Nicosia in Ancient Times

Greater Nicosia is probably the only area in Cyprus that can boast of being inhabited continuously since the beginning of the late Chalcolithic period. What makes Nicosia unique among Cypriot Bronze Age settlements is precisely the fact that it continued to thrive, while others ceased to exist.

During the first millenium BC, when city-kingdoms prevailed, Nicosia enjoyed neither the power nor the prosperity of the other kingdoms of Cyprus, most of which lay on the coast.

In around 672 BC the kingdom of Ledra or Ledrai, then ruled by King Onassogoras, is recorded ninth in a list of kingdoms which paid tribute to the Assyrian king Esarhaddon.

It was not until the dissolution of the city-kingdoms by the Ptolemies at the beginning of the third century BC that Nicosia managed to exploit its natural resources and geographical location in the centre of the island.

In the Roman period and up to the fourth century AD the Kingdom of Ledra was nothing more than a small village.

Ancient Ledra, which in the Ptolemaic period was also named Lefkothea, became known as Lefkousia or Ledri in the first years of Christianity in Cyprus.

Sources: A Guide to the History of Nicosia (Leventis Municipal Museum)

The Cyprus Museum, Nicosia

 On a hot July day it was time to do some exploring. The destination? The Cyprus Museum in Nicosia. The museum was a respite from the summer heat with air-conditioning units humming merrily inside the building, with its beautiful interior, showcasing the finest historical artifacts of this island.

With the beginning of British rule in 1878, interest in the preservation of antiquities began. In 1905 the first "antiquities law" was passed. Construction of the museum began in 1908, built as a memorial to the late Queen Victoria. In 1912 the first curator of the museum was appointed and the work of the building was completed in 1924.

Walking around, completely alone in the museum there were imposing and grandiose statues of men and women alike. You felt their presence in the silence, the magic of the marble used to make them. Gigantic and god-like, each statue had been intricately carved, a laborious task, but with precision and care.

There was Zeus, Hera and Aphrodite and the Egyptian and immortal goddess Isis looking on. Other objects of interest were from ancient Salamis, which was one of the most important cities of ancient Cyprus and the seat of a powerful kingdom that thrived in historical times. 

There were inscribed tablets and tombstones and royal thrones and precious jewellery from different periods. There were cooking pots and jugs and figurines of deities with arms raised in jubilation.

Hellenistic and Roman Influence in Paphos

Alexander the Great occupied Cyprus in 333 BC, ten years before his death. After Alexander's death in 323 BC, Cyprus became a battleground for his successors. 

Alexander's three great surviving Macedonian generals were Ptolemy, Seleucis and Antigonus. Antigonus held much of Asia Minor, Seleucis the central empire from the Mediterranean to the Euphrates, and Ptelemy held Egypt.

In Cyprus, some cities, including Amathus and Kitium, favoured Antigonus. The remainder favoured Ptolemy who took over Cyprus as his protectorate in 318 BC. The victor was therefore the Greek-Egyptian Ptolemy Solter I. Kition, Kyrenia, Lapithos and Marion were destroyed and Nicocreon the King of Salamis, who refused to surrender, committed suicide. 

Cyprus became part of the Kingdom of Egypt and its viceroy resided in the new capital, Nea Pafos. Cultural life was influenced by Hellenism with the Egyptian gods joining the pantheon of deities. Ptolemy was a devoted patron of all arts and sciences.

In 58 BC, Cyprus was conquered by the legion of Rome and received the status of a province ruled by a governor who resided in a magnificent palace in Nea Pafos. Roman government was centred on Paphos and from there the now prosperous island's affairs were efficiently controlled. Public works of all kinds, roads, bridges, harbours, aqueducts and temples were constructed and there began a long interval of thriving expansion and a prolonged period of stability under Roman rule that was to last until 330 AD.

At the Paphos Archaeological Museum, the artifacts from the Hellenistic and Roman periods are particularly impressive. Some of the highlights are ladies' gold jewellery, silver coins from Alexander the Great's time, Roman hot water bottles for the body and a statue of armed Aphrodite from the Roman period.

Sources: Eyewitness Travel: Cyprus, Dr Dick Richards: Brief History of Cyprus in Ten Chapters