Ancient Cyprus: Its History & Artistic Periods

Last week was a quiet and productive week. I thought I completed my research on the Cypro-Archaic pottery, but I was mistaken. During the week I had to write a general synopsis of ancient Cyprus: it included the social and political issues from the Middle Cypriot period (2500-1050 B.C.) to the Cypro-Archaic period (1050-325 A.D.). My research also included the art historical significance of the periods, as well as trade relations with other nations. For instance, Cyprus has a rich and diverse culture influenced by the Minoan and Mycenaean civilization, the Syro-Palestinian culture, the Hittites and the Egyptians. For centuries Cyprus traded goods and artistic craftsmanship with such neighbors.

The island was also famous for its cooper supply. By the Late Cypriot period (1650-1050) Cyprus was fully integrated into an exchange network connecting the Aegean, Egypt and Syria-Palestine. Sustained by wealth generated through the export of copper and the island's convenient juxtaposition between the Near East and Aegean, cities on Cyprus flourished. Cypriot potters were also artisans who exercised considerable imagination in their craft. Their wares were always interesting and often exuberant, even sometimes outlandish. Since pottery was produced in small batches by individuals or families rather than by factories, idiosyncrasy rather than uniformity was the rule. Pottery was also discernibly regionalized, varying from place to place on the island. This makes the Bronze Age pottery of Cyprus among the most diverse found anywhere in the ancient world.

I also need to include in my research how and why the National Hellenic Museum acquired on loan their antiquities from Cyprus. I know that the museum received the pottery on loan from the Cyprus government in 2001. There is a lot of paperwork I need to go through to understand why the loan was approved. I also plan on talking with the Collections Manager Chris. Perhaps he can shed some light on the matter.

Regards,

Erik

Reference:

The Censola Collection from Ancient Cyprus

http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~semitic/Cesnola/testhomepage.html

Research is done...

          I have finally finished research on the Cypro-Archaic pottery. Oddly enough, this past week I actually found the research less challenging than the week prior. I think I was making it more difficult than it needs to be. Two of the pieces were amphorae, one was a large globular shaped jar and the other was an oinochoe (wine jug).  Each is indeed categorized as Cypro-Archaic I (750-600 B.C.) pottery. One of the best resources I used in my research was the Cesnola Collection at the Semitic Museum at Harvard University. The typology for the vessels was either White Painted IV “Free-field Style” or Bichrome IV. For the complete typology and chronology of Cyprus pottery please visit the Cesnola Collection website:

http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~semitic/Cesnola/MatWaresIAGjerstad.html

            According to the Museum curator, Bethany Fleming, two or three of the pottery will go on display. Next week I need to meet with her about exhibit design and the vignettes. In my opinion I think one of the amphorae and oinochoe should be displayed. The pottery in the photographs are not in the National Hellenic Museum’s collection. They are just examples of what the amphora and the oinochoe that are in the NHM’s collection. The amphora in the photo is very similar to one of NHM’s pieces. I think it would do very well on display. The oinochoe looks a bit different than the one in the photo:  it is painted reddish brown and the neck is longer. Most oinochoe, if not all, however, do have the trefoil mouth. The one in the National Hellenic Museum also has this common mouth shape. It will be interested to see which pottery Bethany chooses.

Stay tuned for next week to find out…

Kind Regards,

Erik

                                Cypro-Archaic I Amphora Bichrome IV Ware (750-600 B.C.)

                         Cypro-Archaic IV Oinochoe White Painted IV Ware (750-600 B.C.)

                                                         

Beginning the vignettes' research

Most of the older artifacts in the National Hellenic Museum’s permanent and temporary collection date to the late 1800’s. It also has a few pieces of antiquity (amphorae, jugs and coins), which are either owned or on loan. One of the prevailing requests made by visitors was for the museum to display these antiquities more often. The NHM has listened, and in a few months the museum will put more ancient pieces on exhibition.

This week I completed the first stage of my project- a review on all the antiquities the museum currently has. I created an excel document listing all the ancient pieces. Included was the accession or loan number of each artifact, the provenance source from where the museum acquired the pieces and the storage locations where the pieces are kept. For the second stage of the project, I need to create individual vignettes for a few Cypro-Archaic I pottery. There are a few amphorae and oinochoe I have started researching. According to PastPerfect (the museum archival database), the Cyprus pottery dates to the Cypro-Archaic I period, 700-650 B.C., but I am unsure of the artistic stylization of a couple pieces. Hopefully with more research I will either be satisfied with the information the museum currently has or will need to make a few small corrections.

Thanks for following! Stay tuned for next week’s blog

Kind Regards,

Erik