DESCRIPTION:

The remains of the "House of Dionysos", as we see them today, belong to a luxurious residence built at the end of the 2nd century A.D. which, was excavated by the Department of Antiquities in the 1960s. The building occupies an area of approximately 2000 sq.m. and is one of the largest residences of Roman Cyprus. It was built over earlier buildings whose remains were found during the excavations. The building has the typical form of a rich Roman house, that is all its main rooms developed around a central open-air court. Forty rooms have been brought to light, but only the official rooms, covered with mosaic pavements, are under the shelter. Secondary rooms, for private use, such as bedrooms, are located outside the shelter, at the east, around a smaller courtyard with a fishpond at its centre. At the west are located the storerooms and the service areas. It seems that the house was destroyed and abandoned after the devastating earthquakes of the first half of the 4th century AD which affected the whole island. Apart from the size of the house, what stands out about the building is the quality and the preservation of the entire mosaic decoration, dating from the end of the 2nd to the beginning of the 3rd century. AD, which reflects the wealth of its owners. A small sample of the wall paintings as well as many of the movable finds found in the house are now exhibited at the Archaeological Museum of the Pafos District.