Lapithos, the autumn 1927–spring 1928 The village of Lapithos is located in the north of Cyprus. Close to Lapithos there is a big grave burial from the Bronze Age (ca. 2000–1800 BCE) with hundreds of graves.
John Myres did an excavation here in 1913 and
Menelaos Markides in 1917. Furthermore, grave diggers had looted the site multiple times before the Swedish archaeologist got there. The Swedish excavation at Lapithos from 1927–1928 resulted in a multitude of ceramics and weapons made of copper and bronze. They also found delicate proboscis jugs with elongated necks (beak spouted) and shiny red paint, which are similar to contemporary ceramics from
Anatolia. Enkomi is located one kilometer west of the ruins of the old
Salamis, close to the river
Pedieos, Cyprus's longest river. The closest modern city is
Famagusta. The tombs excavated here are shaft tombs with a dromos, which are rather rare in Cyprus. Variations of the shaft tombs occur, mostly because of the various circumstances of space and economics as well as difficulties in cutting the rock. The archaeologist identified six different styles. It is the shape of the dromos that differs the most between the different styles. Tombs 1 and 2 differ from the others in the sense of construction and quality and might have been created for wealthier people, maybe royals. Tomb 3 is more reminiscent of the other graves found in Cyprus since it is a chamber tomb. Tomb no. 26 had a large
tumulus and might have been related to other
Hellenistic tumuli. It contained a stone
pithos with an
alabastron in which a burnt skeleton was found. Around the rim of the alabastron a wreath of gilded myrtle leaves was placed. The excavator thought it might have been a
Ptolemaic official who died in Amathus and was buried according to a foreign burial custom. Because the excavators found figures with bull’s masks these were interpreted as priests, which may be a clue to how at least some of the cult’s rituals were performed. Further, many figurines with
tambourines and
flutes indicate that music was an important feature of the cult. The votives consist mostly of terracotta statues of different sizes which were arranged around the altar in semicircles. The smallest ones were placed nearest the altar and the larger statutes in the back. The Swedish archaeologists attempted a
stratigraphic examination of the Bamboula mound to obtain information about the dating of the Phoenician colonization of Cyprus. They wanted to study the ceramic development and collect archaeological material to elucidate how the Phoenicians affected the development of the Cypriote culture. But, after three days of digging, they found a large deposit of sculptures and needed to subsequently enlarge the excavation.
The Temple of Athena Since the temple’s ground has been exposed to weather and wind during the years, only the lowermost part of the walls was preserved. The architectural remains consist of foundation walls and floors of various constructions and compositions. Further, some bases for statues and altars were found. Many of the walls were erected on solid rock and the firm foundation that was made of ashlars kept together by gypsum mortar that needed to be created since the rock slopes towards the west. During Petra I, the ancient people used the natural cavity of the rock to construct a hut. Not much remains of this hut, only a group of rough stones and a culture stratum of dark, sandy earth mixed with ash and carbonized matter. The ash and carbonized matter could be all that is left of the hut’s straw and brushwood walls. During Petra II, two new huts were built. Since the cavity was full of the debris from the first hut the cavity could not be used for the new huts. The huts did not have any built floor or stone foundations for the walls. The excavation began with one
trench and when the archaeologists realized that statues of terracotta and stone were probably buried here, they decided to do a large-scale excavation at the site of Mersinaki. The archaeologists found few architectural remains. The remains they found can be divided into two separate buildings or building systems. The first one consists only of fragments and small rubble walls, therefore, the shape of the building is difficult to decide. The second building system was found in a much better state of preservation. These walls create a rectangular room. Two different
stratification layers were distinguished. One of them had no traces of pottery, fragments of sculptures, or similar objects. These layers existed before the place was used for sacred purposes. They recognized that some pits of various shapes and sizes had been dug from the same level. Inside the pits found traces of sculptures made of stone and terracotta, as well as some pottery. The pits were also filled with sandy, dark layers of earth. The archeologists concluded that the statues had a connection with the building and that the pits were dug along the borders of the temenos. The terracotta sculptures are difficult to classify since they are very monotonous in shape. The archaeologists thought that at least some of the molds were not of Cypriote origin but with a Greek expression. They proposed the idea that heads made in foreign molds were placed on bodies made in the local Cypriote type. Sometimes the heads could be altered. Therefore, the result was a hybrid style with a Cypriote body and a Greek head. Minor terracotta plastics were found as well, these usually depict a chariot group similar to the ones found at Agia Eirini. One of these groups depicts Athena. The sculptures are dated between Cypro-Archaic II and Cypro-Classic I, until the Cypro-Hellenistic period. The stone sculptures are made of a similar soft limestone as was used in Vouni. Some were made of a harder stone that was reminiscent of the stone found at
Poros. Few of the sculptures were completely preserved, but the ones that were are very characteristic. The sculptures made from hard limestone differ from the softer ones both in style and technique. According to the archaeologists, the harder ones are more influenced by the Greek-Hellenistic styles meanwhile the softer ones are more connected to the local Cypriote styles and show a degeneration of the Cypro-Archaic styles. Later the site was destroyed. The pieces of the sculptures were scattered about all over the ground but not removed far from the place. In Roman times the indistinct house was constructed close to the old temple site but on a higher level. After this house was destroyed the site was abandoned entirely and there are no signs of the place being used after this period.
