On Monday, June 17, 2024, the official ceremony for the repatriation of an ancient bowl to representatives of the Republic of Cyprus took place. The official handover of the skyphos was conducted in the presence of the Cypriot Deputy Minister of Culture, Prof. Dr. Vasiliki Kassianidou, the Director of the Cyprus Museum in Nicosia, Dr. Eftychia Zachariou, the Ambassador of the Republic of Cyprus Maria Papakyriakou, and the Alexander Malios Research Institute (AMRICHA gGmbH) at the Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus in Berlin.

The founder of the Leipzig Research Institute for Cypriot Culture and Archaeology (AMRICHA non-profit GmbH) acquired the ancient piece in the spring of 2019 from an American art dealer, knowing that it had been stolen from Cyprus. He was particularly interested in returning the bowl as he, being a Cypriot citizen, personally experienced the painful past of the island and has since been committed to raising awareness about the injustices suffered and fighting for a just future for his homeland.

In 1974, the Republic of Cyprus fell victim to a military invasion by Turkish troops. Since then, the northern part has been occupied and separated from the free south, an EU member, by a UN buffer zone known as the “Green Line.” In addition to the many civilian deaths and missing persons on both sides of the Greek-Cypriot and Turkish-Cypriot communities, the Turkish invasion also resulted in the destruction and theft of historically valuable Cypriot art and cultural property. Churches were destroyed, their mosaics and frescoes removed and sold, and entire museums and collections looted. Many of the stolen objects were illegally transported abroad. One of these items is the now recovered bowl, which has been returned to the Republic of Cyprus as a symbol of the fight against illicit trafficking of antiquities.

The illegality of the bowl was discovered through intensive provenance and origin research of the object being acquired as part of the work by experts from the Leipzig Research Institute for Cypriot Archaeology and Heritage. A week after the object’s arrival in Leipzig and the final confirmation of its origin, the Department of Antiquities, the state antiquities service of the Republic of Cyprus, was informed during a meeting in Nicosia. Initial talks about the repatriation followed, eventually involving the Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus in Berlin.

The repatriated object is a so-called skyphos, a bowl-shaped drinking vessel approximately 2700 years old, of high historical value. The unique aspect of this piece is that it was not manufactured in Cyprus itself but was exported there in antiquity. It is further evidence of the Mediterranean island’s enduring importance as a hub for trade and cultural exchange since the Bronze Age.

The return of the skyphos is intended to set an example in the fight against the illegal trade in ancient cultural property. This trade remains one of the primary sources of funding for other criminal activities. The repatriation also represents the fostering of good relations between the Alexander Malios Research Institute and the Department of Antiquities of the Republic of Cyprus. In the future, this cooperation will be strengthened through the presentation of the Cypriot collection, comprising approximately 1600 objects curated by the AMRICHA non-profit GmbH, as historical ambassadors of Cyprus’s history and culture in Leipzig.

The AMRICHA non-profit GmbH is dedicated to the cultural networking between Germany and the Republic of Cyprus. It promotes various research projects, such as an archaeological excavation of a sanctuary in Frangissa, near the ancient city of Tamassos in Cyprus. In 2023, the first collection catalog was published, making an important part of the collection accessible to the general public for the first time.

Press Release from the Press and Information Office of the Republic of Cyprus on the Repatriation of the Skyphos

Homepage of the Department of Antiquities of the Republic of Cyprus on the Repatriation of Cypriot Objects

Additional information and photographs can be requested at the following contact details:

AMRICHA gemeinnützige GmbH

Windscheidstraße 2

04277 Leipzig

E‑Mail: info@amricha.com

Tel.: 0341 30 31 186

Der Beitrag Leipzig Research Institute Returns Stolen Artifact to Cyprus erschien zuerst auf Amricha.

Thanks to the tireless work of Dr Elena Poyadji-Richter, it has now been possible to scientifically process the first 320 objects from the private collection, which comprises more than 1200 objects, and make them accessible to an international audience. The work, which was made significantly more difficult in the context of the Covid19 pandemic, is now finally ending in a 487-page important work on the archeology of Cyprus and the immense collection of Cypriot Antiquities based in Leipzig, Germany. Amongst these artifacts are ceramics, limestone statues and statuettes, terracotta figurines, coins, jewellery, metal and glass objects. They date across all periods of ancient Cypriot art from the Neolithic to the Roman periods.

