Cyprus
Cyprus Before History
Louise Steel, paperback, €32.00
Cyprus lies at the crossroads of many important ancient trade routes, from Asia Minor to Africa, from Persia, Assyria and other great eastern powers to Italy and Greece. In antiquity the island was famed for its great wealth, not only from trade but also from its natural resources of copper as well as wine and olive oil. Recent excavations in Cyprus have radically altered our understanding of the earliest prehistory of the island. In this reappraisal Louise Steel explores the archaeological evidence for human occupation on Cyprus from the earliest hunter-gatherers and the first farming communities to the end of the Bronze Age. She examines major issues that dominate current research on Cypriot prehistory: island colonisation; population migrations; the interpretation of figured art; the emergence of social complexity; and the shift from isolation in earlier prehistory to a position at the centre of Mediterranean trade. "Cyprus Before History" presents a social history of ancient Cyprus, exploring ways of life and death, changing farming practices and diet, social customs, early belief systems, and interaction with the Cypriot landscape and the wider Mediterranean.
First partition
Makarios Drousiotis, paperback, € 23.00
The circumstances which led to the turbulent events of 1963 remain one of the most obscure aspects of modern Cypriot history. This book aims to fill the gaps. Based largely on new material from British and American archives, it records events as they unfolded during the years 1963-1964, and seeks to interpret the political behaviour of the Greek and Turkish leaderships both locally and within the wider international sphere.
Cyprus 1974 Greek Coup and Turkish Invasion
Makarios Drousiotis, paperback, € 31.50
This book gives the background story covering the period from the first Cyprus crisis in 1963-64 up until the collapse of the military junta in Greece culminating in the Turkish invasion in 1974. Makarious Drousiotis meticulously details the dramatic developments based on extensive archival research and interviews with former high ranking eyewitnesses.
Painted Churches of Cyprus (Second Edition)
Andreas and Judith A. Stylianou, hardback, € 150.00
This now out of print edition commences with a historical introduction and a general discussion of Byzantine art and Cyprus. The first section concerned with monuments covers the churches with mosaics (three buildings at Lythrankomi, Kiti and Livadia). This is followed by the much longer list of painted churches under 42 locality headings (villages or towns), listing 58 buildings. Brief directions are provided under the heading of each village to facilitate access. The history of each monument is described in detail, together with extensive description of the preserved paintings. The majority of the illustrations are photographs of the monuments and their wall paintings; smaller numbers of architectural ground plans and sections are also included. The book ends with a list of Cypriot saints, glossary, bibliography and index.
Impressions of Cyprus
AA, paperback, € 10.50
Impressions of Cyprus is a beautiful picture book of carefully chosen images of the highest quality. This guide provides an evocative and appealing picture into the culture, people and architecture of Cyprus.
The British in Cyprus Colonialism and Post-Colonialism 1878-2006
Hubert Faustmann and Nicos Peristianis (Ed.), hardback, € 53.80
A study that ranges from the start of the British colonial period to the present day. It focuses on the factors that helped shaped the modern Cyprus.
History of Modern Cyprus
Stavros Pentali, paperback, € 16.00
From the earliest times Cyprus' historical significance far outweighed its small size. Its strategic position at the crossroads of three continents, as well as its considerable supplies of copper, other precious metals and timber combined to make a highly territorial acquisition. This edition covers centuries of the history of the island from 10,000 BC to the present day
The Cyprus Conspiracy
Brendan O'Mally and Ian Craig. paperback, € 20.80
In 1974 the Greek colonels ousted the Greek-Cypriot leader of Cyprus, Archbishop Makarios, and Turkey retaliated by invading and seizing a third of the island. Cyprus remains split in two, like Berlin before the wall came down, bristling with troops and spying bases, and permanently policed by the United Nations. Henry Kissinger claimed he could do nothing to stop the coup because of the Watergate crisis, but this book presents evidence to support the view that it was no failure of American foreign policy, but the realization of a long-term plot. The authors describe the strategic reasons for Washington's need to divide the island. Their account encompasses an international cast of characters that includes Eden, Eisenhower, Nixon, Kissinger, Wilson, Callaghan, Grivas, and the leaders of the two halves of the divided island, Clerides and Denktas.
Waves of Honesty in Cyprus: 36 Ways to Decipher the Cypriot
Aristotelis Aristopoulos, paperback, € 14.00
This personal work provides an insider's candid perspective on the Cypriot people from the perspective of an Australian Cypriot who has been on the island for fifteen years. The author shares with us through a collection of individual stories the psyche of the unique Cypriot character. The directness of the Cypriot particularly towards land, status and possessions seems overstated at first but on reflection one remembers the questions on how much you paid for your house and then told how overpriced it was! The author states that this all comes from freedom from the West’s imposed thinking processes and considers it may ultimately be a vital possession. Heartfelt, humorous and blunt. Read and learn.
Footprints in Cyprus an illustrated historySir David Hunt, hardback, € 52.80
From the time the first Greeks arrived, over 3,000 years ago, the island has been the centre of a vigourous and creative artistic culture. Many treasures survive from the 1st millennium before Christ which illustrate vividly the fact that Cyprus can rival in achievement the best art in the Mediterranean world. In Footprints of Cyprus these achievements are not only fully depicted in colour and in black and white but also related to their historical context.
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