The Anatolian Context of Philia Period Burial Types in Cyprus

The mid-third millennium BCE marks the first major globalization episode in the Eastern Mediterranean, during which Cyprus underwent a cultural transformation that resulted in the advent of the Cypriot Bronze Age. The transitional period between the Late Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age is known as the Philia period and is defined by changes associated with connectivity with the mainland. Among these changes is an upheaval in mortuary practices characterized by extramural cemeteries composed of rock-cut chamber tombs featuring multiple internments and metal-rich grave good assemblages. This study contextualizes these changes in mortuary practice with inter-regional mortuary trends on the mainland by systematically comparing burial types between Cyprus and West, Central, and Southeast Anatolia and Northern Syria. Through comparing inter-regional burial type variability, this study distinguishes between which aspects of Philia period mortuary practice relate to mainland connectivity,...Show moreThe mid-third millennium BCE marks the first major globalization episode in the Eastern Mediterranean, during which Cyprus underwent a cultural transformation that resulted in the advent of the Cypriot Bronze Age. The transitional period between the Late Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age is known as the Philia period and is defined by changes associated with connectivity with the mainland. Among these changes is an upheaval in mortuary practices characterized by extramural cemeteries composed of rock-cut chamber tombs featuring multiple internments and metal-rich grave good assemblages. This study contextualizes these changes in mortuary practice with inter-regional mortuary trends on the mainland by systematically comparing burial types between Cyprus and West, Central, and Southeast Anatolia and Northern Syria. Through comparing inter-regional burial type variability, this study distinguishes between which aspects of Philia period mortuary practice relate to mainland connectivity, and which reflect continuities with the Chalcolithic. This study’s results demonstrate Philia period burial types are generally dissimilar to Anatolia, instead Cypriot mortuary practices compare on a modular level to the mainland, featuring a unique combination of local continuities and novel innovations related to connectivity, constituting a hybridized mortuary program.Show less

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The Anatolian Context of Philia Period Burial Types in Cyprus