Σαλαμίς Σαλαμίνα | |
 The gymnasium at Salamis | |
  Shown within Cyprus | |
| Alternative name | Salamína |
|---|---|
| Location | Famagusta District,Cyprus |
| Coordinates | 35°11′N33°54′E / 35.183°N 33.900°E /35.183; 33.900 |
| Type | Settlement |
| Site notes | |
| Website | Virtual Tour of Salamis |
Salamis (Ancient Greek:Σαλαμίς;Greek:Σαλαμίνα;Turkish:Salamis) was an ancient Greekcity-state on the east coast ofCyprus, at the mouth of the riverPedieos, 6 km north of modernFamagusta. According to tradition, the founder of Salamis wasTeucer, son ofTelamon, king of the Greek island ofSalamis, who could not return home after theTrojan War because he had failed to avenge his brother Ajax.
The earliest archaeological finds go back to the eleventh century BC (Late Bronze Age III). The copper ores of Cyprus made the island an essential node in the earliest trade networks, and Cyprus was a source of theorientalizing cultural traits of mainland Greece at the end of theGreek Dark Ages, hypothesized byWalter Burkert in 1992. Children's burials in Canaanite jars indicate aPhoenician presence. A harbour and a cemetery from this period have been excavated. The town is mentioned in Assyrian inscriptions as one of the kingdoms ofIadnana (Cyprus).[1] In 877 BC, an Assyrian army reached the Mediterranean shores for the first time. In 708 BC, the city-kings of Cyprus paid homage toSargon II of Assyria (Burkert). The first coins were minted in the 6th century BC, following Persian prototypes.
Cyprus was under the control of theAssyrians at this time but the city-states of the island enjoyed a relative independence as long as they paid their tribute to the Assyrian king. This allowed the kings of the various cities to accumulate wealth and power. Certain burial customs observed in the "royal tombs" of Salamis relate directly to Homeric rites, such as the sacrifice of horses in honor of the dead and the offering of jars of olive oil. Some scholars have interpreted this phenomenon as the result of influence of the Homeric Epics in Cyprus. Most of the grave goods come from the Levant or Egypt.
According to the foundation myth, the founder of Salamis is said to beTeucer, son of Telamon, who could not return home after the Trojan war because he had failed to avenge his brotherAjax. There is however some evidence that the area had been occupied long before the alleged arrival of Mycenaeans (at Enkomi) and the town of Salamis was developed as a replacement when Engkomi was isolated from the sea. There is otherwise little direct evidence to support the foundation myth.
In the 11th century BC, the town was confined to a rather small area around the harbour but soon expanded westwards to occupy the area, which today is covered by forest. The cemetery of Salamis covers a large area from the western limits of the forest to theMonastery of St. Barnabas to the west, to the outskirts of the village of Ayios Serghios to the north, and to the outskirts of Enkomi village to the south. It contains tombs dating from the 9th century BC down to theEarly Christian period. The earlier tombs are within the forest area, near the boundary of the early town.
Though Salamis maintained direct links with the Near East during the 8th and 7th centuries BC, there were bonds with the Aegean as well. One royal tomb contained a large amount of Greek Geometric pottery and this has been explained as the dowry of a Greek princess who married into the royal family of Salamis. Greek pottery was also found in tombs of ordinary citizens. At this time the Greeks were embarking on an eastward expansion by founding colonies inAsia Minor and Syria; Salamis must have served as an intermediate station; it has even been suggested that Cypriots helped theGreeks in their venture.
In 450 BC, Salamis was the site of asimultaneous land and sea battle betweenAthens and the Persians. (This is not to be confused with the earlierBattle of Salamis in 480 BC between the Greeks and the Persians atSalamis inAttica.)
The history of Salamis during the earlyArchaic andClassical periods is reflected in the narrations of the Greek historianHerodotus and the much later speeches of the Greek oratorIsocrates. Salamis was afterwards besieged and conquered byArtaxerxes III. Under KingEvagoras I (411-374 BC) Greek culture and art flourished in the city. A monument, which illustrates the end of the Classical period in Salamis, is the tumulus, which covered the cenotaph ofNicocreon, one of the last kings of Salamis, who perished in 311 BC. On its monumental platform were found several clay heads, some of which are portraits, perhaps of members of the royal family who were honoured after their death on the pyre.
Marguerite Yon (archaeologist) claims that "Literary texts and inscriptions suggest that by theClassical period,Kition [in present-day Larnaca] was one of the principal local powers, along with its neighbor Salamis."[2]
AfterAlexander the Great conquered thePersian Empire,Ptolemy I of Egypt ruled the island of Cyprus. He forcedNicocreon, who had been the Ptolemaic governor of the island, to commit suicide in 311 BC, because he did not trust him any more. In his place came kingMenelaus, who was the brother of the first Ptolemy. Nicocreon is supposed to be buried in one of the big tumuli nearEnkomi. Salamis remained the seat of the governor.
