Aphrodite's Bridge

[Dominic]

While I was assembling the map for a recent driving film I published between Pissouri and Kouklia, I noticed that there was a new marker for a "hidden medieval bridge", just in front of Aphrodite's Hills Resort. Well, red rag to a bull and all that, so I paid the area a visit, to see what I could find...

Read the article and chat about it below...
 

aphrodites-bridge_masthead.jpg (223.93 KiB) Viewed 138799 times

[ast]

Interesting but hardly medieval, the river appears to go right up alongside the Secret valley golf course but then looks like it just ends, must be a lot of water coming down that way when it rains.

[Dominic]

Hence why I said:

From the opposite side of the bridge I walked down the side to the riverbed. On the way down I couldn't help but notice this sign, which dates the construction of the bridge to 1919. So it is over 100 years old, but far from medieval. While disappointing (I was hoping to find something really old) it did allow me to use my worst pun of 2023. So all was not lost.

[cyprusmax47]

Interesting but hardly medieval, the river appears to go right up alongside the Secret valley golf course but then looks like it just ends, must be a lot of water coming down that way when it rains.

The river is called Cha-Potami and is one of the longest rivers in Cyprus. The spring is near Pano Platres and the river runs then down via Omodos,
down of Dora, Kato Archimandrita and finally Secret valley and the sea. (center of map)

Attached map from the Gov.


Max

[Kili01]

I guess that modern day developments like the construction of the nearby motorway and perhaps the creation of Secret Valley Golf course may be responsible for blocking the old river course. Maybe the winter rain run off of
river water can be stored for using to irrigate the golf course in summer?

Like ast I spotted immediately that the bridge wasn't mediaeval as it bore no close resemblance to the architectural style of the the Crusader bridges which were built to carry the copper ingots from the Troodos mines by Camel trains to Larnaca.
The signpost is misleading, more like someones wishful thinking!

[WHL]

Could this bridge have replaced a medieval one that might of been there back in the day?

[cyprusmax47]

Could this bridge have replaced a medieval one that might of been there back in the day?

Well, part of an old Roman road from Limassol to Palaepaphos (Kouklia) one can still see and use when you drive from Alektora village (Limassol district) towards Aphrodite hills via the surrounding hills with a lot of pine trees and ancient olive trees. During the period of the Roman Empire (beginning of the first millennium), the plain of the village was used for the production of pine nuts by residents of neighbouring villages. The pine kernel was prized in the Roman Empire for its aphrodisiac properties.

This old carriage road runs through "Lakkos tou Frangou". It used to be the main east-west thoroughfare until the B6 coastal road was built in the 20th century. Lakkos tou Frangou gets its name from the well found here, important in medieval times when the island was ruled by the Lusignans. The old building, called the "Hani", was built as a rest stop for tired travellers.

So that bridge could have been either a medieval or even a Roman bridge in past times.... nobody knows.

Max

[WHL]

Could this bridge have replaced a medieval one that might of been there back in the day?

Well, part of an old Roman road from Limassol to Palaepaphos (Kouklia) one can still see and use when you drive from Alektora village (Limassol district) towards Aphrodite hills via the surrounding hills with a lot of pine trees and ancient olive trees. During the period of the Roman Empire (beginning of the first millennium), the plain of the village was used for the production of pine nuts by residents of neighbouring villages. The pine kernel was prized in the Roman Empire for its aphrodisiac properties.

This old carriage road runs through "Lakkos tou Frangou". It used to be the main east-west thoroughfare until the B6 coastal road was built in the 20th century. Lakkos tou Frangou gets its name from the well found here, important in medieval times when the island was ruled by the Lusignans. The old building, called the "Hani", was built as a rest stop for tired travellers.

So that bridge could have been either a medieval or even a Roman bridge in past times.... nobody knows.

Max

Many thanks max very informative.

[cyprusmax47]

Could this bridge have replaced a medieval one that might of been there back in the day?

Well, part of an old Roman road from Limassol to Palaepaphos (Kouklia) one can still see and use when you drive from Alektora village (Limassol district) towards Aphrodite hills via the surrounding hills with a lot of pine trees and ancient olive trees. During the period of the Roman Empire (beginning of the first millennium), the plain of the village was used for the production of pine nuts by residents of neighbouring villages. The pine kernel was prized in the Roman Empire for its aphrodisiac properties.

