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The
Late Bronze Age (1600-1050 BC) was one of the most formative
periods of the life of ancient Cyprus. The island's
international contacts extended from the Aegean Sea to the
Levant and the Nile Delta.
Thutmose
III of Egypt claimed Cyprus as one of his conquests in about
1500 BC. Writing, in the form of a linear script known as Cypro-Minoan,
was borrowed from Crete. Cypriot craftsmen were distinguished
for fine jewelry, ivory carving, and bronze figures.
From
about 1400 BC a profusion of Mycenaean pottery was imported from
mainland Greece, and it is possible that Mycenaean artists
accompanied the merchants. After 1200 BC, with the collapse of
Mycenaean civilization, there is evidence of Greek immigration
from the Peloponnese.
The
principal city, and port, was Engomi (west of Famagusta);
its massive city walls and houses of hewn stone are evidence of
a high degree of prosperity.
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