The documented history of Cyprus begins in the 8th century BC. The town of Kition, now Larnaca, recorded part of the ancient history of Cyprus on a stele that commemorated a victory by Sargon II (722–705 BC) of Assyria there in 709 BC.Yon, M., Malbran-Labat, F. 1995: "La stèle de Sargon II à Chypre", in A. Caubet (ed.), Khorsabad, le palais de Sargon II, roi d’Assyrie, Paris, 159–179. Assyrian domination of Cyprus (known as Iatnanna by the Assyrians) appears to have begun earlier than this, during the reign of Tiglath-Pileser III (744–727 BC), and ended with the fall of the Neo-Assyrian Empire in 609 BC, whereupon the city-kingdoms of Cyprus gained independence once more. Following a brief period of Egyptian domination in the sixth century BC, Cyprus fell under Persian rule, until the late-fourth century BC saw the overthrow of the Achaemenid Empire by Alexander the Great.
Alexander's conquests accelerated the ongoing Hellenisation of Cyprus. His premature death in 323 BC led to a period of turmoil as Ptolemy I Soter and Demetrius I of Macedon fought together for supremacy in the region, but by 294 BC, the Ptolemaic Kingdom had regained control and Cyprus remained under Ptolemaic rule until 58 BC, when it came under Roman rule. During the Hellenistic period, earlier Phoenician and Eteocypriot traits weakened together with the old Cypriot syllabic script, and Cyprus became thoroughly Hellenised. In the early history of Christianity, Cyprus was the first province of the Roman Empire to be ruled by a Christian governor in the first century AD, providing a backdrop for events in the New Testament.
Outline Periods of Cyprus's ancient history from 1050 BC onward have been named according to styles of pottery as follows: Cypro-Geometric I: 1050–950 BC Cypro-Geometric II: 950–850 BC Cypro-Geometric III: 850–700 BC Cypro-Archaic I: 700–600 BC Cypro-Archaic II: 600–475 BC Cypro-Classical I: 475–400 BC Cypro-Classical II: 400–323 BC
Bronze age Egyptians, Hittites and Mycenaean Greeks
Pharaoh Thutmose III of Egypt subjugated Cyprus around 1450s BC and forced its inhabitants to pay tribute, which continued until Egyptian rule was replaced by the Hittites (who called Cyprus Alashiya in their language) in the 13th century BC. The Hebrews called Cyprus the Kittim Island.
The Ancient Greek historian Herodotus (5th century BC) claims that the city of Kourion, near present-day Limassol, was founded by Achaean settlers from Argos. This is further supported by the discovery of a Late Bronze Age settlement lying several kilometres from the site of the remains of the Hellenic city of Kourion, whose pottery and architecture indicate that Mycenaean settlers did indeed arrive and augment an existing population in this part of Cyprus in the twelfth century BC.Christou, Demos, 1986. Kourion: A Complete Guide to Its Monuments and Local Museum. Filokipros Publishing Co. Ltd., Nicosia. Introduction, p 7. The kingdom of Kourion in Cyprus is recorded on an inscription dating to the period of the Pharaoh Ramses III (1186–1155 BC) in Egypt.
Early history
Greek and Phoenician settlement
After the invasion of the Sea Peoples (), the ancient Greeks settled on the island (), acting decisively in the formation of its cultural identity.
The Phoenicians who came from Tyre, colonized some cities of Cyprus, such as Idalium, Kition, Marion, Salamis and Tamassos and founded the city of Lapathus.
Assyrian conquest and the ten city-kingdoms of Cyprus
A stele found in 1845 in Kition, commemorates the 709 BC victory of the Neo-Assyrian king Sargon II (721–705 BC) over seven kings in the land of Ia', in the district of Iadnana or Atnana.Na'aman, N., 'Sargon II and the rebellion of the Cypriote kings against Shilta of Tyre', Orientalia 67 (1998), 239–247 [reprinted in N. Na'aman, Ancient Israel and its neighbors: interaction and counteraction (Collected essays, vol. 1), Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns, 2005, 118–128]. The land of Ia' is assumed to be the Assyrian name for Cyprus, and some scholars suggest that the latter may mean 'the islands of the Danaans', or Greece. There are other inscriptions referring to the land of Ia' in Sargon's palace at Khorsabad.Radner, K. 2010: "The Stele of Sargon II of Assyria at Kition: A focus for an emerging Cypriot identity?”, in R. Rollinger, B. Gufler, M. Lang, I. Madreiter (eds), Interkulturalität in der Alten Welt: Vorderasien, Hellas, Ägypten und die vielfältigen Ebenen des Kontakts, Wiesbaden, 429–449.
The ten kingdoms listed on the prism of Esarhaddon in 673–672 BC have been identified as: Soli Salamis Paphos Kourion Amathus Kition on the coast, and Tamassos Ledra Idalium Chytri in the interior of the island. Later inscriptions add Marion, Lapithos and Kyrenia.
Cyprus gained independence after 627 BC following the death of Ashurbanipal, the last great Assyrian king. Cemeteries from this period are chiefly rock-cut tombs. They have been found, among other locations, at Tamassos, Soli, Patriki and Trachonas. The rock-cut 'royal' tombs at Tamassos, built , imitate wooden houses. The pillars show Phoenician influence. Some graves contain the remains of horses and chariots.
