The top rosette is eleven-petaled, the right rosette (facing the coil) is ten-petaled, while the left rosette (facing the catch-plate) is nine-petaled. Each rosette is obtained from gold sheet, strips of which form the cloisons. The cloisons outline the petals which are filled with polychrome enamels of various colors. Additional decorative elements of the artifact are double loop in loop chains linked to the coiled spring: from each chain, connected by means of suspension rings, three delicately chiseled bells, recalling stylized lotus buds, are hanging. A further extraordinary feature of this fibula is an alef (a Phoenician letter) engraved on the front side, above the rosette, probably representing the owner´s name initial letter. During the Late Cypro-Geometric and Early Cypro-Archaic period (circa 850-700 B.C.) this typology of fibulae were mostly made of bronze; the shape is typically and diagnostically Cypriot, often found in tombs of the above mentioned period all over the island. Very rarely, this kind of fibula is made of silver: the fibula from the Kition-Larnaca built tomb no. 1, is a golden work of art of exceptional importance for Cypriot and world heritage.

The Fibula: Historical and Artistic Context

Preliminary to a final publication which will reconstruct the excavation’s context and methodology, some introductory content is provided in this paper aiming at framing the artifact within its historical and archaeological context.

The fibula’s main body, of irregular triangular shape, can easily be referred to Type 4b (Fig. a)of the Cypriot fibulae according to the criteria already presented by the Swedish Cyprus Expedition and further confirmed by the typological analysis (Stronach, 1959): this is an original Cypriot typology.

The chronological horizon appears to be clearly established at the VIII-VII century B.C. (Cypro-Geometric period) tending to a lower dating of such chronology. This typology is common in the Syro-Palestinian area, in the Anatolian and Aegean environments, especially Rhodos and Aegina.

Characteristic features of the Kition fibula are the addition of three chains and lotus bud pendants and above all, the exceptional enrichment of three cloisonné rosettes to the main body, enhanced by polychrome enamel cloisons, respectively placed two at the center of each of the fibula’s arms and one to top the fibula’s apex.

With their curved shape both fibula’s arms appear to recall the Egyptian solar boat: this appears evident in the bows’ shape, which meet towards the apex with an elegant decorative effect, while the two rosettes, topping both arms, are placed in the area where usually the cabin is located.

Such tendency to use Egyptian or Egyptianizing elements or symbolism in such an eclectic and audacious way, is a typical and founding aspect of the Phoenician art, of which the Kition fibula is certainly one of the most original and uncommon examples. (Ciafaloni, 1995). Not only in jewelry, but also in glyptic arts (i.e. on a chalcedony scarab at the Louvre Museum) and in ivories (Herrmann), the solar boat symbolism is widely asserted, represented in numerous and ingenious variations with respect to the classical Egyptian interpretation.

Phoenician sumptuous objects had a widespread diffusion with all the Mediterranean élites, in this particular instance in its oriental area, in the chronological span already identified, and in particular in Cyprus, as shown in the so-called Cypro-Phoenician bowls (Markoe, 1984) which constitute the most evident manifestation of such an eclectic trend.

Within the Levant and Cypriot environment, the Phoenician craft is permeated with Mesopotamic and Near-Eastern influxes; in fact it can be probably stated that it shares an ample aesthetic and technical Koiné only partially known.

Notwithstanding, the extraordinary recent discovery of the Nimrud Queens Tombs (Damerji, 1999) has added an impressive quantity of artifacts to the meager dossier related to Mesopotamic jewellery from the I millennium B.C.

As an example, cloisonné and champlevé techniques are widely witnessed by the application of enamels and semi-precious stones in-lays on sumptuous bracelets. (Ibidem, Abb.27-30) till now known only from relief reproductions of the neo-Assyrian palaces.

It then appears that not only Egypt should be taken into consideration as a source of the decorative technique applied on the rosettes, even if, since the New Kingdom period, there are undoubtedly copious testimonials of floral elements characterized by these techniques (see the head-dress of a Tutmosi’s III wife from Thebes now at the Metropolitan Museum) as well as in Mycenean setting (ANAM, 1988).

To conclude, it could be stated that in the Kition fibula, the corpus of Egyptianizing in general elements recalling the religious world, steers towards an eschatological and symbolic interpretation of the artifact, possibly destined, since its creation, to a real use in everyday life, to be worn by a prince or a member of the Kition aristocracy, as well as for funerary use.

Furthermore, the rosette motive in the Mesopotamic area appears linked to the major oriental female goddess Ishtar/Astarte, i.e. in neo-Assyrian setting, chronologically parallel (VIII century B.C.) to the Kition fibula: cloisonné rosettes appear on a bracelet from the already mentioned Nimrud Queens Tombs (Damerji, cit, Abb. 30) where the same goddess is represented in the bracelet center-plate. Taking into account the already identified eclectic and syncretic orientation of the Phoenician culture, it is possible to assume that both sources, the Egyptian and Mesopotamic, efficiently merge into a certainly unique artifact.

Acknowledgments

With thanks to Prof. Davide Ciafaloni, Università di Milano Bicocca, Italy, for his collaboration and contribution concerning the Kition fibula humanistic aspects of the research.

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