Poland in Cyprus

The anniversary celebrations were marked by the inauguration of the PCMA UW Research Station in Cyprus – one of the four foreign stations of the PCMA UW. The event is one of the key highlights of the cultural and scientific programme of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union, held as part of the trio with Denmark and Cyprus.

The Research Station in Cyprus, headed by Prof. Ewdoksia Papuci-Władyka, will not only serve as a logistical base for our research teams but also as a centre for cooperation, education, and international dialogue.

The University of Warsaw’s excavations, initiated by Prof. Kazimierz Michałowski in 1965, continue uninterrupted to this day. In 2011, a second Polish expedition – the Paphos Agora Project of the Jagiellonian University – was established. Since 2019, both expeditions have been operating as a single joint research team (MAP – Maloutena and Agora Project), which continues to explore the residential district and the agora of the ancient city. The team is led by Prof. Ewdoksia Papuci-Władyka.

Polish research in Cyprus has brought spectacular results, which would not have been possible without the excellent cooperation with the Department of Antiquities of Cyprus and the support of the Paphos municipal authorities.

The opening ceremony of the Station on 17 June 2025, combined with the awarding of state honours to individuals who have contributed to Polish-Cypriot cooperation, was attended by representatives of the local and state authorities of Cyprus and Poland, including the Ambassador of the Republic of Poland to Cyprus, Mr. Marek Szczepanowski, the Minister of Culture of Cyprus, Dr. Vasiliki Kassianidou, the Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Poland, Prof. Andrzej Szeptycki, the Mayor of Paphos, Mr. Phedonas Phedonos, and the Director of the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology of the University of Warsaw, Prof. Artur Obłuski.

The anniversary celebrations, organised with the involvement of the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Cyprus and the authorities of the City of Paphos, were enriched by the photography exhibition From Maloutena to the Agora: 60 Years of Polish Archaeology in Nea Paphos, Cyprus, as well as a concert by Grammy Award winner Włodek Pawlik, held as part of the cultural programme of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union and co-financed by the Polish Minister of Culture and National Heritage from the Culture Promotion Fund.

Photos: Agnieszka Szymczak