Post on 03-Jul-2020
Collec&ng the Past: The Legacy of 19th Century An4quarianism in Cyprus
Julia Wareham, Archaeology & History Faculty Mentor: Dr. Emily Anderson, Classics & History of Art
Introduc4on Looking specifically at the Bri4sh Museum, the Cyprus Museum, and the Johns Hopkins Archaeological Museum, this project focuses on the ways in which an4quarian mo4va4ons shaped 19th century archaeological ac4vity in Cyprus, how this is reflected in Western museum collec4ons, and to what extent this legacy con4nues to impact current archaeological research on the island.
Early Archaeology and Collec4ng in Cyprus
“The work (in Cyprus) is interes4ng alone to the serious student of the remote annals of the Mediterranean. To
him the an4qui4es of the island are a precious connec4ng-‐link between Egypt, Assyria, and early Greece and the less aErac4ve they are to the ar4s4c eye the more valuable are they to his compara4ve vision.”
Stuart Poole, 1878
Conclusions: Legacy of An4quarianism and the Future of Cypriot Archaeology
Bri4sh Museum
The Bri4sh Museum was founded in 1753 as the world’s first na4onal public museum, and its extensive collec4on of Cypriot an4qui4es is one of the largest outside of Cyprus. Today the collec4on is housed primarily in the A.G. Levan4s Gallery.
Cyprus Museum Johns Hopkins Archaeological Museum
The Johns Hopkins Archaeological Museum was established in 1882, and is one of the oldest university collec4ons of archaeological material in the United States. Though the museum was originally in McCoy Hall on the old campus downtown, today nearly all of the collec4on resides in Gilman Hall in the newly renovated Archaeological Museum.
The Athienou Archaeological Project
Selected Bibliography 1. Myres, John L. and Max Ohnefalsch-‐Richter. A Catalogue of the Cyprus Museum with a chronicle of excava4ons undertaken since the Bri4sh occupa4on and introductory notes on Cypriote archaeology. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1899. 2. Ohnefalsch-‐Richter, Max. Kypros, the Bible and Homer: Oriental civiliza4on, art and religion in ancient 4mes. London: Asher & Co, 1893. 3. Ta^on-‐Brown, Veronica. Cyprus in the 19th Century AD: Fact, Fancy and Fic4on. London: Oxbow Books, 2001. 4. Williams, Ellen Reeder. The Archaeological Collec4on of the Johns Hopkins University. Bal4more: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1984.
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank the Woodrow Wilson Undergraduate Research Fellowship for the opportunity to pursue this project, and Ami Cox for all of her help throughout this process. I would also like to thank my mentor, Dr. Emily Anderson, for her constant support and guidance over the past four years.
Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
ART FROM OLD CYPRUS: MR. THEODORE MARBURG GIVES A RARE COLLECTION TO ...The Sun (1837-1990); Dec 19, 1900; ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The Baltimore Sunpg. 12
Cyprus Under Bri4sh Rule
The Athienou Archaeological Project, sponsored by Davidson College, excavates in the Malloura Valley and focuses on a sanctuary site that was in use from the Geometric period through the Roman period. The site was excavated in the 19th century by a French mission, and some of the sculpture excavated during this 4me is s4ll on display in the Louvre.
Current excava4on at this site oben deals with hoards of unwanted materials leb behind by both an4quarians and 20th century looters. Today, AAP plays an important role in the community, contribu4ng to the local economy during the field season and working to educate the community on the area’s ancient heritage.
The Malloura Valley in Athienou, Cyprus. Image courtesy of AAP.
The AAP team on the last day of the 2015 field season. Image Courtesy of AAP.
Map of Cyprus indica4ng significant archaeological sites Image courtesy of Harvard Semi4c Museum
In 1878 the Bri4sh government took control over from Cyprus from the O^oman Empire. The inheritance of O^oman an4qui4es law meant that a large amount of archaeological material could be exported from the island without much issue. Bri4sh control in Cyprus also meant that Bri4sh officials on the island had prac4cally free reign over all archaeological ac4vity, a fact which many exploited to acquire their own personal collec4ons.
