On the Death of the Cypriot Archaeologist Vassos Karageorghis (29 April 1929 – 21 December 2021)

On 21 December 2021, at the age of 92, Vassos Karageorghis passed away in Nicosia. When looking at his life's work, one quickly gets lost in superlatives. Words can hardly describe how he – in a wide variety of professional positions – promoted the scientific exploration of ancient Cyprus. As director of the Department of Antiquities (1963-1989), the Anastasios G. Leventis Foundation (1989-2010) and the Archaeological Research Unit of the newly founded University of Cyprus (1992-1996) and finally as professor at the renowned Cyprus Institute (2013-2019) he achieved great things. He carried out highly significant and successful excavations (Salamis and Kition are just two examples), produced an almost unbelievable number of publications (125 books and almost 500 scientific articles), but what distinguished him above all was the fact that he succeeded in establishing an international reputation for Cypriot archaeology.

We are proud that he was also in close contact with our Cyprus Institute at Münster. He visited the Institute on several occasions, gave lectures in Münster, was a partner in the joint organisation of international conferences etc.

He was a true friend, always willing to support the Institute – we will miss him dearly. 

For further details confer the obituary of the University of Cyprus:
https://www.ucy.ac.cy/aru/documents/News/News_Banner/keimeno_isa_ema_eng_for_website.pdf

 

Publication of a report on religious heritage in the greater Nicosia area

On Wednesday 6 October 2021, Thorsten Kruse, presented at Chateau Status in Nicosia (Cyprus) the report he has prepared on the current situation of the religious heritage of the Christian and Muslim communities in Greater Nicosia, which was forcibly left behind in the 1960s and after 1974.
After the welcome by Mehmet Harmancı, Mayor of the Turkish Municipality of Nicosia, Hubert Faustmann, Head of the Cyprus Office of the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, and Salpy Eskidjian from the Office of the Religious Track of the Cyprus Peace Process (RTCYPP), Thorsten Kruse presented his report, which was financially supported by the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung and published in the series "Democracy and Human Rights".
The report (in English) is available at http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/zypern/18387.pdf and at the project website https://www.cyreligiousheritage.org/.

Launch of website on religious heritage of Cyprus

Within the framework of the research project "Religion and Politics - Dealing with Cemeteries, Places of Worship and Religious Memorial Places in Cyprus", based at the Cyprus Institute (University of Münster) and led by our colleague Dr Thorsten Kruse, a new important project milestone has been implemented. Since 2 August 2021, the new project website is officially launched:

https://www.cyreligiousheritage.org/

The website presents the current condition of Christian and Muslim places of worship and cemeteries in a transparent, descriptive way and has the endorsement and support of the religious communities of Cyprus.
The interactive website was developed and realised by Dr Kruse with support by the Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES) in Cyprus and the Office of the Religious Track of the Cyprus Peace Process under the Auspices of the Embassy of Sweden (RTCYPP).
The website enables all interested visitors to easily access the recorded data concerning the religious heritage of Cyprus and to inform themselves about the current status of the Christian and Muslim religious heritage on the island.
The relevant information on the surveyed villages and religious sites can be accessed both by their district affiliation and via an interactive map that also allows for an individual search:

https://www.cyreligiousheritage.org/map

So, give it a click and join us to protect the rich religious heritage of Cyprus.

The Institute for Interdisciplinary Cypriot Studies has lost one of its best friends:
Andros Nicolaides passed away in Cyprus on February 4, 2021, at the age of 82

As Ambassador of the Republic of Cyprus to Germany in the years from 1992 to 1996 Andros Nicolaides, born on August 20, 1938, in the Cypriot mountain village of Galata, was a driving force during the founding process of the Cyprus Institute at the University of Münster. Even before this institute was able to open its doors in May 1996, he had already ensured that a large number of books arrived in Münster – books that were to form the basis of the Institute's library. About a year later (in December 1996), during a visit to Münster, he was able to see for himself that the Institute was developing well.
Having retired in 1998 after his last service as Ambassador of Cyprus (to the USA, 1996–1998), he received, in 2002, a great honour from the University of Münster: Together with Professor Nelly Tsouyopoulou (1930–2005) he was awarded the University’s Medal of Friendship; both were honoured for their great commitment concerning the foundation of the Institute.
Andros Nicolaides' great interest in the Institute did not cease until his death. When Cyprus was plunged into a severe financial crisis in 2013 – a crisis that also had (and still has) its effects on the Institute – we knew that in Andros Nicolaides we had a friend in Cyprus who repeatedly used all his influence for the good of the Institute. Until his death he did this in a reliable and impressive way.

We will honour his memory.

Münster, February 15, 2021

 

When the Cemetery Becomes Political – Dealing with the Religious Heritage in Multi-Ethnic Regions

Editors: Thorsten Kruse, Hubert Faustmann, Sabine Rogge
Schriften des Instituts für Interdisziplinäre Zypern-Studien, vol. 14
Münster / New York: Waxmann 2020

226 pages, with numerous illustrations
Paper-bound: € 34,90, ISBN 978-3-8309-4265-8
E-Book: € 30,99, ISBN 978-3-8309-9265-3

further information

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Book reviews:

• FRH - Future for Religious Heritage (online book review)
  "Highly recommended read to gain a better understanding of the complex issue of religious heritage in a diverse Europe."

 

Farewell to the Cyprus Institute

After almost 25 years at the Institute for Interdisciplinary Cypriot Studies Dr. Sabine Rogge, the Managing Director of this institution, retired on 31 October 2020.

Until the succession situation is clarified, the Institute of Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies (Institut für Byzantinistik und Neogräzistik) is the contact for all inquiries concerning the Cyprus Institute.

If you would like to visit the Institute's library, please contact the Institute of Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies (for contact details cf. www.uni-muenster.de/Byzantinistik).

Direct contact with the Cyprus Institute is also possible via the email address zypern(at)wwu(dot)de.

New Project: Handbook of Ancient Cypriot Ceramics

You can find them in almost every museum that houses ancient objects: ceramics from the island of Cyprus; but you will look in vain for an up-to-date handbook on this type of pottery. This, however, is about to change, because the Institute’s managing director, the archaeologist Sabine Rogge, has succeeded in winning over a number renowned experts in the field of Cypriot ceramics to the idea of presenting the current state of knowledge on the island’s ancient pottery in a richly illustrated Handbook of Ancient Cypriot Ceramics. The ancient Cypriot pottery from the Neolithic period to Late Antiquity (5th millennium BC to 7th century AD) will be treated in that book. The project is supported by the AMRICHA Foundation, founded by Alexander Malios in 2019.

Further information (pdf)

Research network MS ISLA (Mediterranean Studies on Island Areas)

On 4 May 2020, the new research network MS ISLA (Mediterranean Studies on Island Areas) was presented at the University of Regensburg. The network is funded by the Center for International and Transnational Area Studies (CITAS) of the University of Regensburg /Germany over a period of three years. In an interdisciplinary research approach, topics such as insularity and identity, (historical) migration research or transmediterranity will be explored and discussed.
Our institute's research associate Dr. Thorsten Kruse is a member of the MS ISLA network and will actively participate in its research activities.
The Institute itself is involved in this network as a cooperation partner. Among other things, a network event in Cyprus is planned for the year 2022.
Further information on the network can be found on the corresponding CITAS websites:
German version
English version