In ancient times, Cyprus flourished as part of a wide trading network that linked different states and empires. Recently, researchers have discovered one of the sources of its incredible wealth.
Archaeologists from the University of Gothenburg, through excavations, were able to discover that, thanks to the presence of the desired copper metal and the protected location, the small Cypriot settlement of Hala Sultan Tekke eventually grew into one of the most important trading centers of the late Bronze Age. The results of the research experts once again provides evidence of the importance of the city of the Bronze Age in the first period of international trade in the Mediterranean, writes Phys.org.
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In Hala Sultan Tekka, goods brought from Sardinia (1), Italy (2), Crete (3), Greece (4), Turkia (5), Israel (6), Egypt (7), Iraq (8), beads from beads and scarab (Ramesses II) from Egypt, Afghanistan and India (9)
Photo: University of Gothenburg
Peter Fischer, Emeritus Professor at the Department of Historical Studies at the University of Gothenburg and head of the excavations, says: “We managed to find a lot of imported ceramics and luxury goods made of gold, silver, ivory and semi-precious stones. in high demand.”
The Swedish Cyprus Expedition is a research project started in 1927. Researchers are aiming to map the archeological history of the island. The last expedition led by Peter Fischer to Hala Sultan Tekka, near the modern city of Larnaca (Cyprus), began in 2010 and lasted 13 seasons.
Their results showed that the city occupied at least 25 hectares, 14 of which constituted its center. Around it was the city wall. However, archaeologists managed to find objects from this period and in a more remote area.
Peter Fischer says: “New research and excavations give a new idea of the size of the city. Now it is known that Hala Sultan Tekke was much larger, and its area ranged from 25 to 50 hectares. By the standards of that period, it can be considered a fairly large city of that time Basically, in this territory, the ancient settlements grew by only a few hectares.
The largest copper producer
In the Bronze Age, Cyprus proudly held the first place in the production of copper in the entire Mediterranean. This metal was combined with tin and used to make tools, weapons and jewelry long before the development of iron.
“Found remains of smelting furnaces, molds and waste in the city testify to the widespread production of copper. The very ore that was brought for the manufacture of metal was mined in mines in the neighboring Troodos mountains. Due to the large amount of soot, the workshops were located in the north of the city so that the winds, mainly from the south, they blew it and stink as far as possible from the mall,” Fisher said.
Remains of smelting furnaces, casting molds and waste found in the city testify to the widespread production of copper.
Фото: Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports (2022). DOI: 10.1016/j.jasrep.2022.103722
Big mall
Cyprus is located almost in the center in the eastern Mediterranean, and its harbor is a well-defended natural fortress. All this created favorable conditions for brisk trade, in particular Hala Sultan Tekke.
Here they found a lot of goods brought from everywhere, including ceramics, jewelry and other luxury items. Trade extended both to neighboring regions, such as neighboring regions such as present-day Greece, Turkey, the Middle East, and Egypt, as well as to distant ones, such as Sardinia, the Baltic Sea region, Afghanistan, and India.
All these found things confirm that the city was one of the largest trading centers in the period 1500-1150. BC. and had a great influence on the initial period of international trade in this region.
Another source of wealth in Cyprus is the very popular purple fabric. The city also produced and exported pottery with characteristic painted motifs of people, animals and plants. Archaeologists call the artist who created these motifs “the artist Hala Sultan Tekke”.
The name of the ancient city comes from the Hala Sultan Tekke mosque of the same name. Trade flourished in the city for almost 500 years, but Hala Sultan Tekke fell into decline just after 1200 BC. It is believed that the “peoples of the sea” (several tribes that at the end of the Bronze Age, in the XIII-XII centuries BC, broke into the countries of Asia Minor, the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea and Egypt) flew into these territories around that time and destroyed the cities . This led to the decline and end of many Bronze Age civilizations.
Peter Fischer concludes: “It used to be thought that the Sea Peoples were to blame for everything. However, our research in recent years has provided an opportunity to look at a broader angle. In particular, new interpretations of the written sources of this period in Anatolia (modern Turkey), Syria and Egypt, telling about epidemics, famines, revolutions and military attacks by the invader peoples Another important factor is the deterioration of the climate, which could turn into dominoes, which led to a new search for people for a better life and their resettlement from the central Mediterranean to the southeast where they started conflicts with the cultures of modern Greece, Cyprus and Egypt.”
Previously, Focus told how the ancient Minoans used advanced navigation technology for navigation. They sailed “on star routes” and developed trade between large ancient cities.
We also wrote about the most ancient trade route. It turns out that thanks to him, not only goods and cultures were distributed, but also dangerous epidemics and diseases.