Illustra4ons from Max Ohnefalsch-‐Richter’s publica4on, Kypros, The Bible and Homer
Given that the Bri4sh Museum’s excava4ons in Cyprus were carried out the Greek and Roman Department, it is no surprise that the objects were displayed among the Greek and Roman collec4ons, rather than with the Western Asia4c an4qui4es. The Bri4sh Museum’s interest in the Mycenaean objects of the Cypriot collec4on meant that these materials were displayed alongside Mycenaean ar4facts from Greece, while the rest of the Cypriot material was largely kept in storerooms.
The A.G. Levan4s Gallery was inaugurated in December 1987. Located on the second floor of the Bri4sh Museum, the Gallery is surrounded on either side by galleries dedicated to the Greek and Roman world, showing the museum’s con4nued associa4on of Cypriot material with classical archaeology.
The Cyprus Museum was founded un4l 1883 during the Bri4sh occupa4on of Cyprus. The early museum was funded en4rely by private subscrip4on, and excava4ons on behalf of the museum were conducted throughout the period of Bri4sh occupa4on, most notably by Ohnefalsch-‐Richter.
The museum has since undergone further renova4on to include more public galleries and underground storerooms to house the con4nually growing collec4on. The reorganiza4on of the museum in 1935 under former the Director of An4qui4es Porphyrios Dikaios remains largely unchanged today.
Despite the apparent lack of aesthe4c appeal of Cypriot an4qui4es, excava4on and collec4on of this material was rampant in Bri4sh controlled Cyprus. These excava4ons primarily focused on tomb and sanctuary sites, where the most valuable ar4facts could be found. Collec4ng preferences in this period were largely shaped by interest in the Bible and in Classical literature. Through the end of the 19th century, the Bri4sh Museum’s Greek and Roman Department sponsored several excava4ons in Cyprus, a large number of which were led by German archaeologist Max Ohnefalsch-‐Richter.
Mycenaean objects from the Bri4sh Museum’s Cypriot collec4on ©Trustees of the Bri4sh Museum.
The first Cypriot collec4on at Johns Hopkins was donated to the University in 1900 by Theodore Marburg, a cousin of Bri4sh official Col. Falkland Warren, who was ac4ve in Cypriot excava4ons in the late 19th century. Professor John H. Young of the Classics Department also added to collec4on following his work with the University of Pennsylvania excava4ons at Kourion.
Today, the museum displays a selec4on of Cypriot objects alongside Aegean material. Though the way in which this material was originally displayed is unknown, given the early museum’s strong 4es the the Classics Seminary, it is likely that it also would have been associated with a classical context.
The original Cyprus Museum was run-‐down and poorly funded, and objects were oben neglected or accidentally damaged. In 1908, following a change to the an4qui4es law, the new museum was constructed at its current loca4on and was dedicated as a memorial to Queen Victoria.
Objects on display in the A.G. Levan4s Gallery at the Bri4sh Museum
The Bri4sh Museum today
The Cyprus Museum today
Leb: Archaeological collec4on on display in McCoy Hall, 1915 Right: The Johns Hopkins Archaeological Museum today
Leb: Plan of original Cyprus Museum Right: Plan of Cyprus Museum in 1961
Views of displays in 1961. These remain unchanged today.
Bal4more Sun headline from 1900
Objects currently on display in the Johns Hopkins Archaeological Museum
CAARI, pictured above, was established in 1978.
Excava4on techniques and collec4ng habits from the late 19th century con4nue to influence our understanding of the ancient past of Cyprus through modern display in Western museums. Since Cyprus’s independence from Britain in 1960, archaeological prac4ce has undergone significant change, which may be seen as a response to pre-‐independence an4quarianism and museum collec4ng. The Cyprus American Archaeological Research Ins4tute, an organiza4on that a^empts to bring together archaeologists with a variety of backgrounds to collaborate on their work in Cyprus, is one example of such change. The establishment of regional archaeological museums ensures not only that all objects found in modern excava4ons remain on the island, but also in the region whence they came.