Archaeological insights from Agios Georgios and Yeronisos island in Cyprus
An international archaeological team has recently completed its excavation and survey efforts at Agios Georgios and Yeronisos Island in Cyprus’s Paphos District. These sites have revealed important insights into the region’s Byzantine and earlier histories.
Initial excavations at Agios Georgios in the 1950s uncovered an extensive early Christian settlement dating to the Byzantine period. Among the significant finds were three 6th-century basilicas and a bathhouse. Subsequent work uncovered evidence of a settlement from the Roman and early Christian periods on the cape’s neck and southern slopes.
In this latest phase of research, part of the Yeronisos Island Expedition, archaeologists surveyed a 3.5-kilometer stretch of the Cape Drepanum coastline, from the Sea Caves in the south to the Aspros River in the north. Two shoreline trenches yielded large deposits of late Roman amphorae, likely discarded during antiquity.
The findings included Late Roman 1 amphorae, locally made in the Paphos region, along with “Palestinian bag-shaped amphorae” and “Gaza Jars.” These artifacts point to maritime trade links between Cape Drepanum and South Palestine during the 6th century AD.
On nearby Yeronisos Island, the team excavated trenches that exposed late Ptolemaic wall remnants and unearthed pottery from the Hellenistic and early Byzantine periods. Excavations have identified three distinct phases of occupation: the Early Chalcolithic (3800 BC), the Late Hellenistic (80–30 BC) – which seems to be the peak activity on the site, when the island may have hosted a sanctuary dedicated to Apollo, and the Byzantine (6th–7th century and 13th century). The Late Hellenistic era is notable for its peak activity, with evidence suggesting the island may have hosted a sanctuary dedicated to Apollo during the 1st century BC.
The discoveries at Agios Georgios and Yeronisos Island continue to shed light on Cyprus’s rich and interconnected history, highlighting its role as a cultural and commercial hub in the Mediterranean until the Byzantine era.
Source: Republic of Cyprus