The main deity of ancient Cyprus was, the Assyro-Babylonian goddess Ishtar, and Phoenician Astarte, later known by the Greek name Aphrodite.Frazer, J G, 1922, reprinted 1996. The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion. Abridged edition, with an introduction by George W Stocking, Jr. XXXI, Adonis in Cyprus, pp 397–404. Penguin Books Limited. She was called "the lady of Kypros" by Homer. Paphian inscriptions call her "the Queen". Pictures of Aphrodite appear on the coins of Salamis as well, demonstrating that her cult had a larger regional influence. In addition, the King of Paphos was the High Priest of Aphrodite, and a great pilgrim temple of her, the Sanctuary of Aphrodite Paphia, was situated in Paphia. Other gods venerated include the Phoenician Anat, Baal, Eshmun, Reshef, Mikal and Melkart and the Egyptian Hathor, Thoth, Bes and Ptah, as attested by amulets. Animal sacrifices are attested to on terracotta-votives. The sanctuary of Ayia Irini contained over 2,000 figurines.
Egyptian rule
In 570 BC, Cyprus was conquered by Egypt under Amasis II.
This brief period of Egyptian rule left its influence mainly in the arts, especially sculpture, where the rigidity and the dress of the Egyptian style can be observed. Cypriot artists later discarded this Egyptian style in favour of Greek prototypes. Although Egyptian rule lasted for about 25 years until 545 BC, it left a distinct imprint on Cypriot life.
Statues in stone often show a mixture of Egyptian and Greek influence. In particular, ceramics recovered on Cyprus show influence from ancient Crete. Men often wore Egyptian wigs and Assyrian-style beards. Armour and dress showed western Asiatic elements as well.
Persian rule
In 545 BC, the Achaemenid Empire under Cyrus the Great conquered Cyprus. Under the Persians, the Kings of Cyprus retained their independence but had to pay tribute to their overlord. The city-kingdoms began to strike their own coins in the late-sixth century BC, using the Persian weight system. Coins minted by the kings were required to have the overlord's portrait on them. King Evelthon of Salamis (560–525 BC) was probably the first to cast silver or bronze coins in Cyprus; the coins were designed with a ram on the obverse and an ankh on the reverse.
Royal palaces have been excavated in Palaepaphos and in Vouni in the territory of Marion on the north coast. They closely follow Persian examples like Persepolis. Vouni, on a hill overlooking Morphou Bay, was built around 520 BC and destroyed in 380 BC. It contained royal audience chambers (liwan), open courtyards, bathhouses and stores. Towns in Cyprus during this period were fortified with mudbrick walls on stone foundations and rectangular bastions. The houses were constructed of mud-bricks as well, whereas public buildings were faced with ashlar. The Phoenician town of Karpasia, near Rizokarpaso, had houses built of rubble masonry with square stone blocks forming the corners. Temples and sanctuaries were built mainly in a Phoenician style. Soli had a small temple with a Greek plan.
A definite influence from Greece was responsible for the production of some very important sculptures. The archaic Greek art with its attractive smile on the face of the statue is found on many Cypriot pieces dating between 525 and 475 BC; that is, the closing years of the Archaic period in Greece. During Persian rule, Ionian influence on the sculptures intensified; copies of Greek korai appear, as well as statues of men in Greek dress. Naked kouroi, however, although common in Greece, are extremely rare in Cyprus, while women (korai) are always presented dressed with rich folds in their garments. The pottery in Cyprus retained its local influences, although some Greek pottery was imported.
Ionian revolt Except for the royal city of Amathus, the Kingdoms of Cyprus took part in the Ionian Revolt in 499 BC. The revolt on Cyprus was led by Onesilus of Salamis, brother of the King of Salamis, whom he dethroned for not wanting to fight for independence. The Persians crushed the Cypriot armies and laid siege to the fortified towns in 498 BC. Soli surrendered after a five-month siege.
The most important obligation of the kings of Cyprus to the Shah of Persia was the payment of tribute and the supply of armies and ships for his foreign campaigns. Thus, when Xerxes invaded Greece in 480 BC, Cyprus contributed 150 ships to the Persian military expedition.
Delian League
In the aftermath of the Second Persian invasion of Greece, according to Thucydides, in 478 BC the Greek allies had sailed to Cyprus and "subdued most of the island".Thucydides I, 94 Exactly what Thucydides means by this is unclear. Sealey suggests that this was essentially a raid to gather as much booty as possible from the Persian garrisons on Cyprus.Sealey, p. 242 There is no indication that the Greeks made any attempt to actually take possession of the island, and shortly after they sailed to Byzantium. Certainly, the fact that the Delian League repeatedly campaigned in Cyprus suggests that the island was not garrisoned by the Greeks in 478 BC, or that the garrisons were quickly expelled.
In a Delian League fleet was campaigning in Cyprus, before being instructed to head to Egypt to support Inaros's rebellion. The Egyptian disaster would eventually lead the Athenians to sign a five-year truce with Sparta in 451 BC. Thereby freed from fighting in Greece, the league was again able to dispatch a fleet to campaign in Cyprus in 451 BC, under the recently recalled Cimon.Cimon sailed for Cyprus with a fleet of 200 ships provided by the Athenians and their allies. However, 60 of these ships were sent to Egypt at the request of Amyrtaeus, the so-called "King of the Marshes" (who still remained independent of, and opposed to Persian rule).Thucydides I, 112 The rest of the force besieged Kition in Cyprus, but during the siege, Cimon died either of sickness or a wound.Plutarch, Cimon, 19 The Athenians lacked provisions, and apparently under the death-bed instructions of Cimon, the Athenians retreated towards Salamis-in-Cyprus.
Cimon's death was kept a secret from the Athenian army. 30 days after leaving Kition, the Athenians and their allies were attacked by a Persian force composed of Cilicians, Phoenicians, and Cyprians, whilst sailing off Salamis-in-Cyprus. Under the 'command' of the deceased Cimon, they defeated this force at sea, and also in a land battle. Having thus successfully extricated themselves, the Athenians sailed back to Greece, joined by the detachment which had been sent to Egypt. These battles formed the end of the Greco-Persian Wars.
Evagoras I of Salamis