Archaeologists Discover Mysterious Monolith in 4,000-Year-Old Temple

Archaeologists have unearthed a temple, believed to be around 4,000 years old and featuring a mysterious monolith, on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus.

A research project led by Luca Bombardieri with the University of Siena, Italy, in collaboration with the Department of Antiquities of Cyprus, identified the remains of the sacred space at the archaeological site of Erimi.

The prehistoric settlement is located in south-central Cyprus on a limestone terrace more than 300 feet above sea level. The island is located in the eastern Mediterranean Sea at the crossroads of Europe, Africa and Asia.

"During the Middle Bronze Age (around 2000-1600 B.C.) a community of artisans chose to settle on the Erimi hill and build a community living space with very particular characteristics," Bombardieri said in a University of Siena press release.

In one area of this Bronze Age community, Bombardieri and his team uncovered the remains of a small compound featuring a rectangular room within a complex of workshops that were devoted to the production of textiles during the Middle Bronze Age.

"This room has completely different installations and equipment if compared with the surrounding spaces of the workshop complex," Bombardieri told Newsweek.

In the room, the archaeologists found a monolith of considerable size, measuring more than 2 meters (roughly 6.5 feet) in height. The monolith is completely smooth and features a motif in the center.

The monolith appears to have collapsed onto the floor and destroyed a large amphora placed at its feet in front of a small circular hearth. An amphora is a type of container vessel with a pointed bottom and characteristic form that dates back to prehistoric times.

"With a monolith of more than 2 meters high originally standing at the center of the room associated with a fireplace and a large amphora we presume a ritual use for this space, which can be interpreted as a shrine," Bombardieri said.

The monolith is made of sandstone, which may not have been quarried in the vicinity of the site but perhaps further afield, according to the researcher.

"We cannot give a precise explanation for this object itself, but we may presume that it was involved in ritual performances in this peculiar space," Bombardieri said.

According to the researcher, the small sacred space uncovered in Erimi is the oldest such example known on the island.

"Recent excavations have led to the discovery of the oldest sacred building attested in Cyprus, whose ritual function and ideological value seem to be of particular significance," Bombardieri said.

The research project at Erimi, which is being conducted in collaboration with the Cyprus Department of Antiquities, is yielding important data that is helping to shed light on the social organization, as well as the crucial cultural and economic transformations, of Middle Bronze Age communities in Cyprus.

Earlier this year, archaeologists working on the island rediscovered several "lost" tombs within the territory of a British overseas military base.

The finds resulted from a survey conducted in the Eastern Sovereign Base Area (ESBA) at Dhekelia on the island's south coast.

Cyprus is a former British colony that gained its independence in 1960, although the U.K. still retains control over two sovereign base areas there, including the ESBA.

The island has been divided since 1974 when Turkey invaded the northeastern portion. Northern Cyprus, the self-declared de facto state that administers this region, is recognized by no other country apart from Turkey. All other states consider the northeastern territory—along with the rest of the island (minus the British bases)—to be part of the Republic of Cyprus, which is a member of the European Union.

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Update 07/30/24, 5:14 a.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from Luca Bombardieri.