event · evt_opheltas_obelos_inscription
Inscription of Opheltas on the Palaepaphos-Skales obelos
A syllabic inscription on a bronze obelos is commonly read as a Greek personal name, Opheltas.
What is the evidence?
observation
A syllabic inscription on a bronze obelos is commonly read as a Greek personal name, Opheltas.Review and provenance
Specialist reviewer: not recorded. Review date: not recorded.
Dataset workflow: proposed. This is separate from specialist review.
Confidence describes the stated assessment; it does not certify expert approval. How review works.
Chronology
Dating intervals may describe uncertainty or phases; their width alone does not establish event duration.
1050 BCE–950 BCE
Precision: range
highPreferred display range for this event. It preserves positive BCE ordering and does not suppress narrower contexts or alternative chronology models.
- informs · provides epigraphic synthesis
Cypriot Syllabary — Stephen Colvin (2007)Supports the language reading and cautions.
Locator: Early syllabic Greek and Opheltas - informs · provides archaeological context
Palaepaphos-Skales: Tombs of the Late Cypriote IIIB and Cypro-Geometric Periods (Excavations of 2008 and 2011) — Vassos Karageorghis, Efstathios Raptou (2016)Provides cemetery chronology.
Locator: Skales burial contexts
1100 BCE–1000 BCE
Precision: broad range
Chronology model: Early eleventh-century model
moderateEarlier possible range retained because the burial and object chronology have been placed differently in scholarship.
- informs · dates
Cypriot Syllabary — Stephen Colvin (2007)Earlier possible range retained because the burial and object chronology have been placed differently in scholarship.
Locator: Opheltas chronology discussion
1000 BCE–950 BCE
Precision: approximate
Chronology model: Later tenth-century model
moderateLater proposed range retained separately rather than averaged into an exact date.
- informs · dates
Palaepaphos-Skales: Tombs of the Late Cypriote IIIB and Cypro-Geometric Periods (Excavations of 2008 and 2011) — Vassos Karageorghis, Efstathios Raptou (2016)Later proposed range retained separately rather than averaged into an exact date.
Locator: Skales cemetery chronology
Interpretation and caveats
It is an important candidate for the earliest direct Greek-language evidence on Cyprus, but its precise date and palaeographic classification require cautious presentation.
Event context
Classification
Event type: language attestation
Evidence layer: epigraphic and archaeological
Timeline role: regional core
People and places
Locations: Opheltas obelos from Palaepaphos-Skales, Palaepaphos-Skales
Why it matters to the timeline
Directly reconstructs a Cypriot site, landscape, institution, community, or chronological transition within the primary interval.
Research notes
- Supports the language reading and cautions. Role: provides epigraphic synthesis. Locator: Early syllabic Greek and Opheltas.
- Provides cemetery chronology. Role: provides archaeological context. Locator: Skales burial contexts.
Evidence and sources
- informs · provides epigraphic synthesis
Cypriot Syllabary — Stephen Colvin (2007)Supports the language reading and cautions.
Locator: Early syllabic Greek and Opheltas - informs · provides archaeological context
Palaepaphos-Skales: Tombs of the Late Cypriote IIIB and Cypro-Geometric Periods (Excavations of 2008 and 2011) — Vassos Karageorghis, Efstathios Raptou (2016)Provides cemetery chronology.
Locator: Skales burial contexts
Referenced records
- Palaepaphos-Skales · entity
- Opheltas obelos from Palaepaphos-Skales · entity