A Companion to the Achaemenid Persian Empire, 2 Volume Set. Группа авторов. Читать онлайн. Newlib. NEWLIB.NET

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jewelry, and seals: Zournatzi 2008) whose ideological value was particularly interesting for the self‐definition and legitimization of the Cypriot elites.

      Some monumental buildings and structures documented in the western part of the island and dating from between the end of the Cypro‐Archaic and the Cypro‐Classical I period (that is, the fifth century BCE) are usually considered as the most eloquent evidence concerning the actual Persian presence in Cyprus.

Schematic illustration of the Persian siege ramp.

      Source: Reproduced from Maier 2008, p. 21 fig. 18, by permission of Swiss‐German Archaeological Mission of Kouklia‐Palaepaphos; modified by C. Marcks‐Jacobs.

      As a consequence of the rebellion of almost all the Cypriot kingdoms in the 490s, the Persian presence on the island is supposed to have increased in the years immediately following the repression of the revolt. Two monumental buildings are usually considered to illustrate this presence, both with military and administrative aims: the Hadjiabdoullah palace of Palaepaphos, and the Vouni palace close to Soloi.

      The remains of a large monumental building, discovered and only partially excavated in the 1950s at Hadjiabdoullah (Palaepaphos), have been first interpreted as the residence of the Persian authority (the commander of a garrison?) imposed on the conquered city after the siege of 498 BCE. This interpretation mainly results from the analysis of the architectural and technical characteristics of the palace: ashlar masonry of fine quality; a plan with many small rooms and narrow corridors symmetrically arranged, close to the Achaemenid architecture habits without pointing to specific models (Schäfer 1960). However, since no Persian garrisons are archeologically documented not only in Palaepaphos but in all Cyprus (Petit 1991: pp. 161–169; see however Diodorus [Diod.] 11.44.2 and 12.4.1, which has not to be neglected), it seems more reliable to see in the Hadjiabdoullah palace the residence of the local king of Paphos, maybe built even before the revolt (the archeological context dating generically from the Cypro‐Archaic II period). After the collapse of the structure before the end of the fifth century BCE, the royal residence was possibly transferred to the site of Evreti, where a new, less sumptuous palace (also incompletely excavated) was erected at the same time (Maier 1989a: p. 17). Both sites have been the object of new excavations in the very last years, which will certainly lead to new conclusions in the future (Iacovou 2019).

Schematic illustration of the plan of the palace of Vouni, Swedish excavations.

      Source: Reproduced from Gjerstad et al. 1937, fig. 119, by permission of National Museum of World Culture, Sweden.

      The monetary, gold, and silver treasure found in a coarse jar under a staircase of the palace, and dating from the destruction of the palace, around 380 BCE, adds some interesting elements to the hypothesis of Vouni as a Persian fortress or administrative center. Following a recent proposition (Zournatzi 2017), not only the monetary hoard (composed of 248 minted coins, almost all Cypriot, and four darics) but also the gold and silver objects (bracelets, pendants, bowls, and four pieces of cut gold) would have to be considered as elements of the official fiscal contribution the Cypriot kings had to send annually to the Persian authorities. Particularly relevant to this hypothesis are the three Achaemenid‐style silver bowls, which would clearly echo the “tribute bowls” of the Neo‐Assyrian times; a stone model of such kind of bowls could be identified in a limestone artifact found in the royal palace of Amathus (Zournatzi 2017: pp. 7–9).