We may be seeing more of ancient Cyprus than we think

So many of the artefacts housed in the Cyprus Museum have been replicated to become familiar itemsEvery day we see items that eventually become recognisable images – in tourist shops, on postage stamps, on official logos – yet their origins elude us. A trip to the Cyprus Museum can fix that. With the heat still continuing, the museum offered a cool respite. Audio assistant in hand, the whole exploration took me about an hour, even though I took my time to listen, read and linger – it’s not that big. No matter how many times I visit the Cyprus Museum, I will always find something new to see and on the way out realise I missed something I intended to revisit. Alas, this time I must have walked straight past the limestone plaque with the head of Bacchus Dionysus, dated circa 200BC, which was found in Mathiatis, Nicosia. It is 51.2cm tall and 11cm thick, and we know it was once coloured by the telltale tiny remnants of purple and green paint. Copper ingots weigh nearly 40kg each This head was for many years used as the Theatre Organisation of Cyprus (Thoc) logo. But I did see another head of Dionysus, one that used to made us giggle on school trips. This one is about the same size as the other, possibly from Soloi, and also dates back to the Hellenistic period. This votive relief, though, is double sided and, although the museum passage does not take you round the back of it, you can actually make an intentional slight detour to view the erotic scene. The first hall houses artefacts from the Late Epipalaeolithic and Chalcolithic period, from 11,000BC to 3,000BC, providing evidence for the earliest human presence on the island at approximately 10,500BC. Also dating to this period is a large faunal assemblage of around 500 pygmy hippopotami and at least three dwarf elephants. Artefacts featuring heavily as modern-day souvenirs and jewellery are the anthropomorphic figurines, particularly the one found in Pomos, Paphos, dating around 3,000BC. It is made out of picrolite, found mainly in riverbeds in the southwestern part of Cyprus. This figurine is of purely Cypriot character and has become a hallmark of the Chalcolithic period. Another recognisable figurine is the limestone Lady of Lemba, Paphos. Standing 35cm tall, it is one of the largest limestone anthropomorphic figurines found in prehistoric Cyprus. One may have also come across images of bowls filled with figures of humans and animals. These clay models can be found in the Cyprus Museum, dating to 2,000BC. They depict ritual ceremonies and were found in a tomb in an Early Bronze cemetery in Bellapais. Lions and sphinxes found in the ancient Tamassos necropolis Horn-shaped or conical rhyta are carried extensively by Mediterranean souvenir shops. The rhyton of faience in the Cyprus Museum is one of the most remarkable known specimens and dates to the 13th century BC. It was found in Kition, Larnaca. It is made of hard faience or ceramic and coated with a blue glaze. This Aegean shaped rhyta depicts galloping animals, stylised flowers and a scene of bull hunting. Mycenaean pottery has also been found in Cyprus, such as the large amphoroid krater’ with a very familiar-looking octopus. Most of the imported kraters were decorated in the pictorial style, with motifs inspired by wall paintings from the Mycenaean palaces. Pottery was extensively produced in Salamis, now Famagusta, which emerged as a major export centre in the Iron Age. Many designs from this period are carried into modern crafts. From the Bronze Age, one can recognise the water bird that features widely today, and the bull and lotus to a lesser extent. The Pomos figurine in the musuem is often copied as jewellery or satuettes And then one comes upon Cyprus’ very own terracotta army – or part of it. Actually 500 pieces are on display in the Cyprus Museum and 1,500 are housed in a museum in Stockholm, Sweden. The figurines were all discovered in Ayia Irini, in the north, in 1929 by the Swedish Cyprus Expedition. They range from tiny to life-size and are watched over from across the hall by the limestone sphinx from Karpasia dating to the 4th century BC. One of the impressive statues is the colossal male clay figure found at the Sanctuary of Apollo in Tamassos, Nicosia, dating to the 7th century BC. Its initial height would have been over 2.5m, making it the largest clay statue found in Cyprus to date. The face is often seen in print. Also discovered in the ancient Tamassos necropolis are the limestone lions and sphinxes, showing the direct Egyptian and Greek influences in Cypro-Archaic art. Not so popular as a souvenir but very interesting nonetheless are the Roman period artefacts dating to the 1st century AD, particularly the marble bust possibly of emperor Caligula and the bronze statue of emperor Septimius Severus. The reverse side of the plaque depicting Dionysos The oxhide copper ingots used from the Late Bronze age onwards were used in the trade of copper. Seen mainly in print, they are easily thought to be much smaller than they actually are. Of the three intact ingots found, two remain in Cyprus and are exhibited at the Cyprus Museum. They weigh up to 39kg each. Mosaics feature prominently in situ at archaeological sites across the island, with fragments found in the Cyprus Museum. The most recognisable from modern day depictions are Feria, the dog, catching a partridge, a young boy holding a dish full of fruit and an inscription telling those who love the sea to bathe well. They all date to the Late Roman period. The female bird-faced figurines wearing earrings and holding infants will also produce “a-ha” moments, as well as the horse-and-rider figurines, replicas of which can be found in souvenir shops. The water bird jug also features prominently in modern designs Visitors have much more to see at the Cyprus Museum, including massive cauldrons, intricate lamps, coins, statues and figurines, jewellery and beauty objects, funerary items, theatre masks and the displays of burial artefacts complete with skeletons. Although the new museum promises to be massive and have many more artefacts on display, it is still worth visiting the current one while it is still there. Ask for the audio tour in your language and go on a children’s treasure hunt with one of two thematic exploration kits: ‘Mythical Creatures’ and ‘The Goddess Aphrodite’.