La Main du Roi - Chypre, damla sokak n 19 , yenikent, gonyeli, Nicosia (2026)

Q: What is the address?

Damla Sokak N 19 , Yenikent, Gonyeli

22/10/2026

Semi domestication du pigeon à Chypre, expliqué par Nota Bene.

22/10/2026

CYPRUS AND THE PIGEON (the oldest world semi domestication traces we found) : A BRONZE AGE STORY REVEALED 🕊️

Did you know that Cyprus may hold some of the earliest evidence of the domestication of the common pigeon?

A remarkable new study by researchers including scholars from the University of Groningen has shed light on the relationship between humans and pigeons at At Dromolaxia-Vyzakia, the archaeological site commonly known as Hala Sultan Tekke today, a thriving harbour city on the southern coast of Cyprus during the Late Bronze Age who will slowly evolve from a lagune to a salt lake.
By analysing pigeon bones recovered from the site, researchers found that these birds, around 1400 BC, had diets remarkably similar to those of the people living there. This suggests that pigeons were being fed by humans, or living in such close proximity to them that their relationship was already moving towards domestication.
But the evidence goes further than diet alone.
Bones belonging to young pigeons indicate that these birds were breeding within the settlement itself, probably nesting in and around its buildings. Their presence suggests that the city offered them a suitable habitat, bringing them into close contact with its inhabitants.
Other pigeon bones showed signs of exposure to fire, suggesting that the birds were being consumed. Even more intriguingly, pigeon remains were found alongside the bones of other animals in a context associated with an altar and ritual feasting. Pigeons may therefore have served not only as a source of food, but also played a role in ritual practices.
Taken together, these discoveries suggest something remarkable: pigeons were not simply passing visitors. They were living and breeding within the ancient city, while its inhabitants were making use of the opportunities this close relationship provided.
Does this mean that the people of Hala Sultan Tekke deliberately domesticated pigeons?
Not necessarily. The evidence cannot establish that they actively bred or controlled them. One possibility is that the process began with the birds themselves, attracted by food and nesting places in the human settlement. The inhabitants may then have gradually exploited this proximity, turning an initially opportunistic relationship into one that increasingly benefited them.
Until now, some of the earliest direct archaeological evidence for domesticated pigeons came from Hellenistic Greece, almost a thousand years later. The Cypriot evidence therefore pushes this story much further back in time.
Yet there is something fascinating about this discovery. Cyprus is already famous for the exceptionally early evidence of the relationship between humans and cats at Shillourokambos, dating back to the Neolithic period, around 7500 BC.
Now, thousands of years later, another familiar animal is revealing a much older connection with the island's inhabitants.
From the Neolithic cat to the Bronze Age pigeon, Cyprus continues to contribute remarkable evidence to our understanding of the long and complex relationship between humans and animals.

Sources:
Carter, A. L. et al. (2026). Uncovering the lives of rock doves (Columba livia) in Late Bronze Age Hala Sultan Tekke, Cyprus. Antiquity, 100(412), 979–995.
https://doi.org/10.15184/aqy.2026.10351
University of Groningen research portal: https://research.rug.nl/en/publications/uncovering-the-lives-of-rock-doves-columba-livia-in-late-bronze-a/

17/10/2026

Where, When and by Whom Was Artillery First Used in Cyprus?

The Siege of Famagusta and the Attack on Limassol, 1408.

