1981–1983

Excavation in the Archaic Precinct has provided us with the material evidence for cult practices of the archaic period at the Sanctuary in the form of architectural remains and small finds. Conservation, photography, and analysis of these objects began in 1983 and must now be completed. In the 1984 season we propose to have a small team consisting of a registrar/ draftsman, a photographer, a conservator and the terracotta specialist and her assistant work at Episkopi where the finds are stored. Study of other materials was completed in 1983. The due date for the manuscripts is November, 1984 and the final product, outlined by the attached table of contents, has been accepted for publication in Studies in Mediterranean Archaeology.

The Archaic Period in Cyprus is not well known since most recent excavation on the island has concentrated on the Bronze Age sites. Yet the Archaic period is a most important indicator of the continuity of Bronze Age Mycenaean civilization in Cyprus after it had disappeared in Mainland Greece. Cyprus and Crete became the storehouses of the older civilization to be called upon later by the Mainland. Our publication will elucidate the religious customs of the Archaic period and their relationship to the earlier Mycenaean religion as well as to contemporary customs on the Greek Mainland and in the Near East.

In our analysis of the finds, our goal is to determine the types of dedications given to the god, their chronological span, and their significance, both in terms of cult practice and ritual, and in terms of the economic and social life of the Sanctuary. Publication of the terracottas aims at presenting not only the range of types represented and their dates, but also some indication of their manufacture: can individual workshops be identified … continues