This old carriage road runs through "Lakkos tou Frangou". It used to be the main east-west thoroughfare until the B6 coastal road was built in the 20th century. Lakkos tou Frangou gets its name from the well found here, important in medieval times when the island was ruled by the Lusignans. The old building, called the "Hani", was built as a rest stop for tired travellers.

So that bridge could have been either a medieval or even a Roman bridge in past times.... nobody knows.

Max

Many thanks max very informative.

Thank you for your reply. Even when you are living far away from Paphos district you have obviously interest what is and was happening in this area.

I thought, there are comments from members living nearby, but they know things like that already, perhaps........... NO, they don't.
But Nevermind!

Max

[WHL]

We all live in Cyprus, so I'm interested in its history be it North South East and West, I have visited every part of this beautiful country, I also have expat mates who have never visited the Troodos mountains even after having lived here for decades

[Kili01]

Its all supposition, as Max says no one knows. Probably the first settlers living in the Paphos area left traces of their presence by digging wells in the Lemba and Kissonerga area, 6000 years BC.These wells of which 3 were excavated by Archaeologists, showed evidence of having been dug with primitive tools. They were dated by the' finds' found during excavation. Since then Cyprus has been visited and lived in by almost every invading army!
The point to this is that Cyprus has a very long and interesting history, archaeology and geology.
Which I study as an amateur and find fascinating.

[cyprusmax47]

Back to the bridge. Here a image from Kitchener's map 1885 showing that the only road towards Paphos from Limassol was then via the hills ( and the modern settlement of Aphrodite Hills now)



It remains the question how vehicles could cross the Cha-Potami river when the bridge Dominic showed us in a photo was built 1919
So there must have been another bridge before that....

Max

[Kili01]

Yes, I''ve walked part of the old road that you mentioned, and also as a passenger in a 4 wheel drive, we were told that it was originally a Roman road, it still runs between Aphrodite Hills and Alektora. In one place there was still the remains of Roman stone road paving. At that time some of the Roman mile stone markers were still there as well as the Hani. But since then I believe the remaining markers were removed to a museum.
As regards the bridge, there must have been several over the millennia! The earlier ones may have been damaged in the periodic floods which occur after heavy winter rains/snow. It was long before the days of reinforced concrete! Whether anyone built a beautiful bridge there who knows. But the Copper trade that existed was mainly for export. So the ingots were taken by camel train probably to Larnaca which had a better harbour than Paphos. The reason why they were built in their narrow humped style was to suit the width of a camel, led by a man. They were humped to prevent them being washed away by winter flooded rivers there.
So, it is interesting to wonder what type of bridge/s were built near what is now Secret Valley. The Crusaders would have used the road when they travelled from Kolossi to their base near Kouklia.
Dee

[Dominic]

There's one in Archimandrita. Seems a bit far away from the old road though.

https://www.paphoslife.com/blog/archimandrita-bridge

[cyprusmax47]

If you follow Kitchener's map from 1885, there was only one track coming down from Pano Archimandrita to that little bridge and continue over the hills towards Anoyira, quite away from the Roman road. (center map)




Max

[Kili01]

True, a while ago I had a friend with a good off road vehicle. He had done a lot of driving on old roads with the 4x4 Off Road Driving Group and knew the old white roads well in the Paphos area.
We were all amazed by the number of them, probably once in use to the number of remote old stone villages often, in ruins. I remember one particular series of these roads which linked from the Polis Rd eventually to arriving in Anogyra. Of course there are virtually no sign posts, on the way we passed through a few of these villages. (I felt-very sad as unfortunately some had the marks of warfare and severe damage to homes and buildings. One could only speculate as to what had happened to the former inhabitants. I hoped they had survived). But for those who are intrepid explorers, with GPS plus a good sense of direction, there are many interesting routes!

All this was long , long ago, before any tarmaced roads existed. Its interesting to contemplate life in the Paphos area 100 yrs ago.. So there was a definite need for bridges over streams and rivers from the earliest times.