The earliest documented use of gunpowder artillery in Cyprus dates to 1408, during the war between the Kingdom of Cyprus, ruled by King Janus of Lusignan, and the Republic of Genoa. At the time, Famagusta had been under Genoese control since 1373.
During the renewed fighting of 1408 after 1404-1406, both sides employed cannons obtained from Venice in 1408, they didn't have two years before. The king’s bombards, described in the sources as pezzi grossi d’artiglierie (big piece of artillery), brought down part of Famagusta’s walls near Chrussoprassini (?), although the breach was not stormed. The Genoese also used cannons reportedly brought secretly from Venice. One of their shots struck John Castegna, a general serving Janus, who later died of his wounds (Making of him the first dead of artillery shot in Cyprus).
Shortly afterwards, the Genoese transported a large artillery piece from Famagusta by a vessel to attack Limassol, then hauled it ashore for use against Limassol Castle. This was the transportation of a land weapon by sea, not evidence that the cannon was used to fire at an enemy vessel or castle from the ship.
The operation ended in failure. A royal force led by the Seneschal of Cyprus (probably Eudes de Lusignan , brother of king Janus, as he is record as Seneschal of Cyprus from the end of the reign of his father james I, and was still in Cyprus until 1420 during the reign of his brother, died in 1421 in Sicilia , but remain uncertain as he is not named by the chronicle) , assisted by the Venetian Carlo Zeno, defeated the Genoese attackers, inflicting casualties, taking prisoners and capturing the artillery piece, described in the account as un gran pezzo d'artiglieria, together with its gunpowder.

What Kind of Weapon Was It?
The large piece captured at Limassol was probably a bombard, one of the earliest forms of cannon. However, the original description does not establish its precise design, so this identification remains provisional.
Early bombards were constructed using different techniques. Some were made from wrought-iron staves held together by iron hoops; other guns were cast from metal. Depending on their design and calibre, they fired stone or metal projectiles. Their rate of fire was slow, and their accuracy was limited compared with that of later artillery. Nevertheless, they could damage walls, gates and other fortifications, while the noise and destructive force of their shots could have a considerable psychological effect.
Gunpowder weapons had been developed in China centuries earlier (11 th century) before spreading westwards. In Europe, their use expanded during the fourteenth century, including during the Hundred Years' War between France and England (1337–1453). The maritime powers of the Mediterranean also adopted the technology, initially using relatively small guns aboard ships and larger pieces in siege operations.
Artillery was used aboard European ships during the fourteenth century. The naval battle of Arnemuiden in 1338, fought during the Hundred Years' War, is a frequently cited early example of guns being used in combat at sea. Naval artillery developed further during the following decades.
The cannon transported from Famagusta to Limassol in 1408 should therefore be understood as a siege weapon carried by sea for subsequent use on land, rather than as a naval gun.

Sigouri and the Civil War of 1460–1464
The evidence becomes more detailed during the civil war between Charlotte of Lusignan and her half-brother James II.
In 1460, James launched his campaign to take control of the kingdom, while Charlotte and her husband, Louis of Savoy, defended themselves from Kyrenia. The contemporary chronicler George Boustronios describes artillery deployed by James's forces during the siege, including a bombard brought from Sigouri, other bombards positioned near the Greek church and in the district of Spiruni, a serpentine cannon that caused casualties within Kyrenia, and a large bombard operated by a Saracen.
The chronicler also states that the defenders of Kyrenia possessed considerable artillery of their own.
These accounts show that bombardes and other forms of artillery were already being used in siege warfare in Cyprus by the middle of the fifteenth century. They do not, however, establish that such weapons were present in large numbers throughout the island. Indeed, the limited evidence for surviving guns and identifiable impact damage makes it important to distinguish the use of artillery in particular campaigns from its general availability across the kingdom.
The mention of a bombard brought from Sigouri is particularly interesting. It suggests that artillery was available at another Lusignan stronghold before the events of 1460. The weapon's earlier history and the circumstances of its transfer to James's and mameluk forces remain uncertain.

Sor de Naves and Two Bombards, 1461
Another important reference appears in Boustronios's account of the following year.
On 7 June 1461, Sor de Naves arrived at Famagusta after a mission to Tripoli, travelling with a small galley and two bombards. According to the chronicle, he handed the two artillery pieces to the Genoese before continuing towards Kyrenia with the remainder of his equipment.
The context is significant. At this time, the Genoese were defending Famagusta against James II, while Charlotte's forces were resisting him at Kyrenia. Both were therefore fighting the same adversary, despite their different political interests and earlier conflicts.
It is consequently plausible that Sor de Naves transferred the two bombards to the Genoese to reinforce their resistance to James II. The chronicle establishes the transfer, however, rather than explicitly stating that this was his motive.
This episode provides further evidence that artillery circulated between military forces and ports in the eastern Mediterranean. It also demonstrates that two additional bombards were present in the region during the Cypriot civil war, only a few decades after the first documented artillery operations on the island.

