Archaeological dig reveals remains of buildings and tombs in Alambra

Famagusta Gazette, 05-06-2014

An archaeological dig conducted by Queensland University in 2014, in the location of Mouttes in Alambra, in Nicosia District, has confirmed the existence of an ancient settlement revealing remains of buildings and tombs dating back to the Bronze Age. The research conducted during 2014 is the continuation of the work that had been conducted by the Australian mission at the same site during 2012, a Department of Antiquities press release says. It is further noted that the site “had been identified as preserving the remains of an Early and Middle Bronze Age settlement already since the 19th century”. However, the press release adds, “the first investigation on a scientific basis at the site was conducted during the 1970s and 1980s, when an archaeological mission of Cornell University excavated there a part of the ancient settlement”. In 2012 the Department of Antiquities assigned further investigation of the site to the Queensland University mission.

The Queensland Alambra Archaeological Mission had conducted small scale excavation by trial trenches at locations defined by the Department of Antiquities. That investigation confirmed that architectural remains of the ancient settlement were preserved there”, the press release says. At the same time geophysical investigation by ground penetrating radar and gradiometer was carried out on a much wider area, revealing indications of the existence of architectural remains, possibly of settlement houses, as well as of tombs. “The aim of the 2014 excavation was to ‘ground truth’ the geophysical survey data, using a number of tightly defined excavation areas at points where geophysical survey had indicated that settlement and cemetery remains had survived”, it is noted.

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