The History of Kouklia in Cyprus - Holiday Home Cyprus

history of Kouklia:

Kouklia on the west coast of Cyprus that occupies the site of Palaeopaphos and is best known for the famous six decorated gold enamel rings discovered in a Mycenaean tomb in 1952 which where dated back to the thirteenth century BC and the magnificent gold scepter believed to belong to royalty dating back to the eleventh century BC. These items are some of the oldest known examples of the cloisonne enameling process to date.

Excavations at Kouklia / Palaipaphos, conducted since 1966 under the aegis and with financial support of the German Archaeological Institute, form a central part of this research project. The work of the Paphos Project considerably enlarged and refined our knowledge of the main phases and turning points in the history of Palaipaphos. The continuity of occupation on the site from the Chalcolithic period to the early Byzantine era is well established; a considerable medieval settlement is attested at least since the 12 c. AD. Seen as a whole, the history of the settlement spans a time of nearly 5000 years, from c. 2800 BC to the present day.

Three of the sites excavated yielded results of special historical significance. In the Sanctuary of Aphrodite the continuity of cult has been definitely established for more than 1500 years, from the Late Bronze Age (c. 1200 BC) to the Late Roman period (end of the 4th c. AD). The investigation of the defenses outside the North-East Gate of the city revealed the remains of Siege operations by a Persian army in 498 BC. The site represents the rare example of an archaeological context dated to the year and at the same time one of the very few ancient sieges which can be reconstructed from the earth. The excavation of the Medieval cane sugar mills and refineries of Couvoucle was the first research project in industrial archaeology in Cyprus and revealed new economic and
technological aspects of this important industry during the 13th to 16th centuries.

Visit the local Kouklia website in Cyprus

The Church in Kouklia

The art of metalwork in copper discovered at Kouklia

An island in the eastern Mediterranean, with a history of more than 8000 years, Cyprus was one of the earliest producers of copper in the world, had a flourishing metal industry and during the 'Golden Age' of Cyprus, the island enjoyed a high level of prosperity. This brought a great number of settlers and craftsmen from neighboring countries. In order to escape the troubles on the Greek mainland, Mycenaean refugees arrived in Cyprus establishing important workshops and introducing new ideas and techniques that played an important role in artistic creation. During this period a new decorative technique, that of cloisonne enameling, unknown elsewhere at the time, appeared in Cyprus.

In a Mycenaean tomb that was discovered at Kouklia, Cyprus, in 1952 and dated the thirteenth century B.C., there were six gold rings decorated with cloisonne enamel that appear to have been fused in place. A little later (11th century B.C.) a magnificent Royal Gold Scepter with cloisonne enamel was discovered in a tomb at Kourion.

Kouklia is a small village in southwest Cyprus that occupies the site of Palaeopaphos, an ancient city of great wealth and importance during the late Bronze Age and known throughout the ancient world for its sanctuary of Aphrodite.

In 1952 a British archaeological expedition to Cyprus, jointly sponsored by the University of St. Andrews and the Liverpool City Museum, excavated a locality named Evreti on the east side of the village. The archaeologist in charge of the excavation of the tombs was G.R.H. Wright, more on this article in Kouklia...