What trace remain of it ?
Unfortunatly , no archeologic traces as been found of surviving cannons or cannonballs been securely identified as belonging to the Lusignan or Genoese forces in Cyprus from the early fifteenth century until today. The historical artillery pieces preserved on the island today largely belong to later Venetian and Ottoman contexts.
(But intersting information : George Jeffery recorded two small 15th-century proto-cannons from civil war charlotte vs James II at Kyrenia Castle, later transferred to the terrace of Government House in Nicosia Strovolos (now presidential palace) .Their presence there was documented during the British colonial period, but their subsequent fate remains unknown.They may still survive somewhere in the grounds of the present Presidential Palace in Strovolos. However, no recent inventory or photograph has yet confirmed their identity or current location to me, so if someone is allowed to enter in the presidential palace and have a look, let me know.)

Conclusion
The earliest documented artillery in Cyprus appears in the context of the Lusignan–Genoese war of 1408. Both sides used cannons during the fighting around Famagusta, while the subsequent Genoese attack on Limassol provides a particularly clear account of artillery pieces being transported by sea, deployed against a land fortress or to defend it and even one captured by the royal forces of Janus.
During the civil war of 1460–1464, the chronicles provide further evidence of bombardes and other artillery pieces used at Kyrenia and elsewhere. The two bombards transferred by Sor de Naves to the Genoese in 1461 offer another documented example of the circulation of artillery during the conflict.
Gunpowder artillery was therefore present in Cyprus many decades before the Venetian takeover of 1489. Its early history reflects the island's strategic position within the military and commercial networks of the medieval Mediterranean, where Lusignan, Genoese and Venetian forces acquired, transported, captured and employed the new weapons.

13/10/2026

The Delayed Christian Response to the Ottoman Invasion of Cyprus (1570–1571): A Chronology of Missed Opportunities to Aid Venice and the Cypriots.

The fall of Venetian Cyprus was not simply a story of Christian Europe abandoning the island. Assistance was repeatedly planned, a major allied fleet sailed in 1570, then turned back, and Venice alone later succeeded in reinforcing Famagusta twice. The tragedy was that these efforts never developed into a sustained relief operation capable of saving the cities and the island.

1569–1570 — The Ottoman ultimatum and the invasion

September 1569 — Marcantonio Bragadin arrives in Famagusta
Bragadin strengthens the city's fortifications, increases its provisions and prepares for a possible siege. However, Venice still hopes to avoid a major war.

18 March 1570 — Selim II issues an ultimatum
The Ottoman sultan formally demands the surrender of Cyprus, threatening to seize the island by force if Venice refuses. The Venetians reject the demand.
The ultimatum gives Venice a final warning before war, yet its preparations and attempts to secure foreign assistance will prove insufficient.

March–May 1570 — Venetian reinforcements
Venice dispatches more than 2,000 foreign additional infantry under Girolamo Martinengo, and send them by the sea. Martinengo dies during the voyage on 7 April, but his troops who will keep his name and give the name to the bastion they will defend, reach Cyprus in May.

