Volume
71 no. 1–2
March / June 2008
Ancient Cyprus: American Research
6 "Welcome, Sir, to Cyprus": The Local Reaction to American Archaeological Research
by Despina Pilides
From Cesnola to the foundation of CAARI, the author describes the early involvement of Americans in Cypriot archaeology and the Cypriot response to American interest in the region.
16 What's in a Name? CAARI at Thirty
by Thomas W. Davis
This year the Cyprus American Archaeological Research Institute (CAARI) celebrates its thirtieth anniversary. In this retrospective, the Institute's current director reviews its considerable contributions to the advancement of the discipline of Cypriot archaeology.
21 American Researchers and the Earliest Cypriots
by Alan H. Simmons
Research over the past two decades has demonstrated that the Neolithic period on Cyprus is earlier than previously believed. The author presents the evidence for the island's key role in the dynamic processes that defined the Neolithic in the eastern Mediterranean.
30 Bringing Old Excavations to Life
by Joanna S. Smith
Excavated by Columbia in the early 1970s, the site of Phlamoudhi remained unpublished and studied - that is, until the author took up the challenge of publishing the excavations. Here, she shares her experience, including the challenges and rewards that face anyone seeking to publish old excavations.
41 Of Cows, Copper, Corners, and Cult: The Emergence of the Cypriot Bronze Age
by Stuart Swiny
The prehistoric Bronze Age on the island of Cyprus is marked by the increased exploitation of cattle, a flourishing copper industry, the appearance of rectilinear architecture ("corners"), and evidence of ritual activity.The author explores each of these phenomena as he maps the advances made in our understanding of this period.
52 The History of History: Excavations at Idalion and the Changing History of a City-Kingdom
by Pamela Gaber
The site of the ancient city of Idalion has a history stretching from the Bronze Age in the second millennium BCE today and has revealed much about the culture of Cyprus in the first millennium BCE. The two sanctuaries excavated by the author and her teams since 1992 have revealed unexpected connections with cult in ancient Israel and the ancient Near East, as well as connections to the Minoan world. As work continues at the site, our understanding of the nature of the culture of ancient Idalion also continues to change in exciting ways.
64 Polis Chrysochous: Princeton University's Excavations of Ancient Marion and Arsinoe
by William A. P. Childs
The author offers an overview of the Princeton University excavations at Polis Chrysochous at the west end of Cyprus, a site likely to be identified with Archaic-Classical Marion and its Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine successor, Arsinoe.
76 The Kyrenia Ship: Her Recent Journey
by Susan Katzev
The Kryenia Ship, the only shipwreck excavated from the sea that encircles Cyprus, was uncovered in 1968 and 1969, then conserved and reassembled in Kyrenia Castle, all under the direction of Michael L. Katzev. Under the direction of his widow, new analyses of this forty-year-old shipwreck excavation, including experimental archaeology, new testing methods, and the use of virtual reality, have offered many new insights into the ship's construction and cargo.
82 Surveying Late Antique Cyprus
by William Caraher, R. Scott Moore, and David Pettegrew
The site of Pyla-Koutsopoetria, revealed by excavation and survey, was a late Roman coastal town covering some forty hectares. The authors discuss the methods of the survey as they relate to Mediterranean landscape archaeology more generally, and the results of the survey as they contribute to our understanding of the economic and cultural structures of Late Roman Cyprus.
90 From Polis to Pasture: Exploring the Cypriot Countryside of Late Antiquity
by Marcus Rautman
North America's contribution to the archaeology of early Cyprus has taken the form of both urban excavation and regional survey. Many of the methods devised for exploring habitation and land use in prehistoric times are particularly well suited to the study of later antiquity. Due to the intensity with which the Cypriote countryside has been sampled, it has yielded a uniquely detailed picture of this strategic province of the Late Roman Empire.
95 Dumbarton Oaks and the Legacy of Byzantine Cyprus
by Annemarie Weyl Carr
The name of Dumbarton Oaks is indelibly bound to the Byzantine monuments of Cyprus. Dumbarton Oaks restored and consolidated the murals in seven Cypriot churches of Byzantine date, predominantly of the twelfth century when Cyprus was a high-protocol province of the empire and deeply affected by the art of Constantinople. These projects have yielded exceptionally rich insights into Byzantine painting techniques, church programs, and imagery.
104 "Twixt Cross and Crescent": CAARI and the Cultural History of Crusader and Islamic Cyprus
Bethany J. Walker
The last twenty years have witnessed a growing appreciation of Cyprus' medieval and post-medieval heritage. Scholarship on the Ottoman period is moving in exciting directions thanks to innovative projects and is keeping pace with trajectories in Ottoman studies in the larger eastern Mediterranean. The author reviews past work and predicts future directions for this fascinating period in Cypriot history.
111 Short Skulls, Long Skulls, and Thalassemia: J. Lawrence Angel and the Development of Cypriot Anthropology
Nathan K. Harper
American anthropologist J. Lawrence Angel's analyses of the skeletal remains from Khirokitia, Sotira, Bamboula at Kourion, along with his groundbreaking study of the living population of the mixed Greek-Cypriot, Turkish-Cypriot village of Episkopi has given archaeologists a more detailed view into the history, demography, and health of ancient Cypriot populations. The author outlines the permanent importance of Angel's research, his influence on past and current anthropological and archaeological studies, and the place of Angel's theories in modern Cypriot anthropology and archaeology.
120 How and Why Potmarks Matter
by Nicolle Hirschfeld
One approach to understanding the organization and complexity of a society is by observing what people choose to keep track of and how. For the archaeologist, the ceramic record provides a fertile field for analysis of patterns of marking, both because of its ubiquity and because marks incised into clay do not disappear. Cyprus is an optimal place to study potmarking systems and their circulation within the Late Bronze Age eastern Mediterranean because of the frequency, variety, and wide distribution of marked pottery (local and imported) in the archaeological record.
130 American Archaeologist in Cypriot Waters: One Nation's Contributions to the Under-water Exploration of Cyprus' Past
by John R. Leonard
Interest in the marine archaeology of Cyprus can be traced back to the early 1960s. Surveys and excavations, in the sea and along the coasts, have revealed ancient shipwrecks, evidence for seaborne trade, and an extensive network of coastal economic outlets that once made Cyprus an important maritime center. The author reviews the role American archaeologists have played in illuminating ancient Cyprus' role in eastern Mediterranean martime life.
139 American Archaeological Expeditions on Cyprus
by Despina Pilides