A total of 266 Cypriot antiquities, including a rare copper artifact - the third such artifact found on the island - were handed over to Cypriot Deputy Culture Minister Vasiliki Kassianide on Tuesday, December 10, in Claremont, Los Angeles.
The artifacts were delivered by Harvey Mudd College Vice President for Academic Affairs Professor Tom Donnelly.
The collection of antiquities was removed by Harvey Mudd, co-founder and owner of the Cyprus Mines Corporation, under license from the newly created Department of Antiquities in 1930 during British colonial rule.
After Harvey Mudd's death, his family founded Harvey Mudd College. After his wife's death, the collection was donated to the college. Victoria Mudd, Harvey Mudd's granddaughter, expressed a desire to return the collection to Cyprus, and an agreement was signed in 2018.
The collection includes clay vessels and lamps, glass objects, a compass, clay female figurines, a limestone female head and a significant number of copper instruments and mirrors dating from the Early Bronze Age to the Roman era.
One of the most outstanding artifacts is a Late Bronze Age copper talent in the form of an ox hide. It was in this form that copper was exported from Cyprus. There are three known copper talents. One of them is kept in the British Museum, the other in Cyprus.
The Antiquities Department is packing up the artifacts and will return them to Cyprus within the next few days, almost a century after they were removed.
Speaking at the handover ceremony, Kassianidou said that all items will be cataloged and transferred to the University of Cyprus for educational purposes. The talent and several other important artifacts will be included in ongoing planning for the new archaeological museum.
Source: cyprus-mail.com