26 June–15 July 1570 — The Hospitaller expedition
4 Hospitaller galleys under Brother François de Saint Clement leave Malta on 26 June, bound for Cyprus to assist Venice. They are first to join Giovanni Andrea Doria's fleet of 49 galleys , whose immediate mission is to intercept fleet of ottoman amiral Uluç Ali, off North Africa and secure the sea routes to the eastern Mediterranean.
However, Doria has already departed with his fleet without waiting them. So, after a small duty of escorting a Sicilian convoy, the Hospitallers leave Trapani for turn back to Malta again on 14 July, to prepare their grant depart for Cyprus. The following morning, near Gozo, they unfortunatly or unluckily encounter Uluç Ali's Ottoman squadron of 7 galleys and 12 galliots, themself, which unfortunatly Doria didn't manage to intercept or find the previous days. A battle engaged, unfortunatly for them in inferiority number this time instead of large superiority number they were planning with Doria fleet 😬catastrophe... 3 Hospitaller galleys are captured; only the Santa Maria della Vittoria manage to escape and return to Sicilia.
The disaster deprives the Order of most of its available naval squadron just as the struggle for Cyprus is beginning.
The Hospitallers will later rebuild their fleet with Spanish assistance, but they will be able to contribute only three galleys to the Holy League at Lepanto, but never at time for defend Cyprus and the commandery they still own and run on the island, they planned to protect by participating to the effort of defense .

1–3 July 1570 — The Ottoman invasion
The Ottoman fleet appears off Cyprus on 1 July, and the main army lands near Limassol on 3 July.
The expedition is commanded by Lala Mustafa Pasha, the overall commander of the campaign. Piyale Pasha commands the Ottoman fleet, while Muzaffer Pasha is associated with the Ottoman military leadership on land.

July–September 1570 — Nicosia falls and the first relief fleet turns back

22 July–9 September 1570 — The siege of Nicosia
The Ottoman army besieges Nicosia defended by Niccolo Dandolo while Venice, the Papal States and Spain assemble a powerful relief fleet. The allied force includes Venetian, papal and Spanish-Neapolitan squadrons, with approximately 200 vessels !!!.
Despite serious disagreements between the commanders, the fleet eventually sails towards Cyprus.
On 9 September, however, Nicosia falls after a prolonged siege. And a massacre of the population takes place the following day, despite the victory already having been secured. The news reaches the allied fleet while it is still at sea.
The commanders convene a council. Giovanni Andrea Doria, the Spanish commander, fears that the Ottoman victory will strengthen the enemy's forces and morale. The Marquis of Santa Cruz and Marcantonio Colonna also support withdrawal, while the Venetian commander Girolamo Zane is persuaded to turn back. Sebastiano Venier is among those who argue that the expedition should continue.
The fleet abandons the operation and withdraws.
The decision to turn back was highly controversial and far from an inevitable military necessity. Although the fall of Nicosia had altered the situation, Famagusta was still resisting, and the allied fleet had not yet attempted to relieve the city. The withdrawal reflected the commanders’ reluctance to risk a major naval engagement, despite the fleet’s considerable strength. Its consequences were disastrous: Cyprus was effectively left to face the Ottoman conquest without the intervention that might have prolonged its resistance or altered the course of the siege. As Sebastiano Venier reportedly warned, the Ottomans would be even stronger the following year. From now, Venise and cypriots was and will remain alone for defend Cyprus.

10 September 1570: Following the fall of Nicosia, Lala Mustafa Pasha sent the Venetian captain Paulo dal Guasto, captured at Nicosia, to Kyrenia to deliver a demand for surrender. He was brought there in chains, accompanied by the decapited heads of two Italian dignitaries, one of which was reportedly that of Niccolò Dandolo.

14 September 1570 – The surrender of Kyrenia
The fortress was commanded by Giovanni Maria Mundazzo, the military commander, and Alfonso Palatzo, the castellan. Initially, they expressed their willingness to resist and requested instructions from the Venetian high command at Famagusta. However, before the reply reached them, they changed their decision and surrendered the fortress without a fight.
According to a later historical account, the two commanders subsequently left for Crete, while the defenders were permitted to leave after a reddition without a fight. The number of men in the garrison and their individual fates remain uncertain.

September 1570 — Famagusta becomes the last Venetian stronghold
Following Nicosia's fall, Kyrenia abandon, Famagusta remains the principal Venetian stronghold on the island. The Ottoman siege begins, but the maritime blockade is not yet complete.
Muzaffer Pasha is appointed the first Ottoman governor of Cyprus after the fall of Nicosia. He probably does not participate directly in the subsequent siege of Famagusta.
Lala Mustafa Pasha remains in command , this time of both the Ottoman general operation and land campaign, while Piyale Pasha is still responsible for the fleet.

