts, chronicles, achive and archaeological material related to the commercial and artisan activity of the city of Nicosia during the Latin and Ottoman Periods.The study will develop in three parts; The first and second part will examine and present the different trades and crafts that were flourishing in the city during the Latin and Ottoman periods consequently. The paper in these two first sections will not only refer to the different trades and craft shops but also attempt to present the location of each within the city, tracing different areas devoted to different trades or products. The interest the city of Nicosia bears spurs from the fact that within its walls and surroundings a number of different crafts were developed and a rich variety of products from all over the island were sold in the city’s busy market streets and moreover, in time different areas within the city that were devoted to different products.The last section of this study will conclude with a comparative presentation of how products found and sold in the city may have changed, both in kind and in the location of their place of trade between the Latin and Ottoman Period.Localiser les marchés : les activités artisanales et commerciales à Nicosie durant les périodes latine et ottomane (XIIIe-XIXe siècles)Cette communication s'appuiera sur les récits de voyage, les chroniques, les documents d'archives et les sources archéologiques en rapport avec les activités artisanales et commerciales à Nicosie durant la domination latine et ottomane. L'étude sera menée en trois parties ; les première et deuxième parties examineront et présenteront les différents commerces et artisanats qui ont prospéré dans la ville successivement au cours des périodes latine et ottomane.Cette communication dans ces deux premières parties se donne également pour objectif de proposer des hypothèses de localisation des différents marchés, commerces et lieux de distribution. L'intérêt que l'on peut porter à la capitale chypriote tient dans la diversité des artisanats, la variété des produits provenant de toute l'île et vendus dans les rues commerçantes et animés de la ville.La dernière partie de cette étude sera consacrée à une présentation des évolutions observées entre les périodes latine et ottomane concernant la nature des produits qui circulent et leurs lieux de distribution dans la capitale.
Niki Kyriakou (Cyprus Institute)
Developing a GIS and Agent Based Modeling simulation for identifying territories, settlement distribution patterns, sites hierarchies and interrelations: the case study of the rural environment of roman towns of Cyprus Territorial boundaries, settlement distributions, sites hierarchies and interrelations have always been the main emphasis areas of landscape archaeology. The current paper is the initial layout of the authors PhD project, which aims in the integration of Geographic Information Systems site catchment analysis and Agent Based Modeling in order to develop a simulation that can capture the environmental, economic and cognitive aspects of the rural landscapes structures in Roman Cyprus. The proposed model attempts to overcome the existing limitations of GIS, due to its environmentally deterministic nature, and proceed a step forward using Agent Based modeling that can provide an environment for simulating social phenomena. The aim of the current project is to develop a GIS, ABM simulation for identifying the territories, the rural extent of Roman towns, and decoding any settlement patterns, hierarchies and interrelations found within each territory. In order to develop such a model the case study of the rural environment of Roman towns on the island of Cyprus was selected. The aspects of the rural environment of Roman Cyprus that will be modeled are: 1) the territorial extent of each town and the variables that define each territory, 2) the absence or presence of settlement patterns within the territory of each town's rural landscape, 3) the hierarchy and interrelations of sites located in the periphery of the urban centers.
David Ian Lightbody (University of Glasgow)
Signs of Conciliation: The hybridised ‘Tree of Life’ in the Iron Age City Kingdoms of CyprusIn this presentation I will outline how the motif of the ‘Tree of Life’ was adopted and adapted by the inhabitants of the Iron Age city kingdoms of Cyprus.The 'Tree of Life' was a central element of Cypriot ritual and belief during the Iron Age. Although it has been studied before as an artistic motif, it has not been considered within a contextualised archaeology that evaluates why it was so significant, how it developed and what it meant to the Cypriots. My research uses a multi-scalar analysis, based in postcolonial theory, to carefully interpret and understand the symbol, and the ways in which it was used in sanctuaries and mortuary contexts of the Cypriot city kingdoms.The way in which items carrying the motif were used within the Iron Age landscape reveals what their ritual significance was, beyond their value as prestige decorated items. Evidence associating these symbols and artifacts with the East Mediterranean fertility goddesses and with the concepts of life and rebirth will be judiciously evaluated.Finally, I will argue that cultural variations were reconciled through the hybridisation of different iconographic traditions that incorporated this symbol. The different expressions of the symbol therefore correspond to the unique cultural identity of each polity.
