Excavations shed light on life in the Copper Age

[memory man]

Important information about the Middle and Late Chalcolithic period in Cyprus has been brought to light by 2022 excavations at the Chlorakas Palloures settlement, the antiquities department said on Wednesday.

The excavations at the Chalcolithic settlement were carried out under the direction of Dr Bleda Düring, Professor at Leiden University.

A building in an exceptional state of preservation was revealed, with walls standing up to one metre high, a feature that is very rare in prehistoric Cyprus. This building was destroyed by an intense fire as indicated by the thick ashy deposits and the number of complete vessels, querns and mortars that were found on the floor.

The state of preservation of the building and the deposits found on the floor give significant evidence that assist in the reconstruction of the buildings in which people lived approximately 5,000 years ago and inform about the types of activities carried out there.

Alongside the excavation works, the conservation and reconstruction of a large number of fragmented sherds and pots found in another burned building that was excavated during the previous year were carried out.

Through this type of reconstruction, the shape, type and size of the vessels can be determined and moreover what type of liquid or food might have been stored in them.

A dedicated team has been patiently reconstructing these large storage vessels, which were transferred at the end of the season to the Archaeological Museum of Paphos.

Achaeologists from Leiden University have been excavating the site since 2015. The site has been surveyed and visited many times since the 1950s.

However, the site is currently considered at risk, according to the official Palloures.eu website. “The site has already suffered substantially from agricultural development and construction, and is likely to experience further destruction due to development in the near future,” the website said.

https://cyprus-mail.com/2023/01/04/exca ... opper-age/