CULTURAL HERITAGE AND THE CYPRUS CONFLICT: A BIOGRAPHY OF THE APOSTOLOS ANDREAS MONASTERY Maria Stefani CULTURAL HERITAGE AND THE CYPRUS CONFLICT: A BIOGRAPHY OF THE APOSTOLOS ANDREAS MONASTERY Author: Maria Stefani Student number: s1744569 Course and course code: 2021-HS Research Master Thesis Archaeology (1084VTH1Y_2021_HS) Supervisor: Prof. dr. J.C.A. (Jan) Kolen University of Leiden, Faculty of Archaeology Leiden, 30 October 2020 Final version 1 Contents 1. Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 4 1.1. Cultural heritage in armed conflict: an old relationship ........................................... 5 1.2. Cultural heritage: 20th century concepts ................................................................ 6 1.2.1. Cultural heritage as a process and the Authorized Heritage Discourse (AHD) ...... 6 1.2.2. Material agency ........................................................................................... 7 1.3. Recent theories of cultural heritage in the context of armed conflict and its aftermath . 8 1.4. Biography of place ............................................................................................. 9 1.5. Scope of the thesis ........................................................................................... 10 1.5.1. Armed conflict and cultural heritage: the case of Cyprus................................. 11 1.5.2. The Apostolos Andreas monastery ............................................................... 12 1.5.3. Problem definition ..................................................................................... 15 2. A brief history of the Cyprus conflict ................................................................................. 17 2.1. Setting the scene: Cyprus today ......................................................................... 17 2.2. The Cyprus conflict: an outline .......................................................................... 18 2.2.1. The communities: imported nationalisms and the lead up to the conflict ........... 18 2.2.2. The EOKA struggle and the TMT response ................................................... 19 2.2.3. The independence, inter- and intra-communal conflict and the Turkish invasion 19 2.2.4. The road to invasion ................................................................................... 20 2.2.5. Inter-communal talks for a solution (1975-2003) ........................................... 21 2.2.6. The Annan plan, EU accession and the Green line opening ............................. 21 2.2.7. The 2006-2017 negotiations ........................................................................ 22 3. Methodology ....................................................................................................................... 23 3.1. Biographical approach ...................................................................................... 23 3.2. Questionnaire .................................................................................................. 25 3.2.1. Sample ..................................................................................................... 25 3.2.2. Structure and justification ........................................................................... 26 4. The history of the Apostolos Andreas monastery ............................................................... 31 4.1. Location and foundation narrative ...................................................................... 31 4.2. Becoming a Pancyprian pilgrimage site .............................................................. 33 4.3. Ethnic identity, enosis and the monastery ............................................................ 35 4.4. Independence, inter- and intra-communal violence, and the monastery ................... 37 4.5. The monastery as a symbol of Greek Cypriots’ struggle to “return” ........................ 38 2 4.6. The monastery in decay: heritage politics and peace-building efforts ...................... 40 4.7. The bi-communal Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage and the Apostolos Andreas monastery ................................................................................................. 42 4.8 Conclusion ....................................................................................................... 44 5. Greek Cypriots’ perceptions of the monastery .................................................................... 45 5.1. Conclusion ...................................................................................................... 81 6. Discussion ........................................................................................................................... 82 7. Synthesis: the monastery’s “biography” ............................................................................. 87 Abstract ................................................................................................................................... 91 Bibliography............................................................................................................................ 92 List of figures ........................................................................................................................ 102 Appendix ............................................................................................................................... 105 3 1. Introduction This thesis is concerned with the various meanings, values and symbolisms associated with the Apostolos Andreas monastery in Cyprus as a result of the Cyprus conflict. It deals with the ways these have been generated, manipulated or changed from the lead up to the outbreak of hostilities, as well as during the long aftermath of the conflict. Additionally, this thesis delves into the Greek Cypriots’ perceptions of the monastery today and tries to trace the processes through which they have been formed. Finally, this thesis explores the processes that led to the bi-communal restoration project that the monastery is currently undergoing, traces the additional layers of meanings generated because of this project and looks into its reconciliation prospect. Drawing on recent approaches of cultural heritage, that understand it as a continuous cultural process of (re)interpretation, meaning-making and values (re)generation (Smith 2006; Smith 2011), this thesis demonstrates that cultural heritage is affected by conflict in much more subtle yet impactful ways than usually acknowledged. In other words, this thesis mainly deals with the alterations conflict causes to the intangible nature of cultural heritage- the very matrix of its meanings and symbolisms; the ways people understand and value it. However, while this thesis primarily explores the intangible dimensions of cultural heritage and the ways in which these are affected by conflict, it acknowledges that cultural heritage, through its materiality (its location, physical properties, shape, etc.), can exercise agency (Latour 2005; Olsen 2010; Hodder 2011). In the following chapters, it is argued that the materiality of a cultural heritage site, such as the monastery under investigation, can influence people’s valuation and understanding of it. The reasons for choosing this theoretical framework for analyzing the monastery are varied. First, conceptualizing heritage as something that is constantly changing opens the way to multiple interpretations of what heritage is and does. In the context of armed conflict, such conceptualization helps us to further process and understand the ways heritage is (ab)used during conflicts and how these (ab)uses influence how people give meaning and value to their heritage. Additionally, such conceptualization highlights the need to turn our focus to the various ways conflict impacts the intangible nature of cultural heritage and the repercussions these have on the affected society and its post-conflict healing. Finally, this theoretical framework acts as an analytical tool that helps us scrutinize the interconnectedness between effects and actions in the relationship between cultural heritage and conflict. 4 In order to trace these processes of meaning-making, (re)interpretation and valuation, as well as the ways they have been unfolding through the ages, this thesis approaches the monastery from a so-called biographical perspective on landscapes, places and monuments (Roymans et al. 2009; Kolen and Renes 2015; Sørensen and Viejo Rose 2015). The biographical approach is nowadays more and more used in order to explore, reveal and analyze the effects various processes have on a place (in this case, a heritage site). Its usefulness lies on the possibilities it gives the researcher to look at a site from a broad and diachronic scope and thus explore these various changes and their impact, viewing the monument at each point in time as “layered” heritage. This approach is also in line with the theoretical framework briefly presented above, as it helps us to uncover and highlight the dynamic and fluid nature of heritage sites while emphasizing on the multiplicity of their interpretations. In the following section I discuss the rich body of literature on the nature of cultural heritage and its relationship with conflict, hoping to establish a foundation based on which the monastery and its relationship with the Cyprus conflict will be analyzed. 1.1. Cultural heritage in armed conflict: an old relationship The relationship of cultural heritage