Zuzana Chovanec - Böcker

This volume is dedicated to Stuart Swiny who served as long-time Director of the Cyprus American Archaeological Research Institute. Stuart Swiny was professor in Classics and Anthropology at the University at Albany; he is an archaeologist whose work on Cyprus now spans six decades. His research, mentorship as professor, and leadership as CAARI Director has had a profound effect on the development of the discipline on the island and benefited many archaeologists working there. The book celebrates his contributions to Cypriot archaeology with papers from colleagues, friends, and former students, covering a wide range of topics that reflect his interests in the history and culture of Cyprus. Ranging from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic to ethnoarchaeology in the recent past, the papers cover archaeological landscapes, material culture, settlement studies, and regional interaction. The influence of Swiny's contributions is a common thread tying topics together. Beginning chapters recount the personal and professional history of Stuart Swiny, and the focus then moves to academic papers that document his methodological foresight in archaeological survey and excavation, build from his prior work with particular artifact classes, publish new information about his major excavation site Sotira Kaminoudhia, or take inspiration from his interest and encouragement in studying all things Cypriot. Specific chapter topics include: Bronze Age climate change, textile technology, evidence for use of the opium poppy, ancient board games, Roman to modern carob trade, Iron Age Cypriot coinage, ethnoarchaeology of pottery production, and intra-island interaction in the Neolithic. The volume is also forward-looking, taking stake of where Cypriot archaeology stands after roughly forty years since Swiny's directorship began. It anticipates new projects, innovations and approaches that the next generation of Cypriot scholars will use to build on his work.