Autumn 1570–March 1571 — Venice breaks through

Autumn–Winter 1570 — Famagusta holds
Under Marcantonio Bragadin and Astorre Baglioni (who joined famagusta after survived and manage to run from the final day Nicosia siège), the defenders conduct sorties, disrupt Ottoman siege works and resist attempts to undermine the fortifications.
The Ottoman naval blockade remains imperfect, allowing Venice to exploit a temporary opportunity to send assistance.

26 January 1571 — Marcantonio Querini's relief expedition
Querini arrives from Crete with 16 Venetian galleys and transport vessels. He defeats the Ottoman squadron guarding the approaches and succeeds in bringing substantial additional reinforcements, artillery, am******on and provisions into Famagusta.
Estimates vary: some accounts report approximately 1,270 soldiers actually landed, while others give around 1,700 men.
This is a major Venetian success. Famagusta has been under siege for months, yet Venice has managed to break through and strengthen its garrison.

January–February 1571 — Piyale Pasha is replaced
The successful Venetian operation exposes the failure of the Ottoman fleet to maintain an effective maritime blockade during the winter.
According to historical accounts, Sultan Selim II recalls Piyale Pasha from his command and replaces him with Müezzinzade Ali Pasha. Lala Mustafa Pasha remains in charge of the land and general campaign.

March 1571 — A second reinforcement reaches Famagusta
A further Venetian convoy brings approximately 800 infantrymen into the city, together with additional assistance.
The identity of the officer commanding this particular reinforcement is not established clearly enough to name him with confidence.
These two successful operations are crucial: Venice has not abandoned Famagusta. It has managed to reinforce the city twice, but it cannot guarantee a regular supply route or send sufficient forces to break the siege.

April–August 1571 — The final siege

April 1571 — The Ottoman siege intensifies
The Ottoman fleet returns in strength under its new command. Additional artillery and siege works are established around Famagusta, and sustained bombardment resumes.
The opportunity exploited by Querini has largely disappeared. The defenders face a progressively tighter siege, with diminishing prospects of receiving further assistance.

15–25 May 1571 — The Holy League is concluded
After prolonged negotiations, the Holy League is formally established under Pope Pius V. Its members include:
The Papal States
The Spanish Monarchy, including Naples and Sicily
The Republic of Venice
The Republic of Genoa
The Knights Hospitaller of Malta
The Grand Duchy of Tuscany and the Order of Saint Stephen
The Duchy of Savoy
The Duchy of Urbino
The Duchy of Parma
The alliance aims to confront Ottoman naval power with a much larger combined fleet. But the agreement comes too late for Famagusta: the city is already in the final months of its resistance.

July–early August 1571 — The last resistance
Repeated assaults, artillery bombardment and mining progressively destroy the city's defences. The garrison suffers heavy casualties, and am******on and supplies become increasingly scarce.
Famagusta, in lack of powder, amnunition and food supply, decide to capitulate in early August, conventionally dated to 1 or 4 August depending on the stage of surrender being described.
The agreed capitulation terms are subsequently violated by Lala Mustapha Pasha, and Marcantonio Bragadin is tortured in public and executed, and a new massacre take place inside the wall city.

Venetian Cyprus has fallen.

September–October 1571 — The Holy League sails too late

16 September 1571 — The allied fleet leaves Messina
Under the supreme command of Don John of Austria, the Holy League's fleet finally sails. Its Venetian contingent is commanded by Sebastiano Venier again.
Famagusta has already fallen more than six weeks earlier.

7 October 1571 — The Battle of Lepanto
The Holy League defeats the Ottoman fleet in a major naval engagement in the Gulf of Patras.
It is a celebrated Christian victory, but it cannot save Cyprus. The fleet that might have offered assistance to Famagusta has arrived too late.

