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Dr Despina Pilides

Dr Despina Pilides

Despina Pilides studied Archaeology at the Institute of Archaeology, London. Her doctoral dissertation at University College, London was on the Handmade Burnished Wares of the Late Bronze Age in Cyprus. She subsequently continued her research and publication of utilitarian pottery of the Late Bronze Age.

As Curator of Antiquities, responsible for the public museums and collections, she promoted the renovation of museums, the creation of new ones and the organization of periodical exhibitions. A major part of her work involved the digitization of collections, sites and monuments through several EU or other co-funded projects, including research projects and the fight against illicit trafficking of cultural objects.

She excavated a multi-period site on the Hill of Agios Georgios Nicosia, an extensive settlement that provided documentation for various periods of the city’s history. She secured funding and created a site museum-educational centre at the Hill of Agios Georgios while the archaeological site is being landscaped so as to become accessible to visitors. In the last 10 years she undertook a research project in the centre of the island which involved survey and problem-oriented excavations in the region of Agios Sozomenos, to investigate the socio-economic organization of the island in the Late Bronze Age.

She benefited from a number of fellowships for her research projects and was external examiner for Ph.D. theses at various universities. She is a member of the Editorial Board of the archaeological journal Studies in Mediterranean Archaeology (SIMA) and elected Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London.

She published 4 monographs and edited several others, including exhibition catalogues in several languages (2012) and conference proceedings. She also contributed numerous articles in archaeological journals or conference proceedings.

Social profiles and affiliations

Former Curator of Antiquities, Cyprus

Department of Antiquities, Nicosia, Cyprus

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