Abstract

The second half of the 3rd and the earliest part of the 2nd millennium BC have been established in the relevant bibliography as an era of major changes in the economic and social structure of Cyprus. Even though social change and ideological shifts are inseparable, it is usually considered safer to use archaeological evidence to understand socio-economic changes rather than to comprehend changes in conceptions and ideology. Concerning the latter, artefacts representing humans or animals are often thought to be a preferential field for research that aims to trace the ideas of past societies. It is certainly greatly preferable to have representations where humans are shown in interaction with their community and environment. One such representation, which seems to fulfil the above preconditions, is offered by a terracotta model excavated by the speaker in Nicosia Agia Paraskevi Tomb 50. The artefact, which is currently displayed in the Being an Islander exhibition in the Fitzwilliam Museum, is a depiction of a group of people within an architectural structure, interacting with one another and their inanimate surroundings. An analysis of the meaning and importance of this scene will be attempted, by examining it within its wider socio-economic context, as the latter is understood through current archaeological knowledge.

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