News
New papers, analyses and dates on the archaeology of Cyprus.
Research·Brief
Phytoliths from 25 soil samples at the village north of Paphos point to wheat as its main cereal, though the charred seeds are mostly figs, lentils and pistachio.
Source: Kasapidou, Düring, Tsirtsi, Margaritis and García-Granero, A new window into agricultural practices in Chalcolithic Cyprus, Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 75 (2026) 106081
Research·Brief
Giorgos Papantoniou argues that the cult of Arsinoe II tied Cypriot towns and sanctuaries to Ptolemaic rule, down to a tithe-collector's pots at the Kafizin grotto.
Source: Papantoniou, The Annual of the British School at Athens
Research·Brief
Of 15,134 plant remains from Pyla-Kokkinokremos, 99% came from one rock-cut shaft, which the authors read as an animal-fodder store later given up.
Source: Henkel, Bretschneider, Driessen, Kanta and Margaritis, Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 75 (2026) 106069
Research·Brief
Microscopy of mineralised cloth on the 2014 hoard from Vasili hill, in the occupied Karpas, finds 13–15 different tabby fabrics and several kinds of cord.
Source: TEXTILE (Kızılduman, Grömer, Peška, Topal-Kusku and Saunderson)
Research·Brief
Jugs in Tomb SS held barley, wheat, marigold and mallow burnt together; two other graves held barley, olive and grape left as food, a study in Levant reports.
Source: Levant: Bürge and Kofel, The power of plants (2026)
Research·Brief
Capitals, column bases and an altar recorded on a hill at Latsithkia in 1997 may belong to a temple of the late 1st century CE, four researchers argue.
Source: American Journal of Archaeology (Kordas, Popławski, Rekowska and Brzozowska-Jawornicka)
Research·Brief
Nine of the 23 additions are rated certain; the authors argue ships were cut into Temple 1 for perhaps 300 years, from about 1200 BCE into the Early Iron Age.
Source: Braun, Barnes and Manolova, International Journal of Nautical Archaeology (Zenodo record)
Research·Roundup
A cloth-wrapped Bronze Age hoard from the Karpas, the first Tombs of the Kings volume, a new Cyprus Museum pushed to 2028 and antiquities shown at the Presidential Palace.
Source: Textile-Wrapped Wealth: A Late Bronze Age Hoard from Kaleburnu-Kral Tepesi/Galinaporni-Vasili, Cyprus (TEXTILE)
Research·Roundup
A paper argues for a lost Roman temple near Kourion, police arrest a man with a metal detector at Kouklia, and the 1989 Idalion excavation report goes free online.
Source: An Unknown Roman Temple in Cyprus? Reading the Architectural Fragments from Latsithkia (American Journal of Archaeology)
Research·Roundup
Laser scans add 23 possible ships to the temple graffiti at Kition, a group plans to find Cesnola's wrecked Napried, and the odeon of Paphos gets a full-moon evening.
Source: Braun, Barnes and Manolova, International Journal of Nautical Archaeology (Zenodo record)
Research·Roundup
Ian Todd, who led the Vasilikos Valley Project at Kalavasos from 1976, dies; conservation goes on at two Troodos painted churches; a Yale student tests Idalion figurines for Egyptian blue.
Source: Sigmalive: Cyprus mourns pioneering archaeologist Ian A. Todd
Research·Brief
Todd began the project in 1976 at the Neolithic village of Kalavasos-Tenta and later dug the Late Bronze Age town of Ayios Dhimitrios with Alison South.
Source: Archaeological Research Unit, University of Cyprus: Obituary, Ian A. Todd
Research·Roundup
The Kissonerga-Skalia excavation ends its season, a silver-plated coin of Salamis turns up on a beach at Ashdod, and a Kouklia sarcophagus showing Odysseus draws new attention.
Source: Cyprus Mail: Excavations at Kissonerga uncover one of Cyprus' oldest Bronze Age settlements
Research·Brief
A study of two cemeteries finds more dental disease among the dead of Ktima, the upper town, than in the Eastern Necropolis outside the walls of the ancient city.
Source: Ioannou, G.: Dental disease and dietary differences in populations of Nea Paphos, Cyprus, during the Hellenistic (312–58 BC) and Roman (58 BC–395 AD) periods. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology 36.4, 1087–1099
Research·Roundup
More than 20 statue bases found in place at the Apollo sanctuary of Frangissa, and Bronze Age pigeons at Hala Sultan Tekke that ate much like the people around them.
Source: Deputy Ministry of Culture: Completion of the archaeological excavation campaign at the Sanctuary of Apollo at Frangissa, in Pera Oreinis Community
Research·Brief
Bones of at least 55 rock doves from the harbour town on the Larnaca Salt Lake carry nitrogen values close to those of people, a paper in Antiquity reports.
Source: Antiquity: Carter et al., Uncovering the lives of rock doves (Columba livia) in Late Bronze Age Hala Sultan Tekke, Cyprus (2026)
Research·Roundup
Geologist Giorgos Konstantinou, who studied how Cyprus's copper ores were mined in antiquity, has died; volunteers photograph 25 museums in the occupied north for Wikimedia.
Source: Deputy Ministry of Culture: Announcement on the loss of Dr Giorgos Konstantinou
Research·Roundup
Eighteen Cypriot antiquities spotted in an American online sale are handed back, and a paper costs Chalcolithic travel by sea around the Akamas peninsula.
Source: Department of Antiquities: Repatriation of 18 Cypriot antiquities from the United States of America
Research·Brief
Per kilo and kilometre, canoes used under 10 kJ against 20–50 kJ on foot between Chlorakas-Palloures and Makounta-Voules, two villages that traded storage jars.
Source: Klinkenberg and Polidorou, Seafaring in the Shadows: Maritime Traditions of Chalcolithic Cyprus, Journal of Maritime Archaeology 21 (2026), article 15
Research·Brief
Nine diadems and two mouth-pieces from Late Bronze Age family tombs mix Egyptian, Aegean and Near Eastern motifs; the heavier ones show wear from use in life.
Source: Oxford Journal of Archaeology: Fischer, Cultural fusion in Late Bronze Age goldwork: diadems and mouth-pieces from Hala Sultan Tekke, Cyprus (2026)
