Guide to Amathus [antikvár]

PREFACEWhen the Ecole Française d'Athenes launched the publication of the detailed and fully-documented monograph entitled Guide d'Amathonte in the School's series "Sites et Monuments" (Paris 1996), the Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation obtained permission from the School's director to prepare an abridged edition of the guide in Greek and English. These abridged guides were included in the Series of Guide Books launched by the Foundation in 1987 in collaboration with the Cyprus Department of Antiquities.The English edition was based on the French texts submitted by the Director of the excavation of the site of Amathus, Pierre Aupert. Anne Pariente, in charge of the French School's publishing department at the time, kindly provided the diverse photographic material required for the Foundation's editions (maps, plans, photographs of objects belonging to museums or private collections, such as the K. & R. Severis or the BCCF collections); the guides were enriched with colour photographs of objects from the Cyprus Museum and the Limassol Museum, submitted by Yannis Hadjisavvas, in charge of the Department of Antiquities' publications. The English translation was undertaken by two competent archaeologists, Diana Buitron-Oliver and Andrew Oliver, who spent considerable time studying the site to ensure the best possible results. Finally, the English Guide to Amathus was copy-edited by our collaborator, Costoula Sclavenitis.The English guide to this ancient Cypriot kingdom is the last one to be published under the general supervision of the archaeologist Maria lacovou, who has retired from her duties as Director of the Foundation in order to concentrate on the requirements of her teaching post at the University of Cyprus.The present publication of the Guide to Amathus brings the total number of copies of the seven guide books issued by the Foundation to 260.000: an impressive print-run designed to satisfy the need for reliable and reasonably-priced guides to the archaeological sites and monuments of Cyprus. Net proceeds from the sales of the guide books remain with the Department of Antiquities to be used towards the conservation and restoration of monuments.Yannis KypriChairman of Ihe Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation