NICOSIA,
14 May 2008 -
The official logo of the XIII Games of the Small States of
Europe was unveiled during a Press Conference at Olympic House
here today. The logo is a graphic representation of the Kyrenia
Ship, a national symbol for Cyprus. The logo was the inspiration of designer
Pericles Christoforides, who also designed Tefkros, the
mascot of the Games.
The wreck of the 4th Century B.C. Greek merchant ship
was found in 1967 off the coast of the city of Kyrenia,
on the northern shores of Cyprus, by diving instructor
Andreas Cariolou. She was excavated and brought to the
surface by a team of marine
archaeologists lead by the University of Pennsylvania and
is now exhibited, together with her cargo, at the Ancient
Shipwreck Museum in Kyrenia Castle.
Archaeologists believe
that the ship sailed the Mediterranean during the time
of Alexander the Great and sank off Kyrenia probably due to rough seas about 300 B.C. She was already about
80 years old and had undergone extensive repairs when
she foundered.
The wooden hull, made
from Aleppo pine, measured 14.7 metres from bow to stern (over
50 per cent of her hull survived intact) and her beac was
3.8 metres across.
Her estimated speed was 4 to 5 knots.
Carrying freight from
Rhodes (wine amphorae), Samos, Kos, Cyprus and the
Palestine and millstone from the volcanic rock of
Nisyros,
the ship was manned by a crew of four, judging by the
utensils recovered (four wooden spoons, oil jugs, salt
dishes, drinking cups). The crew survived on almonds (a
huge quantity of which was discovered intact) and any
fish they managed to catch.
Two
major unique scientific experiments have been made at recreating the
ancient ship of Kyrenia.
The first was a naval architectural shell-first
construction project and was launched in 1985 by the
President of the Hellenic Institute for the Preservation
of Nautical Tradition, Harry Tzallas, under the guidance
of professors Katzev and Steffy (leaders of the ship's
underwater excavation), who built a full-size replica and named her
Kyrenia II. Kyrenia II has visited many
parts of the world as the floating ambassador of Greek
and Cypriot culture,
including New York (pictured, left on the 17 cent
Cyprus stamp as she sailed past the Statue of Liberty in
1986), Japan and Germany. After her visit to Japan, a
second exhibition replica, named Kyrenia III, was
constructed in Fukuoka by the NHK and is housed at the Fukuoka City
Museum.
A
third scientific replica was constructed in 2002 and named
Kyrenia Liberty. Built accurtely to the original
naval architectural lines-plan, but with the
contemporary frame-first techniques, in order to
continue sail, steering and cargo loading experiments. Kyrenia Liberty
sailed to Athens for the 2004 Olympic Games, carrying a
a symbolic cargo of copper (whence Cyprus gets its
name), to be used for minting the Olympic bronze medals.
The Kyrenia Ship,
representing the island’s relationship with trade,
shipping and the sea, throughout Cyprus history,
features on the national side of the 0.50 (right), 0.20
and 0.10 cent coins of the euro. Cyprus joined the euro
zone on 1 January 2008.