The work is dedicated to the Cypriot archaeologist Prof Dr Vassos Karageorghis, who died at the end of 2021 and who initiated this publication. At his expressed request, the catalog should appear primarily in English and German. The English volume is now finished and we hope that this book will help to remember his achievements for Cypriot archeology, at least to some extent — not least because one of his most important concerns was to make the archeology of the island of Cyprus better known worldwide and to publish foreign collections.

The publication is divided into two parts, with the first part containing introductory texts and reporting on the extensive provenance research on the collection objects and the different archaeometric analysis. The second part is the enormous catalog of 320 selected objects from the SAM, which are presented with over 770 photos and described and classified using the latest knowledge by 14 important scientists from the archeology of Ancient Cyprus. The artifacts published in the volume are characterized by their unique artistry and rarity among their type, yet are also representative of Cypriot art. Some objects reflect Greek influences, whilst others reflect an amalgamation of foreign influences.

Special thanks from the Institute go to Dr Poyadji-Richter and the other authors of the volume: Dr Peter Cosyns, Dr Sabine Fourrier, Alexander Gatzsche, Dr Anna Georgiadou, Dr Artemis Georgiou, Prof Artemis Karnava, Prof Vasiliki Kassianidou, Dr Gabriele Koiner, Dr John Lund, Dr Evangeline Markou, Dr Sergios Menelaou, Irene Pamer, Dr Nikolas Papadimitriou, Dr Joanna Smith and Dr Christine Winkelmann.

The richly illustrated publication with well documented essays and entries, intends to introduce to scientists and to the wider public a significant part of Alexander Malios’s remarkable collection of Cypriot Antiquities, one of the largest of its kind.

The official presentation of the book will take place on September 27, 2023 at the Archaeological Research Unit of the University of Cyprus in Nicosia. The exact procedure and access to this event will be informed separately in advance and the information will be supplemented at this point.

An insight into the contents of the book can be found here: Link to Academia.edu

Information and data about the book:

Der Beitrag First publication out now! Alexander Malios Collection, Volume 1, Cypriot Antiquities erschien zuerst auf Amricha.

Markkleeberg. The Leipzig-based “Alexander Malios Research Institute for Cypriot Heritage and Archeology” (Amricha) wants to set up an exhibition space for its collection of more than 2,000 objects in the south-western part of the Agra Park, which dates from the earliest settlement to the Byzantine Empire around 11,000 years representing Cypriot history. According to Alexander Malios, who was born in Dresden, grew up in Cyprus and later moved to Leipzig again, Markkleeberg could become the “world’s largest independent museum of Cypriot culture outside of Cyprus”.

Side effect: revitalization of the park area

The complex is to be built on the area that was last used as a “Koi-Center” for the sale of fish food. The project and location are interesting in many respects. If you extend the line from the German Photo Museum via the White House, the area in the southwest is on the same axis. Because the Amricha project also includes a gastronomic area that could even be rented out for events, an infrastructural upgrade and the revitalization of this park area are obvious at the same time. In his presentation to the Markkleeberg city council, Amricha curator Alexander Gatzsche even spoke of the “re-emergence of the historic south-west gate”.

In her statement of facts, Mayor for Building and Construction of the city of Markkleeberg Jana Thomas pointed out to the city councilors that the town hall, the district building inspection office, the Pro Agra association and the State Office for Cultural Property consider the location suitable for the new museum building. The only question that remains is the financing, which Amricha cannot or does not want to handle alone. “It is a private initiative, but in addition to funding, we are primarily building on a strong partnership with the city of Markkleeberg, the Free State of Saxony, the EU and the Republic of Cyprus,” emphasized curator Alexander Gatzsche.

“We take everyone on board”

The 33-year-old Curator explained to the LVZ: “It is a cultural and social project. We are therefore in a phase that I would like to describe as ‘approaching from all sides’ ”. Therefore, the design of the building is currently only a kind of proposal and cannot yet be backed up with a cost estimate. Designed primarily as a museum in which the focus is on “cultural and historical mediation”, space should also be created for events and social projects. “We take everyone on board who wants to participate,” Gatzsche offers.

