This exhibition closed permanently in January 2025. We apologise for any inconvenience. We preserve it digitally here:

This exhibition focuses on Cypriot artefacts in the collection of the National Museum of Ireland, many of which have never been exhibited before.

Cyprus is an island located in the eastern Mediterranean renowned for its exceptionally rich heritage. Its strategic geographical position means that it has always played a crucial role in the transmission of ideas and objects between East and West. This unique blend of cultural influences is perhaps best expressed through its archaeological artefacts.

The British occupation of Cyprus in 1878 gave museums in Britain an opportunity to acquire objects directly. South Kensington Museum (now the Victoria and Albert Museum) commissioned excavations at the archaeological sites of Salamis, Gastria and Curium in 1882. The British Museum excavated at Amathus, Curium and Enkomi during the 1890s.

Through connections created by British rule, the National Museum of Ireland received a selection of the artefacts from South Kensington Museum’s excavations in 1883. The British Museum also donated objects, and the collection was added to by purchases from private collections in Ireland in the 1930s and 1940s.

Most of the objects are ceramic and range in date from the Bronze Age to the late Roman period. Although the exact provenance of many of the artefacts was not recorded, it is likely that the majority were deposited in tombs.