The tragedy of Famagusta
The defenders were not abandoned without any attempt at assistance. The first allied relief fleet sailed in 1570 but withdrew after the fall of Nicosia. Venice subsequently succeeded in bringing substantial reinforcements into Famagusta in January and March 1571.
The failure was one of coordination, timing and sustained commitment. The Christian powers could assemble a formidable fleet, but their disagreements prevented an effective intervention in 1570. When the Holy League finally formalised their cooperation in May 1571, the opportunity to save Famagusta had already narrowed dramatically, until the capitulation.
Lepanto would become one of the great naval victories of the sixteenth century. But, For Famagusta, and Cyprus , however, it came too late.

10/10/2026

Battle of Agridi, 1232
Possible interpretation of the geographical and topographical situation

According to George Hill’s reconstruction, produced with the assistance of the cartographer T. O’B. Hubbard, John of Ibelin and his troops, including the very young King Henry I, took up position and camped at the village of Agridi (modern Ağırdağ).
The imperialist forces of Frederick II, which were besieging Saint Hilarion Castle, still defended by Philip of Cafran, were positioned on the heights between the present-day junction of the Nicosia–Kyrenia and Saint Hilarion roads and the house known as Boghaz House. As Hill wrote, “The Longobard camp must have been on the high ground between this point and the house called Boghaz.” The main camp thus overlooked the approaches to the mountain pass.
According to Hill’s reconstruction, the two imperialist divisions then descended from their camp and deployed from west to east across the pass, taking up position at its entrance, just before the road begins its descent towards Agridi. They were therefore positioned across the main route through the Grand Détroit, awaiting the advance of the Ibelin forces.
Hugh of Ibelin and Anceau de Brie, commanding the first division, Baldwin of Ibelin, commanding the second, and John of Caesarea, commanding the third, advanced to engage the imperialist forces. Their approach may have taken them through the narrow pass, allowing them to attack the imperialist positions from below.
John of Ibelin, the young King Henry I, and approximately fifty to sixty foot sergeants remained near the village of Agridi as a rearguard while the cavalry advanced.
Most importantly, Balian of Ibelin and the knights accompanying him took the steep path climbing northwards from Agridi towards the mountain ridge. Balian had originally been intended to command one of the divisions in the battle, but the Church had excommunicated him months earlier for marrying his distant cousin, Eschive de Montbéliard, who was related to him within the third and fourth degrees of consanguinity, according to Hill. At the same time, Eschive was defending Buffavento Castle. Because of his excommunication, Balian’s father, John of Ibelin, removed him from his position as a division commander and asked him to renounce his marriage in order to satisfy the Archbishop of Nicosia. Balian refused, and John consequently denied him command of a division.
However, Balian did not obey his father’s decision. While the main battle was taking place without him, he and five knights who remained loyal to him decided to climb the path north of Agridi and reach the ridge. From there, they attacked the imperialist troops near the main camp as they were leaving to reinforce their comrades on the battlefield. Balian’s assault may have disrupted the movement of these reinforcements and prevented Filangieri from effectively supporting his men.
The imperialist forces consequently found themselves threatened from two directions: from below, by the main Ibelin attack on the principal battlefield, and from the ridge, by Balian’s assault on troops leaving the camp to reinforce their comrades. This may have disrupted the route between the imperialist camp and the battlefield, making it more difficult for reinforcements to reach the fighting. Under pressure, and facing mounting difficulties on the main battlefield, where the outcome was already turning against them, the surviving imperialist forces fled towards Kyrenia, while the first Lombard division withdrew in the direction of Gastria.
(The two pink circles indicate approximate positions, as the location of Boghaz House, mentioned by Hill and Hubbard in 1937, cannot be clearly identified today. It may have been situated in the area now occupied by military facilities and Pavlides’ Beyaz Ev, built later.)

