Roman period

Articles: Roman period

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Nea Paphos Ancient Capital of Roman Cyprus

Nea Paphos Ancient Capital of Roman Cyprus

Nea Paphos occupies a coastal plain on the southwestern shore of Cyprus, adjacent to the modern city of Paphos. Founded in the 4th century BC by Nikokles, the last king of nearby Palaipaphos, Nea Pafos then went from strength to strength, particularly under the Ptolemaic kingdom from the 3rd century BC. The city was located on a peninsula surrounded by a natural bay and between the two small hills called Fanari and Fabrika. irecommend-ru Nea Paphos was founded at the turn of the 4th and 3rd century BC as an important harbour located on the sea trade route from Rhodes to Alexandria. Thanks to its strategic location, from the 2nd century BC Nea Paphos became the capital of Cyprus and…

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Roman Road Network Ancient Cyprus Routes

Roman Road Network Ancient Cyprus Routes

Cyprus already had roads before the Romans arrived. The earliest routes date back to the Bronze Age, and by the end of the Hellenistic period, a road network circled the entire island. These pre-Roman roads connected cities with their surrounding territories and linked major settlements along the coast. However, they were often simple tracks suitable for pedestrians and pack animals rather than the engineered highways Romans built elsewhere in their empire. pixabay-com When Cyprus became a Roman province in 22 BC under Emperor Augustus, the new administration inherited this existing network. The Romans added secondary roads and improved certain routes, but they did not rebuild the entire system to match the standards used in Italy or other provinces. This practical…

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Roman Road Network

Roman Road Network

Cyprus already had roads before the Romans arrived. The earliest routes date back to the Bronze Age, and by the end of the Hellenistic period, a road network circled the entire island. These pre-Roman roads connected cities with their surrounding territories and linked major settlements along the coast. However, they were often simple tracks suitable for pedestrians and pack animals rather than the engineered highways Romans built elsewhere in their empire. pixabay-com When Cyprus became a Roman province in 22 BC under Emperor Augustus, the new administration inherited this existing network. The Romans added secondary roads and improved certain routes, but they did not rebuild the entire system to match the standards used in Italy or other provinces. This practical…

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Amathus Roman Remains Cyprus Coastal City Life

Amathus Roman Remains Cyprus Coastal City Life

The ruins of Amathus spread across a coastal hillside 11 kilometers east of Limassol, where stone walls and column fragments mark one of Cyprus' oldest city kingdoms. Archaeological evidence shows continuous occupation from 1100 BCE until the 7th century CE, a span of nearly 2,000 years. During the Roman period, Amathus became the capital of one of four administrative regions on Cyprus. The city's importance grew so significant that Romans used the term Amathusia as a general synonym for Cypriot. allaboutlimassol.com Today, visitors walk through the remains of public baths built during Emperor Hadrian's time, explore an agora where merchants traded goods from across the Mediterranean, and view foundations of the great Temple of Aphrodite that made this the second…

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Roman Aqueduct of Salamis Ancient Engineering

Roman Aqueduct of Salamis Ancient Engineering

The ancient city of Salamis on Cyprus faced the same problem that confronted many Roman settlements across the Mediterranean. The city needed vast quantities of water to serve its growing population, public baths, and commercial activities, but local sources were not enough. The Romans solved this challenge with one of their most impressive engineering achievements on the island: a 40-kilometer aqueduct that brought fresh water from the springs of Kythrea to the bustling coastal metropolis. thearchaeologist.org Why Salamis Needed an Aqueduct Salamis stood as one of Cyprus's most important cities during Roman times. The city stretched two kilometers along the coastline and reached one kilometer inland. At its peak, between 50,000 and 100,000 people called Salamis home. This large population…

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Nea Paphos Archaeological Park Roman Mosaics

Nea Paphos Archaeological Park Roman Mosaics

Nea Paphos Archaeological Park preserves the heart of an ancient city that served as the capital of Cyprus for over 600 years. Located on the southwestern coast near modern Paphos, this UNESCO World Heritage Site contains some of the finest Roman mosaics in the eastern Mediterranean, alongside temples, fortresses, and the remains of a once-thriving urban center. Adobe-Stock-com Historical Background Nea Paphos was founded in the late 4th century BC by Nikokles, the last king of Palaipaphos (Old Paphos), about 10 kilometers inland. The new coastal location offered better harbor access and strategic advantages for trade across the Mediterranean. When Ptolemy I of Egypt took control of Cyprus in 294 BC, he made Nea Paphos the island's administrative capital, a…

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Roman Cyprus: Mediterranean Maritime Hub

Roman Cyprus: Mediterranean Maritime Hub

When Cyprus became part of the Roman world, the island did not need to reinvent its relationship with the sea. Instead, Rome refined it. Over centuries, Roman engineers, administrators, and merchants transformed Cyprus into a carefully managed maritime province, one that linked eastern trade routes with the wider Mediterranean through ports, harbors, and logistics designed for permanence rather than improvisation. Unsplash-com From Crossroads to System Cyprus had always sat between worlds. Long before Roman rule, ships traveling between the Levant, Egypt, Asia Minor, and the Aegean passed its shores. What changed under Rome was not geography, but organization. Cyprus trade route The Romans treated the sea as infrastructure. Ports were no longer just safe places to land. They became regulated…

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