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THe Palace of Vouni was a Persian palace in Cyprus, lying in a scenic position atop a hill directly above Morphou (Güzelyurt) bay on the NW coast of the island, about 7 km W of the city of Soloi.

The building, excavated in 1937 by Swedish archeologists, was possibily the seat of the persian governour of Cyprus.

Location

The complex is located in North Cyprus, along the NW coast of the island, not far from the border with the Republic of Cyprus. It lies in a scenic position atop a hill overhanging the see, about 7 km from the ruins of the ancient Greek city of Soloi. Vouni is the local name of the hill.

History

The history of the building is unknown, but one can distinguish two construction phases, the first between circa 500 and 450 B.C., and the second from 450 B.C. to 380 B.C., when the complex was destroyed and abandoned. While the first phase had an oriental character, during the second the palace assumed a Greek style.

At the time of the building's foundation, Cyprus was under Persian control, and the inhabitants revolted against the Persian Empire. The uprising was crushed in 498 B.C. with the conquest of Soloi. It is then safe to assume that the complex was built by a pro-Persian king which as a stronghold against the Greek city of Soloi. In 449 B.C. the city of Marion was conquered by the Athenian general Cimon, trying to free the island from the Persian rule. In this period began the second construction phase of the palace, and then can be assumed that a pro-Greek King occupied the complex. In the meantime the city of Soloi changed side and became pro- Persian, attacking and destroying the palace at the beginning of the fourth century B.C. The complex was partially excavated in 1937 by an expedition led by the Swedish crown prince.

Architecture

On the NW coast above Morphou Bay, ca. 7 km W of Soloi. Vouni is the local name of a rocky hill rising directly from the sea. The palace occupied the summit of the hill but the N slope overlooking the sea was also inhabited. The site was surrounded by a wall which followed the edge of the plateau and can still be traced for most of its course. The site may have been a small town or, more likely, a fortified royal summer residence. The ancient name of the place is not known and an earlier theory that these ruins belonged to Aipeia, the predecessor of Soloi, must now be dismissed. Within the ramparts the space is divided in a significant way. The area on the very top to the S is reserved for the Temple of Athena; on the second and largest terrace is situated the palace surrounded by small sanctuaries. To the N the palace area is delimited by means of a high terraced wall. Below that there are some rock-cut tombs and on the lowest part within the ramparts were the rest of the habitations on the hill. Narrow roads and steps linked the three levels.

The first palace consists of a number of rooms grouped round a central open court and of the state apartments. During this period the entrance to the palace was to the SW and led to the state apartments, which consisted of a tripartite complex of rooms with a main central section and two lateral parts. The central section consists of an outer entrance hall, the main room, and an inner hall opening onto the court. The side rooms have outer doors of their own and are in direct communication with the main room and the other parts of the palace.

From the central section of the state apartments one descends to the central court by a grand staircase of seven steps occupying the whole width of the court. A peristyle surrounded the three other sides, with columns supporting a portico. The central part of the court was open, with a basin-cistern in the middle. Around the three sides of the court were the private rooms of the palace which, with one exception, were narrow-fronted rooms opening directly onto the court. The bathrooms were to the NE, the kitchen quarters to the SE. Some living rooms, bathrooms, and a row of storerooms lay to the NW.

The second building period was an expanded version of the first, including an important change in the orientation of the palace. The entrance through the state apartments was blocked and a new one was built on the NW, leading through a vestibule to the central court of the original palace. In this way the entrance complex with the state apartments of the first period were relegated to the rear of the central court and the palace now took the shape of a megaron building. At the same time an upper story was built. A suite of storerooms to the SE and NE was also added. In this way, a backyard enclosed on three sides was formed, in the middle of which a cistern was built to receive the water from the roofs of the newly built rooms. Close to the SW corner of the palace was erected a group of rooms forming an irregular unit. The purpose of these rooms is not certain but this place may have been used for washing.

A series of shrines surrounded the palace. Outside the main NW entrance of the palace is a shrine consisting of a small rectangular room, an anteroom, an inner room, and at its back a rectangular recess. At the NE side of the palace towards the sea lies an open-air temenos consisting of an altar room, a large forecourt, and behind it a small room. Close to the E corner of the palace are the remains of another shrine consisting of a rectangular room with an altar in the center, and of a corridor. Outside the SE row of store-rooms another sanctuary was built. It consists of two rooms, in one of which is a large altar. At a small distance from the S corner of the palace are the remains of a shrine consisting of a single square room. None of the above shrines has been identified.

The remains of the Temple of Athena lie on the very top of the Vouni hill at the S extremity of the plateau. The sanctuary comprises a group of structures consisting of a cella fronting a large court and a second smaller forecourt entered from an open space with a block of three continuous treasuries along its S side. This sanctuary belongs to the first phase of the second building period of the royal palace. The cella, square in shape, is a later addition; on its floor were found some fine bronzes including a small solid statue of a cow, probably reproducing the famous work of Myron, and two identical groups in relief, each with two lions attacking a bull. The inner temple court is rectangular and may have been used for setting up sculptures. The forecourt, roughly rectangular with a semicircular altar at its NW corner, was used for setting up sculptures, as can be seen from the depressions on the rock in which the statue bases were secured. The treasury buildings are rectangular and narrow-fronted.

Finds are in the Nicosia and Stockholm Museums.