Joanna S. SMITH / Mara T. HOROWITZ
(Columbia University, New York, USA / Alalakh Excavations, USA)
The Phlamoudhi Archaeological Project (2000-present) aims to analyze, interpret, and publish the survey and excavations, dating from the Bronze Age onwards on Cyprus, by the Columbia University Expedition to Phlamoudhi (1970-1973). The original team ended work due to the war that divided the island in 1974, which has made prevented any further work at the site.
Because of our inability to return to the area for further recording, it has been particularly important for us to make use of any information recorded about sites in the area prior to 1974. This presentation illustrates the nature of the information available, including earlier recorded data back to the 1880s, surveys by the Department of Antiquities of Cyprus, the findings of the Columbia University Expedition to Phlamoudhi, and a geological study from 2004-2005. Sorting out the stratigraphy of two key sites, Melissa and a smaller hilltop site, Vounari, has clarified the significance of this region during the Late Bronze Age, the period during which Cyprus became a prominent part of eastern Mediterranean exchange. While some of the information can not be reconciled, due to problems associated with topographical location, missing finds, or inconsistent elevations, most information can be brought together to create a rich picture of life both during the Bronze Age and in subsequent periods. Publication began with a guidebook and public exhibition, which aimed to recreate the experience of visiting the survey area (including discoveries pre-1970) and the major locations of excavation. Publication of the symposium held in conjunction with that exhibit is to appear in 2007. The exhibit will ultimately have an online format to be archived at the end of the project. Final publication of the excavations will take two forms, a four-part in print series of volumes and an online database with stratigraphy, finds, photographs, plans, and drawings.