Excavations on show

The Cyprus Museum opens its doors on Monday to invite us all to view its new temporary exhibition Nea Paphos: 50 Years of Polish Excavations, 1965-2015.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Polish excavations in Paphos. In order to mark the event, the Department of Antiquities and the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology (University of Warsaw) will present many of the results of half a century of archaeological investigations by the Polish archaeological mission to the public for the first time.

The University of Warsaw’s excavations at the site of ancient Nea Paphos (Kato Paphos) began in 1965 with Kazimierz Michałowski as the first director of the mission. Since then, the excavations have continued almost without interruption – the only year excavations ceased was in 1974. The Polish archaeological mission’s director from 1966 to 2007 was Professor Wiktor Andrzej Daszewski and from 2008 to this day the excavations are led by Dr Henryk Meyza. In 2011, a second archaeological mission from Poland (Jagiellonian University, Kraków) continued the excavations of the ancient Roman Agora, under the direction of Professor Ewdoksia Papuci-Władyka.

The exhibition at the Cyprus Museum includes finds such as vessels, coins, sculpture and figurines from the luxurious villas, as well as from public buildings. The exhibition’s highlight is the armed Aphrodite (Hoplismene), a unique example of this type in Cyprus. The marvellous mosaics which adorn the floors of Nea Paphos’ ancient villas will be projected in a specially designed room. Objects that provide us with information on the ancient city’s town planning as well as its water supply will be exhibited along with reconstructed architectural fragments from a public building. These architectural members reveal the variety of architectural styles that coexisted in the city.

The Polish archaeological mission of the University of Warsaw at Paphos is the oldest ongoing archaeological mission in Cyprus and continues its scientific quests with the same zeal and energy. The recent arrival of the Jagiellonian University of Kraków has brought additional dynamism to current research activities, signifying Poland’s great interest in retaining and enhancing its scientific ties with Cyprus.

The exhibition will open at 7pm, and is within the framework of the celebrations of International Museum Day and the European Night of Museums.

Nea Paphos 50 Years of Polish Excavations 1965 – 2015
Temporary group exhibition. Cyprus Museum, Nicosia. Opens May 25, 7pm until November 30. Tuesday – Friday: 8am-6pm, Saturday: 9am-5pm, Sunday: 10am-1pm. Tel: 22-865854

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