Ancient Female Figurine 'Factory' Uncovered

Reported at the Cyprus Mail (online):
Ancient figurine ‘factory’ uncovered
Published on June 10, 2010

A BRITISH archaeology team has located evidence for the production of cruciform figurines such as the Idol of Pomos (image, left, not from the article), which is depicted on the Cypriot one and two euro coins, the Antiquities Department said yesterday.

The evidence comes from a settlement of 3000 BC located at Souskiou near Palaepaphos. The Pomos sculpture represents a woman with her arms spread. It was probably used as a fertility symbol.

“This is the first time that such detailed information on this subject has come to light in Cyprus,” a statement from the Department said.

“Among the remnants of a house lay the tools for making the figurines together with abundant fragments or chippings from the initial stages of production. These come from pebbles and blocks of raw material which the sculptors obtained, ultimately from the Troodos Mountains. A further production stage is evident from roughouts in which the figures begin to emerge from the parent rock. Also present were nearly finished figurines that were discarded because of imperfections.”

This unique evidence will allow archaeologists to reconstruct the techniques used by the prehistoric artisans and to see how the craft was organised within the Chalcolithic community. They said it was already clear that the workshop functioned in a building where domestic tasks were also carried out.

“There were many such houses at Souskiou which must have been a vibrant centre for the production of these iconic images. Eventually it may be possible to establish the characteristics of the Souskiou style and so to source some of the many figurines in museums,” the announcement added.

In another part of the settlement, the team investigated “rich economic data” such as animal bone, ceramics, charcoal and bone needles. “Normally washed away by erosion, the material here was trapped beneath buildings that were constructed over this ashy dump of food remains. It may have been deposited by temporary visitors to Souskiou before it was formally settled,” it said.

The four-week field work at the site was conducted by a team from the Lemba Archaeological Research Centre and the University of Edinburgh under the direction of Professor Edgar Peltenburg.

4,000 Year Old Temple Discovered on Cyprus

Article from MSNBC 4,000-year-old temple discovered in Cyprus Structure predates any found on the Mediterranean island by a millennium By Menelaos Hadjicostis updated 12:40 p.m. CT, Fri., March. 27, 2009 NICOSIA, Cyprus - An Italian archaeologist claimed Friday to have discovered Cyprus' oldest religious site, which she said echoes descriptions in the Bible of temples in ancient Palestine. Maria Rosaria Belgiorno said the 4,000-year-old triangular temple predates any other found on the east Mediterranean island by a millennium. "For sure it's the most ancient religious site on the island," she told The Associated Press from her home in Rome. "This confirms that religious worship in Cyprus began much earlier than previously believed." But authorities on the island say they cannot confirm her claim before further study. "That the site is dated to around 2,000 B.C. is certain, but the interpretation that it's a temple or a sacred site has yet to be confirmed," Cyprus Antiquities Department official Maria Hadjicosti told state radio. The 200-sq.-meter (2,150-sq.-foot) building was discovered last year outside Pyrgos, a village near the south coast, where previous digs unearthed a settlement dating to 2,000 B.C. that included a perfumery, winery and a metal workshop. Belgiorno, who heads an Italian archaeological mission in Cyprus, initially disclosed the find to English-language The Cyprus Weekly. She said evidence points to a monotheistic temple with a sacrificial altar that resembles Canaanite places of worship described in the Bible. "The temple has a very peculiar shape for a building, which is very rare." Belgiorno said a key piece of evidence linking the site to Biblical accounts of temples in ancient Palestine is a pair of 6-meter (20-foot) stone "channels" extending from either side of the altar that allowed sacrificial animals' blood to flow out of the structure. Other evidence includes a stone water basin, which she said might have been used in the ritual cleansing of the channels. Belgiorno said the temple was situated across from the industrial area in the heart of the settlement, which she estimates covered 35 hectares (86 acres). Most of the settlement now lies under village homes and holiday villas. The industrial area was built around a large mill producing olive oil that was used as fuel to fire up the metal workshop and as a perfume base.