In 306 BC, Salamis was the site of anaval battle between the fleets ofDemetrius I of Macedon andPtolemy I of Egypt. Demetrius won the battle and captured the island.
In 58 BC, theRoman Republic annexed Cyprus; the Senate commissionedCato the Younger to add Cyprus to the Republic's dominions.Ptolemy of Cyprus, the last Cypriotic king, committed suicide rather than surrender to Rome.[3]
InRoman times, Salamis was part of theRoman province ofCilicia. The seat of the governor was relocated toPaphos. The town suffered heavily during theJewish uprising of AD 116–117. Although Salamis ceased to be the capital of Cyprus from the Hellenistic period onwards when it was replaced by Paphos, its wealth and importance did not diminish. The city was particularly favoured by the Roman emperorsTrajan andHadrian, who restored and established its public buildings.
The "cultural centre" of Salamis during the Roman period was situated at the northernmost part of the city, where a gymnasium, theatre, amphitheatre, stadium and public baths have been revealed.There are baths, public latrines (for 44 users), various little bits ofmosaic, a harbour wall, aHellenistic andRomanagora and a temple of Zeus that had the right to grant asylum. Byzantine remains include the basilica of BishopEpiphanos (AD 367–403). It served as the metropolitan church of Salamis. St. Epiphanios is buried at the southern apse. The church contains abaptistry heated byhypocausts. The church was destroyed in the 7th century and replaced by a smaller building to the south.
There are very extensive ruins. Thetheatre, and thegymnasium have been extensively restored. Numerous statues are displayed in the central court of the gymnasium most of which are headless. While a statue ofAugustus originally belonged here, some columns and statues originally adorned the theatre and were only brought here after anearthquake in the 4th century. The theatre is of Augustean date. It could house up to 15.000 spectators but was destroyed in the 4th century.
The town was supplied with water by an aquaeduct fromKythrea, destroyed in the 7th century. The water was collected in a large cistern near theAgora. Thenecropolis of Salamis covers ca. 7 km² to the west of the town. It contains a museum showing some of the finds. Burials date from the geometric to the Hellenistic period. The best known burials are the so-called Royal-Tombs, containing chariots and extremely rich grave gifts, including imports fromEgypt andSyria. A tomb excavated in 1965 by the French Mission of theUniversity of Lyon brought to light an extraordinary wealth of tomb-gifts, which also attest trade relations with theNear East.
In what is known as the "First Missionary Journey",Paul the Apostle and the Cypriot-bornBarnabas made Salamis their first destination, landing there after heading out fromAntioch ofSyria. There they proclaimed Christ in the Jewish synagogues before proceeding through the rest of the island (Acts 13:1-5). Tradition says that Barnabas preached in Alexandria and Rome, and was stoned to death at Salamis in about 61 CE. He is considered the founder of theChurch of Cyprus. His bones are believed to be located in the nearby monastery named after him.
Several earthquakes led to the destruction of Salamis at the beginning of the 4th century. The town was rebuilt under the name of Constantia byConstantius II (337–361) and became an Episcopal seat, the most famous occupant of which wasSaint Epiphanius. Emperor Constantius II helped the Salaminians not only for the reconstruction of their city but also he helped them by relieving them from paying taxes for a short period and thus the new city, rebuilt on a smaller scale, was named Constantia. The silting of the harbour led to a gradual decline of the town. Salamis was finally abandoned during the Arab invasions of the 7th century after destructions byMuawiyah I ( reigned 661-680 ). The inhabitants moved to Arsinoë (Famagusta).
Archaeological excavations at the site began in the late nineteenth century under the auspices of the Cyprus Exploration Fund.[4] Many of these finds are now in theBritish Museum in London.[5]
Excavations at Salamis started again in 1952 and were in progress until 1974. Before the Turkish invasion there was much archaeological activity there; one French Mission was excavating at Enkomi, another at Salamis and the Department of Antiquities was busy almost throughout the year with repairs and restorations of monuments and was engaged in excavations at Salamis. After theTurkish invasion the international embargo has prevented the continuation of the excavations. The site and the museums are maintained by the antiquities service. Important archaeological collections are kept in the St. Barnabas monastery. In the District Archaeological Museum there are marble statues from the gymnasium and the theatre of Salamis, Mycenaean pottery and jewellery from Enkomi and other objects representative of the rich archaeological heritage of the whole district. Several of the statues and sculptures from antiquity are disfigured, headless or mutilated, likely by Christian zealots in late antiquity[6] during thepersecution of pagans in the late Roman Empire.
The public buildings uncovered at the city site of Salamis date to the post-Classical period. The Temple of Zeus Salaminios, whose cult was established, according to tradition, byTeucer himself, must have existed since the foundation of the city; the extant remains date to the late Hellenistic period. Early excavators discovered in theesplanade of the Temple of Zeus an enormous marble capital carved on each side with acaryatid figure standing between the foreparts of wingedbulls. Now in theBritish Museum's collection,[7] the function of thecapital remains unclear, although it does indicate influence fromAchaemenid art and is consequently dated to between 300 and 250 BC.
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