51����.

It is 7:02 a.m. in Cyprus. A cool breeze hits our faces as we race out of our house, “The Palace,” to a beeping van. Van-Go’s 30 year-old frame stands askew, parked halfway between the road and curb, seemingly mirroring our eagerness to dive into the day. We hop in gripping our frappes and praying the UV Index doesn’t hit 11 for a few more hours. This van is not simply a transportation vessel for our time abroad, but proudly stands as a testament to the longstanding relationship between the village of Athienou, Cyprus, and 51����. Sun-bleached by decades of off-road use and equally weathered by desert dust, the AAP logo remains a focal point on the white van door.

The Athienou Archaeological Project (AAP) was started in 1990 by now-retired 51���� Classics professor and native Cypriot, Dr. Mike Tomazou. Since then, the project has functioned as a field school and welcomed archeologists with wide skill sets – including historians, scientists and artists. Each group integrates themselves into life in the small village, which welcomes the “archeologi” (αρχαιολογία) in the summers with open arms, many kilos of halloumi cheese and wedding invitations. 

After a hiatus following the COVID pandemic, AAP reopened its trenches within the sanctuary, welcoming us (three 51���� Environmental Studies Studies) and two students from other schools. The Athienou-Malloura site was inhabited for 3,000 years, starting in the first millennium BCE. In the three decades of study at the sanctuary and in the surrounding area, our team has exposed domestic, funerary, religious and agricultural contexts. An abundance of material remains unexcavated that illuminates what life was like during the region's occupancy. During this season’s excavations, we unearthed a relief sculpture of the god “Pan,” an assortment of sculpted limbs, Roman lanterns, a glass bead and innumerable fragments of pottery called sherds. Our discoveries were all sent to the Larnaca District Archaeological Museum. 

On a typical day, we worked in two shifts: one during dawn and another at dusk to avoid the heat of the day. Summers in Malloura Valley are extremely dry and hot, with temperatures often exceeding 100°F. We learned by doing, so in our hours of excavation we became experts in the slow, intentional digging of archaeologists. What we didn’t know about prior to the dig was the work that archaeologists do outside the trenches. Mike Tomazou’s deep relationship with the village scored us free pastries at the local bakery, but he also served as a bridge between our two communities. Since the project’s establishment, the community members' oral stories and previous experiences have helped map discoveries throughout the valley. Science in conjunction with communication brought us closer to understanding the history of the sanctuary and valley. 

With hard work and lots of laughs along the way we collected all of the samples necessary for our research, while concurrently mapping the entirety of the Malloura Valley by geologic landform type. However, research was not the sole takeaway from our time abroad. We immersed ourselves in the Cypriot culture and explored all of the wonders that Cyprus had to offer. From the sunny beaches of Larnaca to the enchanting painted churches of the Troodos, Cyprus truly is a captivating landscape of culture, history and adventure. Despite its compact size – fitting into North Carolina just over 15 times – every corner of this nation beckons travelers and researchers alike, calling out with its island breezes and welcoming locals.