Cypriots at Delphi (Archaic- end of classical period)

Dr Hélène Aurigny
Associate professor, Aix Marseille Univ, CNRS, CCJ, Aix-en-Provence, France

The existence of “exotica” in Greek sanctuaries is a well-known phenomenon in the Archaic period. The presence of Cypriot objects at Delphi is attested both by archaeological and literary sources, but the definition of the corpus itself raises many questions. These objects, mainly from the Apollo sanctuary, constitute a significant set with some usual series and some exceptional artefacts. The sanctuary at Delphi received ages-old objects and seems to be well connected to the traffic routes followed by Cypriot objects in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Delphi thus offers an interesting viewpoint to observe these complex networks and especially the role played by Crete in the transfer to Greece of craft processes from Cyprus.


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Συλλογές κυπριακών νομισμάτων στο Διαδίκτυο:
μια νέα εποχή ανοιχτής πρόσβασης στο υλικό των μουσείων

Δρ Ευαγγελινή Μάρκου
Κύρια Ερευνήτρια
Ινστιτούτο Ιστορικών Ερευνών / Εθνικό Ίδρυμα Ερευνών

Η εξέλιξη της τεχνολογίας, και η συνεχής ενασχόληση των επιμελητών των μουσείων και των βοηθών τους με την ψηφιοποίηση των συλλογών, προσφέρει τη δυνατότητα στον σύγχρονο ερευνητή να εντοπίσει σήμερα έναν σημαντικό αριθμό αρχαιολογικών αντικειμένων στο διαδίκτυο. Τα τελευταία χρόνια μάλιστα, οι πληροφορίες που συνοδεύουν τα αντικείμενα αυτά δεν περιορίζονται στην εικόνα και τον αριθμό ευρετηρίου των ψηφιοποιημένων αντικειμένων, αλλά εμπλουτίζονται διαρκώς με πλήρεις περιγραφές, διαστάσεις, εικόνες υψηλής ανάλυσης των διαφορετικών όψεων και – εξαιρετικά σημαντικό -, με συναφή βιβλιογραφία.


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Κυπριακή κεραμική στο Αιγαίο της Πρώιμης Εποχής του Σιδήρου: αγγεία με μελανό διάκοσμο επί ερυθρού επιχρίσματος

Δρ Γιώργος Μπουρογιάννης
Μεταδικτορικός ερευνητής/Επιστημονικός Υπεύθυνος ερευν. έργου CyCoMed
Ινστιτούτο Ιστορικών Ερευνών/Εθνικό Ίδρυμα Ερευνών

Όσο μελετούμε και κατανοούμε το τέλος της δεύτερης και τις αρχές της πρώτης χιλιετίας π.Χ., τόσο περισσότερο καθίσταται σαφές ότι οι εξωτερικές επαφές του Αιγαίου, και ειδικά εκείνες με τον ευρύτερο χώρο της ανατολικής Μεσογείου, περιορίστηκαν αλλά ουδέποτε διακόπηκαν ολοσχερώς. Αντιθέτως, η απουσία μιας ισχυρής πολιτικής και οικομικής εξουσίας στον ελλαδικό χώρο κατά το προαναφερθέν διάστημα οδήγησε στην ανάπτυξη υπερπόντιας εμπορικής επικοινωνίας πιο περιστασιακής και μικρότερης κλίμακας, η οποία δεν ήταν ασήμαντη και, το σημαντικότερο, παραμένει αρχαιολογικά ανιχνεύσιμη. Αν και είναι δύσκολο να διαπιστωθεί με απόλυτη βεβαιότητα, τα αρχαιολογικά δεδομένα που έχουμε στη διάθεσή μας υποδεικνύουν ότι πολύ σημαντικό ρόλο στη διατήρηση (ή την επανεκκίνηση) των επαφών του Αιγαίου με την ανατολική Μεσόγειο διαδραμάτισαν οι Κύπριοι οι οποίοι ήταν πολύ καλοί γνώστες των θαλάσσιων διαδρομών της ανατολικής Μεσογείου.


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Cypriot basket-handle amphorae

Dr Kristian Göransson
Senior lecturer
University of Gothenburg

The so-called basket-handle amphorae were common in the Eastern Mediterranean from the seventh century BC until the early Hellenistic period. The shape was originally characterised by a biconical body, which later evolved into a cylindrical form, with an elongated base or toe. The rim is vertical or rolled and the handles, which often are rounded in section, are arched vertically above the rim. Basket-handle amphorae are considerably larger than the typical Greek transport amphora, and could contain some 65 to 80 litres. A filled amphora may have weighed around 100 kg. Given the way in which the handles are positioned, these amphorae must have been carried by two persons with the help of a pole stuck through the handles, as is shown on a Cypriot-Phoenician bronze bowl.


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Paphians outside Paphos. Inscriptions in the Paphian Syllabary found outside Cyprus.

