Major Architectural and Figurine Finds at Cyprus’s Prehistoric Settlement

The well-preserved level of a location was uncovered astatine the excavations. Credit: Ministry of Culture, Cyprus

Archaeologists successful Cyprus person completed a highly palmy archetypal excavation play astatine the prehistoric Chalcolithic colony of Erimi Pamboula, uncovering the level of a large operation and, astir significantly, a partially preserved, uncommon cruciform figurine made of picrolite.

The excavation, which took spot successful July 2025, was led by a squad from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA) nether the absorption of Professor Giorgos Vavouranakis. The ngo is acceptable to redefine the chronological knowing of the site, which flourished betwixt 3500-2900 BC.

Key finds astatine Cyprus’s prehistoric settlement

The NKUA squad focused its enactment adjacent the archetypal excavations by Porphyrios Dikaios, with the extremity of establishing a wide stratigraphic sequence. The effort instantly paid disconnected with respective cardinal discoveries:

Architectural Remains: The squad unearthed the well-preserved level of a house, implicit with a built level and a retention pit. They besides located the partition of a second, circular building, and portion of a rectilinear feature.

The Cruciform Figurine: Among the astir important finds is simply a partially preserved cruciform figurine—a distinctive and highly prized signifier of Neolithic and Chalcolithic Cypriot art—made from picrolite. This find, on with different picrolite jewelry and earthy material, underscores the value of Erimi Pamboula arsenic a imaginable halfway for trade production.

Late Chalcolithic Evidence: The layers supra the main structures yielded monochrome pottery sherds diagnostic of the Late Chalcolithic period. This is captious evidence, indicating continued quality enactment astatine the colony good into the archetypal fractional of the 3rd millennium BC.

Related: Mysterious Vounous Bowl Found successful Cyprus Offers Glimpse into Bronze Age Rituals

Insights into regular life

The tract provided a wealthiness of movable finds that connection a model into past life:

• Tool and Craft: Archaeologists recovered galore crushed chromatic tools (axes, adzes, querns) and chipped chromatic scrapers.
• Diet and Economy: Significant quantities of carnal bones, predominantly deer, were discovered, including a pit containing burnt cervid bones and antler parts, suggesting circumstantial processing oregon ritual activities.
• Pottery: The thousands of pottery sherds see galore pieces decorated with the distinctive Red-on-White technique, a hallmark of the period.

The palmy play was a collaborative effort, involving experts from the NKUA, the Freie Universität Berlin, the Université de Strasbourg, and archaeologists from Cyprus. The ngo besides integrated an Erasmus acquisition programme with The Cyprus Institute, whose Associate Professor of Environmental Archaeology, Evi Margaritis, and her squad provided important biology analysis.

The Department of Antiquities, Deputy Ministry of Culture, praised the results of the inaugural season, which is acceptable to importantly enrich the existing cognition basal for this captious Cypriot prehistoric settlement.

Related: Choirokoitia: Cyprus’ 9,000-Year-Old Neolithic Round-House Settlement