Mr. Hamilton Lang Has Also Published His
Experiences Of A Long Residence In The Island, During Which His
Successful Excavations
Brought to light valuable relics of the past
which explain more forcibly than the leaves of a book the manners,
Customs, and incidents among the various races which have made up
Cyprian history. General di Cesnola, after quoting the legend which
connects the origin of Salamis with the arrival of a colony of Greeks
under Teucer (the son of Telamon, king of the island of Salamis) from
the Trojan expedition, continues, "Of the history of Salamis almost
nothing is known till we come to the time of the Persian wars; but from
that time down to the reign of the Ptolemies it was by far the most
conspicuous and flourishing of the towns of Cyprus." "Onesius seized the
government of Salamis from his brother, Gorgus, and set up an obstinate
resistance to the Persian oppression under which the island was
labouring, about 500 B.C. In the end he was defeated by a Persian army
and fell in battle, and it was about this time, if not in consequence of
this defeat, that the dynasty of Teucer was, for a period, removed from
the government of Salamis. As to the length of this period there is
great obscurity. It seems, however, to be certain that with the help of
the Persians a Tyrian named Abdemon had seized the throne, and not only
paid tribute to Persia, but endeavoured to extend the Persian power over
the rest of the island. To Salamis itself he invited Phoenician
immigrants, and introduced Asiatic tastes and habits." Following upon
this usurpation came the revolt and the restoration of the Teucer
dynasty, under Evagoras, B.C. 374, and eventually upon the partition of
the empire of Alexander the Great it fell to the lot of Antigonus, after
the severe contests between Demetrius and Menelaus.
Like all ancient sea-ports of importance, Salamis was the object of
continual attacks, and by degrees its prosperity declined. In addition
to the damage and loss by sieges, it was seriously affected by an
earthquake, and a portion disappeared beneath the sea. The sand has
submerged a large area of the ruins which face the sea, but General di
Cesnola was able to trace the ancient wall for a distance of 6850 feet.
It is quite possible that the earthquake may have altered the conditions
of the harbour, which in former days was of considerable importance. It
has now entirely changed, and the bay near the shore is extremely
shallow, although good anchorage exists in the roadstead in ten to
sixteen fathoms.
The high masonry piers which had supported the arches of the ancient
aqueduct from Kythrea looked like spectres of past greatness among the
silent ruins, made doubly desolate by the miserable aspect of the
withered plain around them. A short distance from these is the church of
St. Barnabas, raised upon the site where it is believed that the body of
the Saint was discovered, together with the Gospel of St. Matthew.
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