The Development of Protohistoric Jewellery from Cyprus and the Aegean: An Analysis with Special Reference to Signs of Cultural Interconnections

Anna Paule Στο R. Maguire & J. Chick (eds) 2016. Approaching Cyprus. Proceedings of the Post-Graduate Conference of Cypriot Archaeology (PoCA) held at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, 1st-3rd November 2013, Newcastle upon Tyne: 40-59.

The aim of the following analysis is an identification of changes and continuity in the style and composition of the jewellery which occurred in Cyprus and the Aegean during the Late Bronze Age and the (Early) Iron Age. After a brief introduction outlining some essential characteristics of Cypriot and Mycenaean jewellery, the main issues discussed in our study are approached from a triple perspective. First, these two jewellery traditions have been studied separately with a focus on the material from the end of the Late Bronze Age, which has long been thought to have notably changed during this period of transition. Secondly, we conducted a re-assessment of several types of jewellery whose occurrence was often associated with long-distance contacts between Cyprus, the Near East and the Aegean. Finally, in our study emphasis has been laid on the mutual influence of Cypriot and Mycenaean goldsmith traditions. Since comparative studies of both Cypriot and Mycenaean material culture are rather scarce, this aspect has been largely neglected by researchers. As a consequence, we established a list of corresponding examples in order to make a small contribution to such issues.