The Rise of a Trade Hub: Copper Deposits and a Bronze Age Village.
Excavations by researchers from the University of Gothenburg have revealed that the Cypriot village of Hala Sultan Tekke was one of the most important trade hubs during the early stages of international trade in the Mediterranean due to its strategic location and abundant reserves of copper. The city covered at least 25 hectares and was larger than previously thought, with extensive copper production and large quantities of imported goods. The prevailing hypothesis was that the 'Sea Peoples' invaded the eastern Mediterranean around 1200 BC, destroying its cities and bringing the Bronze Age civilizations to an end, but new interpretations of written sources and investigations indicate that a deterioration in the climate was also a contributing factor.