Dr Agnieszka Halczuk
Université Lumière Lyon 2

The City-Kingdom of Paphos is characterized by a long writing tradition that dates back to the Late Bronze Age. Between 1600 B.C. and 900 B.C. a writing system called Cypro-Minoan was attested on the island. At some point perhaps around the Late Bronze Age or Early Iron Age, the Greek language started to be used on Cyprus. The Cypro-Minoan script was therefore modified in order to record this new language. The site of Paphos yielded few but significant documents that can be interpreted as transitory between Cypro-Minoan and Cypro-Syllabic. Those texts from 10th and 9th centuries B.C. reflect to some extent the modifications that the Bronze Age script underwent before it finally became what we call today the Paphian syllabary.


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Cyprus and the LBA/EIA metallurgy on Thasos

Dr Petya Ilieva
Bulgarian Academy of Sciences

The Northern Aegean is rarely considered in discussions of the LBA – EIA patterns of interaction between the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean and if so, it is usually mentioned in the context of the Phoenician pursuit of metals. The still very limited amount of objects of Cypriot and Levantine origin or associations and their patchy distribution in the Northern Aegean record restricts the feasibility of a systematic approach and renders any conclusion preliminary. Considering the strong ties between Cyprus and metropolitan Phoenicia, including the establishment of Kition on the island, the contemporary advance and sometimes shared context of Cypriot and Phoenician artefacts in the Northern Aegean, as well as the nature of the expanding Late Geometric and Archaic sea-borne commercial networks linking the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean, it seems very likely that some (if not most) Levantine materials reached the Northern Aegean via or from Cyprus itself.


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Visible and invisible cargoes in the Late Bronze Age: The view from the shipwrecks
CyCoMed

Dr Angelos Papadopoulos
Institute of Historical Research/National Hellenic Research Foundation

Introduction
Shipwrecks can be considered as time-capsules due to the fact that time literally stopped at the time of the sinking and (unless looted in later times). The scattered cargo can provide valuable data regarding the chronology, trade and exchange networks, marine engineering, movement of people and objects, as well as the diplomatic relationships between the upper classes and the “superpowers” in the Eastern Mediterranean during the Late Bronze Age (ca. 1650-1100 BCE).


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A biological distance analysis of Cyprus population from Chalcolithic to Late Bronze Age

Christos Papadopoulos
PhD Candidate
University of Wales, Trinity St David

Introduction
The subject of my doctoral study was designed to explore the biological affinities of Cypriot populations from the Chalcolithic period until the Late Bronze Age. It has tested the relationships between different regional and temporal settlements based on the evaluation and analysis of the frequencies of non-metric dental traits, by identifying similarities and potential discrepancies in dental morphology. The latter serving as a proxy for genetic data might indicate a change of the composition of the inhabitants reflecting a potential migration event.


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«Το άρμα στην αιγαιακή και κυπριακή εικονογραφία της Ύστερης Εποχή του Χαλκού»

Βανέσσα Παππά
Ινστιτούτο Ιστορικών Ερευνών/Εθνικό Ίδρυμα Ερευνών

Στη διάρκεια της 2ης χιλιετίας π.Χ. κάνει την εμφάνισή του στην περιοχή της ανατολικής Μεσογείου και της Εγγύς Ανατολής το άρμα, το οποίο αποτέλεσε σήμα κατατεθέν των σημαντικότερων περιοχών στη διάρκεια της Ύστερης Εποχής του Χαλκού (1650-1050 π.Χ.). Πρόκειται για το όχημα που πιστώνεται με μία επανάσταση σε ό,τι αφορά τον πόλεμο, το κυνήγι αλλά και τις μετακινήσεις γενικότερα, ενώ συνδέθηκε άρρηκτα με την προβολή κύρους και δύναμης, καθώς η κατοχή του σχετιζόταν με βασιλείς ή ανώτερους κοινωνικά κύκλους.


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Weapons from Cypriot Early Iron Age (EIA) élite burials (LC III B/CG)

Dr Christian Vonhoff †
Research Associate
Department of Archaeological Sciences/Ruhr-University Bochum

Introduction
Already within the oldest work of occidental literature – the Homeric epic of the Iliad – are to be found numerous lines describing the extraordinary lifestyle of an élite circle of heroes that were engaged in the battle for Troy. Their princely status is underlined by several insignia of wealth and power mentioned by the poet – e.g. regal symbols, precious garments, impressive weapons or splendid metal wares connected to the ritual of aristocratic feasting – in such a way resembling the preserved archaeological record from Cyprus at the transition from the 2nd to the 1st millennium BCE.


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Cyprus’ maritime connectivity before and during the transition to the Late Bronze Age. The case of the north and northwest

Dr Jennifer M. Webb
La Trobe University, Melbourne, and The University of Cyprus, Nicosia

Following the early years of the Early Bronze Age, which saw major changes in almost all aspects of society and economy as a result of sustained contact with Anatolia, Cyprus re-entered maritime networks in c. 2000 BC at the beginning of the Middle Bronze Age (MBA). This is best understood in the context of a long-distance trade in raw metals, conducted along sea routes which linked southeast Anatolia and the Levant to the Aegean Basin—and most clearly visible at Lapithos on the north coast, where tomb assemblages include imported goods and show a significant use of imported tin.


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