Paul Nowakowski (University of Warsaw)
The family of Titus Flavius Glaukos, procurator of βυθίη Κύπρος We only know four procuratores provinciae Cypri from the Roman period. They were listed by T.B. Mitford in his famous article The Roman Cyprus in Aufstieg and Niedergang der römischen Welt. One of them, called T. Flavius Glaukos, is attested by a poetic inscription set up by his daugther in Athens. Here he is described in the following way: ἄριστος ἐτύχη ἱππήων βυθίην Κύπρον ἐπιτροπέων (IG II2 3662: he was the best of all the equites, who held the office of the procurator of Cyprus flowed by deep waters). Mitford dated his post between the years 180 and 220 C.E. and provided a set of sources attestating this person. In my opinion, however, the renowned scholar mistook Flavius Glaukos, the procurator for his homonymous son. Thus the list of attestating sources should be slightly different and the date should also be changed: most probably 150-180 C.E. The family of Glaukoi from the Marathon was rich in sophists and hierophants of the Eleusinian mysteries. They were related to the most powerful families of Attica in the Roman period. An aboundant family tree was depicted by J.H. Oliver in his article Two Athenian Poets in “Hesperia”, vol. 8 (1949). Unfortunately it does not include direct ancestors of the procurator of Cyprus. In my opininon the epigraphic sources from the Athenian agora can provide us enough data to complete this family tree up to the fourth generation before our procurator, reaching back to the beginning of the 1st century C.E., the time before the family gained the Roman citizenship.
Charalambos Paraskeva (University of Edinburgh)
Middle/Late Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age Cyprus: New Perspectives in Archaeological Theory and Techniques - An Introduction The paper to be presented here serves as an introduction to a PhD research project that has recently been started at the University of Edinburgh in regards to the operation, interactions and transformations of social structures and formations during the Middle/Late Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age on the island. It is observed that up to the present time a plethora of spatio-temporally and oftentimes theoretically limited and frequently incongruent or even conflicting theories have been proposed regarding the form, historical trajectories and transformations of the social groupings inhabiting Cyprus in the aforesaid periods. Nevertheless a comprehensive, island-wide overview of the socio-political and cultural systems of the periods in question is still lacking, while the issue of the transition from the Late Chalcolithic to the Early Bronze Age is still under heated debate. In this short presentation I do not intend to critique the aforementioned theoretical propositions, nor present final findings, as the project is still at an incipient stage of data collection and assessment. However I aim to firstly outline research goals and working hypotheses, secondly present the theoretical substratum of the project, which aspires to fuse concepts from complexity theory, social networks analysis and cultural transmittance theory; and thirdly to delineate the methodological approach to be employed, which aims at a synthesis of archaeological research techniques ranging from pottery studies to spatial analysis and robust social networks statistics.