08/10/2026

Ledroi/Ledra— Agios Georgios Hill, Nicosia

🇬🇧 ENGLISH
Agios Georgios Hill, traditionally identified with ancient Ledra or Ledroi, is the settlement that gave its name to the ancient name of the city.
The hill was occupied as early as the Chalcolithic period, around 2800–2500 BC, Although the site was already occupied in the Late Chalcoltithic, there is a major archaeological gap in the evidence before its reappearance as a substantial settlement in the Archaic period, probably from the 7th century BC; we therefore cannot yet demonstrate continuous occupation of the site throughout this intervening period. Anyway the later remains of the Iron Age settlement are associated with ancient Ledroi, one of the city-kingdoms of Cyprus. The Pedieos River once flowed at the foot of the hill, although its course has changed considerably over the centuries.
What makes this place remarkable is its extraordinary continuity. Archaeological remains testify to occupation from the Archaic and Classical periods through the Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine eras, and well into the Lusignan period.
Among the medieval remains are the remains of a Christian religious complex traditionally associated, though not with absolute certainty, with Saint George of Mangana. The site is connected with the Byzantine refugees who came to Cyprus after the fall of Constantinople in 1453, and with Queen Helena Palaiologina, the Orthodox wife of King John II of Lusignan, who supported the Byzantine community in Cyprus.
The religious buildings were dismantled during the great Venetian restructuring of Nicosia's fortifications in the 16th century. The strategic position of the hill may also have been an important consideration, although the exact reasons for its destruction remain a matter of interpretation.
And history did not stop there. During the Ottoman siege of Nicosia in 1570, archaeological evidence — including coins and cannonballs — indicates that the hill was once again used for military purposes by the besieging forces.
A small hill today, almost hidden within modern Nicosia, but a place where more than four thousand years of Cypriot history can still be read in the ground.
🇫🇷 FRANÇAIS
la colline d'Agios Georgios, traditionnellement identifiée à l'ancienne Ledra ou Ledroi, est la cité qui a donné son nom à l ancien nom de Nicosie.
La colline était déjà occupée au Chalcolithique, vers 2800–2500 av. J.-C., Bien que le site fût déjà occupé au Chalcolithique récent, il existe une importante lacune dans les données archéologiques avant sa réapparition en tant qu’établissement important à l’époque archaïque, probablement à partir du VIIᵉ siècle av. J.-C. ; nous ne pouvons donc pas, à ce jour, démontrer une occupation continue du site durant toute cette période intermédiaire. Peu importe , les vestiges de l'établissement après l'âge du Fer sont associés à l'ancienne Ledroi, l'un des royaumes-cités de Chypre. Le Pedieos coulait autrefois au pied de la colline, même si son cours a considérablement changé au fil des siècles.
Ce qui rend ce site exceptionnel est son extraordinaire continuité d'occupation. Les vestiges témoignent d'une présence humaine depuis les périodes archaïque et classique, puis hellénistique, romaine et byzantine, jusqu'à l'époque des Lusignan.
Parmi les vestiges médiévaux se trouvent ceux d'un complexe religieux chrétien traditionnellement identifié, sans certitude absolue, à Saint-Georges de Mangana. Le site est associé aux réfugiés byzantins arrivés à Chypre après la chute de Constantinople en 1453, ainsi qu'à la reine Hélène Paléologue, épouse orthodoxe du roi Jean II de Lusignan, qui apporta son soutien à la communauté byzantine de Chypre.
Les édifices religieux furent démantelés lors de la grande restructuration des fortifications de Nicosie par les Vénitiens au XVIe siècle. La position stratégique dominante de la colline a également pu jouer un rôle, même si les raisons précises de sa destruction restent sujettes à interprétation.
Mais l'histoire ne s'arrêta pas là. Lors du siège ottoman de Nicosie en 1570, les découvertes archéologiques — notamment des monnaies et des boulets de canon — indiquent que la colline fut à nouveau utilisée à des fins militaires par les assiégeants.
Une petite colline aujourd'hui presque cachée au cœur de la Nicosie moderne, mais un lieu où plus de quatre millénaires d'histoire chypriote sont encore lisibles dans le sol.

La Main du Roi - Chypre

22/10/2026

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