The Early History of Late Cypriote I

Waterways and the Political Geography of South-East Cyprus in the Second Millennium Bc

“…It has previously been suggested by Masson (1964, 3–8) that Alashiya refers to the eastern half of the island, while the name Kupros derived from the Linear B adjective ‘Ku-pi-ri-jo’ for Cypriot refers to the west. For the possibility of east–west conflict during Late Cypriot I see Merrillees (1971, 74–5) and Åström (1972, 50–2, 55).…”

Beyond Copper: Commodities and Values in Middle Bronze Cypro‐levantine Exchanges

“…Beyond the archaeological traces of imported pottery sherds, these recognizably standardized containers are likely to have impacted on, transformed and reflected Cypriot ways of ordering the world, connected to the production and manipulation of surplus goods and the process of commodification of both materials and people as Cypriot populations became increasingly familiar with the urban societies of the eastern Mediterranean. How exactly these exchanges were mediated during the Middle–Late Bronze transition remains debated but the interpretation favoured here is that the widespread nature of both resources and landfalls on Cyprus led to direct relationships built between a number of geographically dispersed populations on Cyprus with an equally diverse range of mainland groups (Merrillees 1971; Manning and De Mita 1997).…”

“…The archaeologically visible material is pottery, widely assumed to be a by‐product of increasing external demand for Cypriot copper. Patterns of circulation of a complex of particularly eastern Cypriot pottery styles continued through the beginning of the Late Cypriot Bronze Age (Late Cypriot IA, c .1650–1550 BC), changing to styles first developed in the centre and north‐west of the island around the beginning of the New Kingdom in Egypt and the Late Bronze Age in the Levant (Merrillees 1971). On the receiving end of these exchanges, small numbers of imported ‘luxury’ goods appear, primarily in mortuary contexts, dispersed around Cyprus at sites both near and far from copper sources, with quantities and types of imports also increasing through time.…”