In this section of the Report it will be my object to present as complete a statement as I can of what is known and what has been written on the subject of Paphos; and this should include a short specification of the chief points on which the late excavations either have thrown, or may be expected to throw, more light. On large and general questions, such as the origin and history of the Aphrodite worship in general, or even its history in the whole of Cyprus, I cannot enter here.

It is inevitable that the chapter must consist largely of quotations. The source of these is not far to seek. Meursius' ‘Cyprus’ in Creta, Cyprus, et Rhodos (Amsterdam, 1675, in 4to) contains a wonderfully comprehensive survey of the ancient literature of the subject. An essay by Frederick Münter, Bishop of Seeland, carries this survey a stage further, and makes some further additions to it. This essay is entitled, Der Tempel der Himmlischen Göttin zu Paphos (Copenhagen, 1824, 4to). It forms a supplement to his former tract, Religion der Karthager. It is illustrated with four plates, and supplemented by an architectural essay on the plan of the temple, from the pen of Gustav Friedrich Hetsch. These two books have assisted me to most of my quotations. I have added a few others from later books, and from my own reading.