Athienou Archaeological Project

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sketch of site by Glynnis Fawkes

The Athienou Archaeological Project (AAP) is a multidisciplinary project focusing on the site of Athienou-Malloura and the surrounding valley in south-central Cyprus. AAP is sponsored by Davidson College and directed by Michael K. Toumazou, assisted by P. Nick Kardulias (College of Wooster) and Derek B. Counts (University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee).

The site was used for nearly 2500 years and encompasses the Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, Frankish, Venetian, and Ottoman periods in the island's history. The site's long occupation period, coupled with the diversity of archaeological remains encountered — domestic, religious, and funerary — make it an ideal training ground in archaeological methodology and provide ample evidence for introducing students to the fascinating history and material culture of Aphrodite's Isle, strategically nestled in the midst of three continents. In the past 13 years, over 300 individuals — undergraduate and graduate students as well as specialists or professional archaeologists — representing over 45 North American and European Institutions have participated in the project as trainees or staff members.

Since its inception in 1990, AAP has offered a field survey of the valley (ca. 20 km²), a topographical survey of Malloura, and geophysical prospection of portions of the site. Moreover, the Archaic-Roman rural sanctuary, initially investigated in 1862 by a French Mission, was located and is being strategically excavated. Six chamber tombs (Archaic-Roman), an aquifer, and two water cisterns have also been excavated. Portions of the Roman-Ottoman settlement are under investigation and some thirty burials dating to the Venetian rule (15th-16th centuries) have been excavated. Thus, our investigations have already thrown considerable light on the long-term history and use of this small rural inland site to be compared with larger, urban, usually coastal, centers which have been more intensely investigated.

Project Slideshow

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for more information, contact:
      Michael K. Toumazou
      Department of Classics
      Davidson College
      Davidson, NC 28035
      (704) 894 - 2281
      fax (704) 894 - 2005
      mitoumazou@davidson.edu