Image Details

The name of Pharaoh Amenophis III appears on this 3.5 inch-long Egyptian scarab that dates to the 14th century B.C. and was found in an 11th century B.C. tomb in Palaepaphos in southwestern Cyprus. Probably an heirloom handed down for 300 years, this scarab is vivid evidence of the island’s polyglot culture. As a crossroads of commerce with both the Occident and the Orient, Cyprus prospered materially and was also enriched by the cultures of the myriad tradespeople who came to her ports.