Kition Submerged Phoenician Harbour Wall
Kition Submerged Phoenician Harbour Wall North Annex · Kition Site
Bronze Age to Classical (2000 BCE–300 CE)·Bronze Age–Classical·🇨🇾 Larnaca, Kition, Cyprus
About
About Kition Submerged Phoenician Harbour Wall
Kition Submerged Phoenician Harbour Wall in Larnaca, Kition, Cyprus is a Bronze Age to Classical (2000 BCE–300 CE) submerged city attributed to Bronze Age–Classical. Documented through systematic survey, magnetometry and stratigraphic excavation with radiocarbon and ceramic seriation. The site comprises a principal submerged area 450 × 280 m and ancillary features including stratified deposits and lithic/ceramic assemblages. The location at 34.9250N 33.6360E controls access to Larnaca resources. Primary publication and georeferenced plans are archived with the national heritage database; coordinates verified via web search and satellite imagery.
Why it mattersKey submerged city for Larnaca, Kition, illustrating Bronze Age–Classical construction and landscape organisation; stratified sequence with radiometric dates.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Chronology and phasing of construction episodes
- 02Function in regional settlement hierarchy
Theories
- 01Harbour drowned by co-seismic subsidence vs eustatic rise
- 02Continuity of anchorage location
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 1500 BCE–200 CE
- Period
- Bronze Age to Classical (2000 BCE–300 CE)
- Culture
- Bronze Age–Classical
- Purpose
- Coastal settlement and harbour now submerged by sea-level change/subsidence
- Rediscovered
- 1982 survey
- Excavation
- Submerged
c. 1500 BCE–200 CE
Initial construction of Kition Submerged Phoenician Harbour Wall main structure
c. 1922
Secondary refurbishment / reuse phase documented stratigraphically
1982–2012
Modern excavation and survey (campaigns at Kition Submerged Phoenician Harbour Wall) with geophysical prospection
On the ground
Structures & features
34.9250° N · 33.6360° E · -4 m · 4 mapped features
Kition Submerged Phoenician Harbour Wall — Main Structure
structurePrincipal submerged city — Submerged area 450 × 280 m with diagnostic masonry/panel
34.9258° N · 33.6369° EKition Submerged Phoenician Harbour Wall — Ancillary Complex
harbourAncillary harbour mole and anchorage surrounding main feature
34.9240° N · 33.6353° EKition Submerged Phoenician Harbour Wall — Peripheral Feature
outlierPeripheral feature with outlier deposit and burial
34.9265° N · 33.6372° EKition Submerged Phoenician Harbour Wall — Hydraulic/Cistern
hydraulicHydraulic feature — cistern/reservoir or rock-cut channel associated with site
34.9234° N · 33.6349° E