An Elite Tomb from Soloi: New Evidence for the Funerary Archaeology of Cyprus

Year 2020, Issue: 23, 205 - 237, 15.11.2020

Hazar Kaba

https://doi.org/10.47589/adalya.837645

Abstract

This article focuses on a 4th century BC tomb from the necropolis of Soloi, an important ancient city in northwestern Cyprus. The tomb, together with five others, were revealed during a rescue excavation between 2005-2006. They supply us with evidence related to the Cypro-Classical period of Soloi. The specific tomb that
will be evaluated is distinguished from its contemporaries, especially by its rich inventory of gold and silver jewelry and metal vessels. The tomb is characterized by three separate burial chambers that open to a rock-cut central courtyard (prodomos). It supplies us with valuable information related to the sociocultural structure,
internal and external relations of Cypro-Classical Soloi as well as funerary beliefs and customs of its elite. The article firstly gives a detailed structural and comparative analysis conducted to reveal both the spatial and architectural characteristics of the tomb. This will be followed by a superficial, yet still informative, analysis of
all the burials and their rich inventories. Last but not least, the burials and their inventories will be contextualized within the setting of the 4th century BC Cypriot and Greek burial customs.

Keywords

Soloi, Late Classical period, jewelry, metal vessels, burial customs, funenary rites

Thanks

I wish to thank Emine Hilkat, former Director of the Morphou/Güzelyurt branch of the Department of Antiquities and Museums of the TRNC, and Mehmet Şöföroğlu for giving the necessary permissions to study and publish the material from the necropolis of Soloi as well as their collaborative work on the subject since 2009. I also express my never-ending gratitude to Kadir Kaba for his caring and efficient work on the photographing of the finds and whose drawings were realized with much care by Nalan Kaba. Last but not least, I owe thanks to both anonymous reviewers who helped to improve the earlier draft of this article.

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