Review: Aphrodite to Melusine

Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies Vol. 33 No. 2 (2009) 1–2 Reviews Matteo Campagnolo and Marielle Martiniani-Reber, From Aphrodite to Melusine. Reflections on the Archaeology and History of Cyprus, transl. Erika Milburn. Geneva: La pomme d’or1, 2007. Pp. xvi, 203 + 16 colour plates It is no secret that there is a considerable gap between the scholarly treatment of historical and/or archaeological material and publications intended for a wider readership, the crucial problem often being the painfully slow pace with which the results of recent scholarship that sometimes overturn long-held views make it into the non-specialized literature. It is this gap that the book reviewed here attempts to fill as far as the civilization of ancient and medieval Cyprus is concerned. The small-format paperback volume contains the text of a series of public lectures given at the Muséum d’histoire naturelle of Geneva, Switzerland, to accompany an exhibition on ancient and medieval Cyprus held at the Musée d’art et d’histoire (MAH) in the same city (5 October 2006 – 25 March 2007). The title, evoking two legendary female figures from different periods of Cypriot history, was that of the exhibition too2 and reflects its chronological coverage, the Greek goddess representing ancient Cyprus, and the half-serpent / half-human spirit, mythical genetrix of the Lusignans, the Crusader kingdom. Following a forward by Beatrice Demetriades Power, honorary consul general of the Republic of Cyprus in Geneva, who also contributed two essays to the volume, and a preface by the two editors (M. Campagnolo and M. Martiniani-Reber who are also among the contributing authors), the first essay, by Danielle Decrouez (director of the institution that hosted the lectures) provides a survey of the geology of Cyprus and the formation of the island, particularly useful in view of the highly technical nature of relevant discussions in specialized publications. Jacques Chamay (MAH) gives a succinct account of the evidence for the earliest human habitation of the island, its progressive hellenization, the impact of the Phoenicians and its fortunes down to Roman times. Then follows André Hurst (University of Geneva) with an investigation of the role of Cyprus in Greek epic focusing on Stasinos, alleged author of the Cypria, and a short but meticulous commentary by Esther Wolff on a section of Hurst’s article concerning a Homeric hymn to Aphrodite which refers to the perfuming of garments with scented oil. Matteo Campagnolo provides the link between ancient and medieval times with an idiosyncratic juxtaposition of the deeds and images of two kings, namely Evagoras of Salamis (BC 411-375/74) and Peter I Lusignan (AD 1359-69), based primarily on their coinage3 and on the accounts of their main contemporary eulogists. Leaving aside the questionable merits of such a comparison, what is striking is that in the case of the Lusignan king, the major source for his reign, the well known chronicle of Leontios Machairas which devotes a quarter of its contents to Peter I, is not even mentioned, nor is it included in the brief bibliography. Although the exhibition included a section on the Byzantine period with a small selection of artefacts, and the catalogue published a brief overview by C. Bakirtzis, the series of essays, regrettably, does not provide any relevant coverage and moves straight into the Lusignan era with David Jacoby (Hebrew University, Jerusalem)’s excellent article on relations between the Lusignan kingdom and the mainland crusader states in the thirteenth century. What was perhaps the most spectacular item at the exhibition, the antependium of Othon de Grandson (c. 1238–1328), a large late thirteenth-century embroidery from the Historical museum of Bern rarely seen outside the Swiss capital (no.182 in the exhibition catalogue), is discussed in a brief note by one of the co-editors, M. Martiniani-Reber, who confirms its Cypriot provenance based on its iconography, the combination and hierarchy of the languages used in the inscriptions and the 1 http://www.pommedor.ch. It is worth noting that the editorial board is chaired by Paul Magdalino and includes several Byzantinists (Simon Franklin, Maria Mavroudi, Arietta Papaconstantinou, Jean-Michel Spieser). 2 Chypre. D’Aphrodite à Mélusine, Skira – Musées d’art et d’histoire de la ville de Genève, eds. M. Campagnolo, C. Courtois, M. Martiniani-Reber, L. Michaelidou (Milan 2006). 