Anna Paule (Université de Provence)
La parure protohistorique de Chypre : une recherche de traces sur le continent grec L’apparition de parures de style phénicien (autrefois dit « oriental ») sur des sites chypriotes et grecs entre le XIIe et le VIIe s. av. J.-C., dans des contextes surtout funéraires, est un phénomène bien attesté. La présente communication voudrait s’écarter des clichés sur les fameux « Âges obscurs » en proposant un réexamen d’une sélection de parures significatives. Le but sera notamment de mettre en évidence les signes de contact effectifs entre Orient et Occident que traduisent ces pièces faites en or ainsi qu’en d’autres matières. Outre cette analyse critique du matériel provenant de divers sites renommés à Chypre comme en Grèce, il s’agira d’évaluer quels autres moyens pourraient confirmer ou infirmer nos hypothèses sur l’appartenance culturelle des parures. À cet égard, la céramique venant du même complexe est considérée comme la preuve la plus parlante quant aux relations ayant existé entre les deux pays. En fin de compte, les résultats, obtenus principalement par des analyses visuelles, indiquent des découvertes moins isolées qu’on pourrait le supposer. En même temps, il faut se garder de l’idée préconçue de découvrir d’anciennes voies commerciales à partir des modèles de diffusion des objets de parure : outre cette hypothèse des intérêts commerciaux, ces points de contact se laissent en effet expliquer par d’autres facteurs à étudier, tels que les intermariages avec les populations indigènes, la « colonisation invisible » (phénomènes de migration) ou encore l’activité d’artisans itinérants.Protohistoric jewellery from Cyprus: a search for clues from mainland Greece The appearance of Phoenician (or « oriental ») jewellery at Cypriot and Greek sites, especially those relating to a funerary context, is a well-known phenomenon which we meet also from the 12th to the 7th century BC. However, the aim of the present paper is to avoid any cliché about the famous “Dark Ages” by a careful analysis of some significant pieces with regard to signs of contacts between Orient and Occident. For this analysis not only gold jewellery but also pieces made from bronze, etc., can be quoted. In addition to this study of material found at well-know sites in Cyprus and Greece, one should consider further evidence which could bear witness to our hypotheses on cultural interactions by going beyond the mere documentation of jewellery. In this respect, the pottery, which generally is regarded as the most convincing evidence for long-distance contacts, seems to be most suitable. Following this approach which is primarily dependent on visual analyses, it is evident that such discoveries seem to be less sporadic as one might suppose. At the same time, care must be taken to avoid the preconceived idea of discovering the former trade routes by studying the given diffusion patterns of jewellery. Aside from hypotheses about long-distance trade, a variety of suggestions have been put forward concerning the visible points of contact which were rather caused by different factors such as intermarriages with the indigenous population, phenomena of migration, or wandering craftsmen.
Anja Ulbrich (Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford)
Sculpture from ancient Idalion: the earliest provenanced find-assemblage in the Ashmolean's Cypriot Collection In 1874, thirteen limestone heads and one headless limestone figure were registered in the Ashmolean inventory books as having been acquired by Mr Henry Christy in the village of Dali, the site of the ancient city-kingdom of Idalion. They are the earliest provenanced find-assemblage from Cyprus reaching the Ashmolean, which had started its Cypriot collection by buying 28 pieces of gold jewellery from an unrecorded source only one year previously, i.e. in 1873. The Idalion sculptures were part of a donation of more than 400 mostly Egyptian, but also Greek antiquities, presented to the Ashmolean by the Trustees of the Christy Collection, dispersed and sold off after the death of the banker, ethnographer and antiquities collector Henry Christy (born in 1810) in 1865. The sculpture from Dali, exclusively depicting women and dating to the Late Classical and Hellenistic period, can certainly be identified as votive sculpture. They must have come from one, or perhaps several, of the various sanctuaries in and around the ancient city of Idalion. This paper will present and interpret those unpublished pieces in the light of current research. Moreover, it attempts to re-contextualise the sculptures by investigating which sanctuaries of Idalion were in use during these periods and which of those were explored or robbed, and by whom, prior to 1865. Thereby, the paper also addresses the issues and problems of the early history of collecting Cypriot Antiquities before Cypriot archaeology became a more systematic and scholarly discipline.