For the Markkleeberg town hall, an entry seems conceivable: “Our concern is the revitalization of the Agra Park,” says OBM Karsten Schütze (SPD), who also emphasizes the city’s interest “in being able to offer park gastronomy on the Markkleeberg side as well.” However patience is required on this boat trip. “If everything works out perfectly, construction could start in three to five years at the earliest,” curator Gatzsche looks ahead.

Link to the original article at LVZ+ (German):  https://www.lvz.de/lokales/leipzig-lk/markkleeberg/museumsplaene-naehren-hoffnung-auf-belebung-des-markkleeberger-agra-parkes-ETVE6TTQHIGC24KUYNWZDAEHVU.html

Der Beitrag Museum of Cypriot Culture nurture hope for revitalization of the Markkleeberg Agra Park erschien zuerst auf Amricha.

Important processes were decided at the meeting. On the one hand, the Advisory Board spokesman and his deputy were elected and the Advisory Board’s rules of procedure were adopted. This was followed by an initial overview of the establishment of AMRICHA non-profit Organization and its finances.

The plans and projects for 2020 were presented and discussed. It is planned to provide personal as well as financial support for the archaeological exploration to be established in Tamassos-Phrangissa under the direction of Dr. Matthias Recke from the University of Frankfurt am Main and a technological support for topographical measurement of the existing excavations in Idalion under the direction of Prof. Dr. Stephan Schmid from the Humboldt-University Berlin.

In direct cooperation with the Institute for Interdisciplinary Cyprus Studies Münster, a workshop on Cypriot Pottery will take place in April 2020 in the rooms of AMRICHA in Leipzig. The aim is to develop a handbook on archaeological ceramics from the Neolithic to the Roman period in Cyprus. The participants of the workshop are selected according to their specialization and should then spend several days in Leipzig. In addition, a public evening lecture is planned in cooperation with the Institute for Classical Archaeology at the University of Leipzig and the Department of Antiquities of the Republic of Cyprus.

Further AMRICHA projects include the development and publication of a collection catalogue and an institute’s own series of publications, the expansion of the institute’s social media and the 3D museum.

After the beginning of the first business year of AMRICHA non-profit organization 2019 after its foundation in July with the advisory board meeting has almost come to an end, everyone is looking forward to a contemplative Christmas season and the following new year 2020. There is a lot of work ahead but the team at AMRICHA NPO looks positively into the future and is already looking forward to tackling all of the aforementioned projects!

Der Beitrag Quo Vadis AMRICHA — Meeting of the Scientific Advisory Board 2019 erschien zuerst auf Amricha.

Der Beitrag Loads of History on Travel erschien zuerst auf Amricha.

At almost Cypriot high temperatures in Leipzig, the AMRICHA non-profit GmbH was founded today. AMRICHA stands for “Alexander Malios Research Institute for Cypriot Heritage and Archaeology”. This step is of particular importance, since from now on the institutional framework was created in order to be able to act as an institution committed to the pulsating Cypriot culture and past.

The purpose of the institute is “to promote cultural exchange through the mediation of culture and history with a focus on Cypriot culture and the exploration of the Cypriot cultural heritage.”

This is to be ensured by a scientific advisory board made up of distinguished people in the field of Cyprus archaeology, politics and society from Cyprus and Germany. The committee has the task of providing AMRICHA with advice and monitoring the fulfilment of the purpose of the association.

In the future, the AMRICHA non-profit Organization should also be accessible to other people interested in researching and imparting Cypriot culture and history in order to establish a multinational network in the heart of Leipzig. Cooperations and partnerships with other institutions in the field of Cyprus archaeology and the Leipzig museum and culture scene are to be concluded, as well as educational programs for teaching archaeology and Cypriot culture.

The next few years will show to what extent the diverse ideas and concepts can be implemented with the support of many, but the cornerstones have been set to give Cypriot culture and history a home in Leipzig in the future.

Der Beitrag A big day for Cyprus in Leipzig erschien zuerst auf Amricha.