Soli October 1927 Soli The ancient town of Soli was located on the Mesaoria plain which was a well-situated place, close to the sea and harbor in the north as well as cultivated plains to the east and Cyprus' richest copper district to the south. The very top plateau was surrounded by a strong wall of similar construction to the city wall. The entrance was probably to the north side. Within this area, the foundation of a temple
(templum in antis) was found. The archaeologist's conclusions about this temple are very conjectural. The Acropolis Hill was probably the first to be inhabited. When the town grew larger the area between the hill and the sea was inhabited. The buildings were often repaired and rebuilt. The town of Soli has changed from time to time. The earliest potsherds are from the Cypro-Archaic periods but they are very few in comparison with the Cypro-Hellenistic and Cypro-Roman sherds. The necropolis of Soli is spread over an enormous area around the town. Thousands of the tombs had already been opened by modern tomb robbers and were therefore destroyed. The sherds from the robbed tombs make it possible to date them and most of them are from the Cypro-Archaic II period to the Cypro-Roman. Soli was one of the ancient kingdoms in Cyprus and is mentioned several times in the
ancient literature although the authors portray the stories differently. One version describes how the name Soli is connected with the Athenian lawgiver
Solon’s visit to Cyprus. He advised the king of Aipeia, Philocyprus, to move the city down to the plain. The king followed his advice and named the new settlement after his friend, therefore the town is called Soli. According to
Strabo however, the city was founded by two
Athenians,
Phalerus, sometimes called the grandson of
Erechteus, and Akamas. Furthermore, Soli is mentioned in the list of cities of
Esarhaddon (681–668 B.C.) and
Ashurbanipal (668–628 B.C.). Literary sources also mention a temple dedicated to
Aphrodite and
Isis which led the archaeologists to search for this temple.
The Temples at Cholades According to the excavators many of the walls at Cholades were made of reused material,
spolia, found in the river below the sites. Sometimes even pieces of broken statues were reused in the walls. Several walls had been decorated with
mural paintings, most of them were found on fragments of
stucco, fallen to the floors close to the walls. In one room the paintings were better preserved, and the pattern could be studied. The other rooms seem to have had walls decorated with vertical and horizontal lines in red, blue, black, and green creating large squares. One room had fragments with wide red bands as well. They also found
water conduits, cisterns, stairs and altars. All the buildings create a temple complex consisting of different temples numbered from A to F. The temples were altered, changed, and rebuilt during four periods. Material from the temples displays a particularly rich material of sculptures made of
marble and limestone. According to the archeologists temples A and B were conjointly dedicated to Aphrodite and
Cybele. One or possibly both of temples C and D were sacred to Isis and temple E to
Serapis Canopus and
Eros. Temple F was dedicated to
Mithras. During the first period, there was a loose connection between the cella and the irregular courtyards in front of it. In period 2 (temple B, C, and D) the shape is still irregular although the connection between the cella and courtyards is beginning to get closer. In the third period, temple E was reconstructed with the cellae and courtyards built together as a closed unit and it seems like the importance of symmetry improves. In period 4 are some courtyards roofed with several closed chapels. The temples date from the Cypro-Hellenistic period and the Roman times. The marble sculptures found during the excavation were probably made from imported marble. It seems likely that the heads were made separately from the body and fitted together with an iron pin. Some sculptures have been mended. All the sculptures were once painted although the colours are faintly preserved. Other sculptures were made of alabaster, terracotta as well as soft and hard limestone. Some of the sculptures were found in situ and these were always located in connection to the cellae. The archeologists proposed that they probably were placed on the altars in the cellae. Therefore the altars might have been used as
iconostasis, or a stand for the various sculptures. This was only observed with the sculptures in the cella, not the ones from the courtyards or outside. The sculptures from period 1 (250 B.C.) were all found in temple A. From period 2 (end of 2nd century B.C.) all the sculptures were found at temples B, C, and D. From period 3 (middle of 3rd century A.D.) and 4 (beginning of 4th century A.D.) all the sculptures were found in temple E. The sculptures and inscriptions were used as the foundation for the archaeologist's identifications of the temples, therefore they might be the correct identification but it is not completely sure.
The Theatre Further on the Swedish Cyprus Expedition excavated an ancient theatre at Soli. They proposed that the theatre was planned and erected in one piece and they could not distinguish any building periods. The structure displays that the theatre is from the Roman period and coins exhibit an even more precise date, 42/3 A.D as well as 66-70 A.D. It seems to have been in use until the fourth century. The theatre consists of three parts,
orchestra,
auditorium, and stage-building. The
orchestra is cut out of the rock and has a semicircular shape with a rectangular addition in front. The floor of the
orchestra was plastered with lime cement and the rainwater was carried off by a conduit of terracotta pipes. Two entrances, the western and eastern
paradoi, lead to the orchestra. The auditorium was also semicircular and cut into the rock of the sloping hill. The auditorium is divided by a
diazoma covered by limestone slabs. == References ==