3 Note, however, that no reference is made to the relevant items in the exhibition catalogue (nos. 61–62, 160–62). © 2009 Centre for Byzantine, Ottoman and Modern Greek Studies, University of Birmingham DOI: 33-2-01-BYZPapacostas.pmd 1 6/9/2009, 6:58 PM 1 2 Book reviews technique employed. Jacques Chamay, author of the earlier essay on the island’s early history, also contributed a general survey of the presence of the military orders on Cyprus, which illustrates the problems outlined above with regard to the (in)accessibility of scholarly literature, as it fails to take into account the most important bibliography on the subject.4 In contrast, the two essays that follow distil in a few pages the wisdom of two seasoned historians of medieval Cyprus on related issues: Gilles Grivaud (University of Rouen) looks at the evidence for the development of a symbiosis between the Latin and Greek communities on the island, stressing their peaceful coexistence, while the doyen of Lusignan historians Jean Richard (Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-lettres) examines the question of multilinguism and multiculturalism. Another important artefact illustrating the flourishing of the arts in the court of the Lusignan kings is the subject of Bertrand Bouvier (University of Geneva)’s short article: the early 15th-century Turin manuscript J.II.9 contains more than 200 pieces of polyphonic sacred and secular music and is one of the most important testimonies for the musical production of this period, when Nicosia was an important centre of the ars subtilior style (only a facsimile was shown at the exhibition: no. 192). Beatrice Demetriades Power wraps up the collection of papers on the medieval period with surveys of the lives of two Lusignan princesses, with particular emphasis on their links to the duchy of Savoy and the city of Geneva. A brief overview of the development of Cypriot archaeology, summarizing a speech delivered in Nicosia by Vassos Karageorghis in 2004, is appended at the end of the volume. Finally Matteo Campagnolo provides an annotated bibliography which, despite its selective character, should have included important recent works such as Jean-Bernard de Vaivre’s and Philippe Plagnieux’s L’art gothique en Chypre (Paris 2006, included in Grivaud’s bibliography on p.119). A list of the illustrations in the 16 excellent colour plates and an index complete the volume. The essays, as the editors state in their preface (pp. xv–xvi), are aimed at a wide and not necessarily scholarly audience. Thus, most have only brief bibliographies and no footnotes (with the notable exception of D. Jacoby’s). Some present an overview, whilst others are original contributions to their respective fields. The quality is uneven, some appearing to be little more than transcripts of the public lectures pitched at a level appropriate for such events, whilst others have clearly been reworked for publication. The omission of a chapter on the Byzantine period was mentioned above; considering that coins constituted more than half of the 328 items exhibited at the MAH (the rest including sculpture, pottery, jewellery, metalware, icons, old maps and books), it is also regrettable that no essay dedicated specifically to numismatics was deemed necessary. In view of the wide chronological coverage, a chronological table would also have been most helpful. Notwithstanding some translation and editorial problems,5 this remains a beautifully crafted and useful book for the interested public, best read as an accompaniment to the lavishly illustrated catalogue of the exhibition. The editors and the MAH are to be congratulated for their initiative, as most public lectures given on such occasions remain unpublished or often make it into scholarly publications that are inaccessible to the general public. Their decision to opt for the English language is equally laudable, as it enables the book to reach an even wider audience than a French publication would have allowed, not least on Cyprus itself. One can only hope that other museums and institutions involved in the organization of major exhibitions will follow suit. Tassos Papacostas King’s College London 4 Numerous publications by Jonathan Riley-Smith and Anthony Luttrell, and the recent three-volume work of Pierre-Vincent Claverie on the Templars published by the Cyprus Research Centre (L’ordre du Temple en Terre Sainte et à Chypre au XIII siècle, Nicosia 2005). The essay is fraught with minor inaccuracies: p. 94: Richard’s sister Joanna and his bride-to-be Berengaria did not join the crusader army until this reached Sicily; p. 96: the Hospitallers had acquired properties on Cyprus by 1203; p. 99: the original structures at Kolossi are only very partially preserved, and most Lusignan kings were of course buried in the Dominican church of Nicosia. 5 Among the most significant: p. 12 (‘discovered in on the south coast’), p. 52 n.10 (‘according to Selon Spyridakis’), p. 80 (‘inn other coastal cities’), p. 94 (‘with the Saladin’), pp. 96–97 (‘Famagosta’ instead of Famagusta used elsewhere), p. 116 (‘cures which it affected’), p. 131 (‘Makarios Kalarites’, ‘Constantine Etiles’), pp. 131 and 136 (‘Pavia’ for Padua); p. 136 (‘1423’ for 1473), p. 150 (‘historien’), p. 170 (René and Louis de Mas Latrie are two different authors, son and father), p. 183 (‘Millieux’ for Milliex). 33-2-01-BYZPapacostas.pmd 2 6/9/2009, 6:58 PM Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies Vol. 33 No. 2 (2009) 3 Author Query Sheet Manuscript Information Journal Acronym BYZ Volume and issue 33.2 Author name Tassos Papacostas AUTHOR: The following queries have arisen during the editing of your manuscript. Please answer the queries by marking necessary corrections at the appropriate positions on the PROOFS. Do not answer the queries on the query sheet itself. Please also return a copy of the query sheet with your corrected proofs. QUERY NO. 1 33-2-01-BYZPapacostas.pmd QUERY DETAILS Please supply DOI number. 3 6/9/2009, 6:58 PM