Yannick Vernet (Université d'Avignon et des Pays de Vaucluse)
L’Apollon chypriote : De la nature et des animaux L’Apollon célébré à Chypre possède une personnalité très particulière qui le différencie, par bien des aspects, du modèle classique du panthéon grec. L’une de ces particularités concerne le rapport du dieu avec la nature et les animaux, composante essentielle de la personnalité d’Apollon ; mais cet aspect de la divinité dans l’île comporte également des spécificités. Ainsi, Apollon Hylates sera l’élément central de cette réflexion. Cette divinité bien connue et liée au monde animal et au cycle de la nature n’a cependant jamais réellement été étudiée en profondeur, tant au niveau de ses caractéristiques cultuelles que des schémas iconographiques qui lui sont rattachés. De même, dans cette étude, seront évoquées d’autres facettes de l’Apollon chypriote comme Melanthiosou Myrtates, dont le possible rapport avec les plantes laisse entrevoir un aspect curatif du dieu. De plus, il peut être constaté que le culte et/ou l’iconographie de ce dieu à Chypre sont souvent en rapport avec divers animaux. Ainsi, les interactions entre Apollon et le taureau, le serpent ou encore le cerf seront présentées au cours de cette recherche, tant au niveau des différentes symboliques qu’impliquent ces relations qu’à celui de l’iconographie qui leur est associée. Ainsi, de nouvelles caractéristiques de l’Apollon vénéré à Chypre seront mises en lumière, apportant de nouvelles précisions sur le culte bien particulier dont faisait l’objet ce dieu sur l’ile. The Cypriote Apollo : On the nature and animals This paper aims at presenting the specific personality of the Apollo worshipped in Cyprus, different on several aspects from the classical model of the Greek pantheon. One of these special characteristics concerns the relation of the god with the nature and animals, essential components of the Apollo character. In order to define these specificities, the god Apollo Hylates will be the central element of this reflection. This well-known divinity, linked with the realm of animals and the cycle of the nature, its worship characteristics and the iconographic representations related to it, have never really been fully studied. In the same way, some other aspects of the Cypriote Apollo will be mentioned like Melanthios orMyrtates, of which the possible link with some plants let us have a glimpse on the curative aspect of the god. Moreover, it is possible to notice that the cult and/or the iconography of Apollo in Cyprus are very often related to various animals. This relation is expressed through the interactions between the divinity and the bull, the snake or the deer. The above notions will be explored in this paper, in the context of both the different symbolism that they are implying and their interrelation and their associated imagery. Based on these results, the paper will conclude in drafting the particular, even in some aspects unique, character/image and substance of the God Apollo and its worship on the island of Cyprus.
Christian Vonhoff (German Archaeological Institute - Athens)
The Phenomenon of Feasting in Early Iron Age Cyprus – Bronze and Iron Obeloi from Cypriot Tombs as Evidence for Elite Self-Conception, Social Networks and Trans-Mediterranean Cultural Exchange This paper concentrates on the numerous manifestations of bronze and iron obeloi from Cypriot burial contexts of the Early Iron Age (CG/CA), deriving from famous findspots such as the cemeteries of Amathus, Palaepaphos, Patriki, Salamis or Tamassos. Besides the chronological framework, the materials and techniques used or the formal distinction of different types of obeloi, a diachronic approach towards the social significance and cultural meaning of the institution of the aristocratic banquet, whose appearance on Cyprus is attested through various burial gifts and which probably has to be addressed as an indigenous Greek habit, is undertaken. Therefore the preserved repertoire of Early Iron Age obeloi from Cyprus is complemented by finds from other regions of the contemporaneous Mediterranean world, more precisely from the Aegean (e.g. Knossos, Eleutherna), Sardinia and the Atlantic Bronze Age. Those are embedded in the archaeological examination of the “Cypriot” obeloi mentioned above to gain a wider perspective on the cultural offspring and the geographic distribution of these prestigious artefacts, in such an extent putting the spectrum of obeloi from Cyprus in a Trans-Mediterranean context. This Trans-Mediterranean setting then leads over to final considerations regarding the cultural meaning of feasting in Early Iron Age Cyprus, which according to the archaeological record can exclusively be connected with individuals of high social rank. The final outcome of this is that a direct connection between aristocratic habit, intercultural exchange and burial practice can be established.
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