Site and Orientation
Geoff Stennett
The limits of the city of Nea Paphos are clearly defined by the city wall attributed to Nikokles, the last king of the Paphian Kingdom. Much of the remains of this wall and the rock-cut gates can still be traced, and it is in the north east section of the city that the theatre is contained, not far from what we can now determine was the North East Gate.
Situated at an altitude of 30m above sea level on the south slope of Fábrika Hill, the theatre affords commanding views over the coastline a kilometre to the west, and the new town of Kato Paphos. To the south of the theatre, the ground slopes gently to the shore of Paphos Harbour, a distance of some 650 metres. The theatre auditorium (cavea) faces the Harbour, its central north-south axis orientated approximately 10 degrees west of south. It is interesting to note that this is a similar orientation to that of the Hellenistic-Roman theatre of Kourion, 50 kilometres to the east along the southem coastline. Taking advantage of the natural slope of Fábrika Hill, a central section of the cavea is hewn from the native sandstone rock. On the eastern and western sides of this central section the natural bedrock falls away, and here the cavea seating was built up on artificial embankments. It is in these areas, not cut from the bedrock, where extensive robbing out of the imported stone has occurred. Above and to the rear of the theatre on the rocky eminence of Fábrika there are many rock-cut remains, of the significance of which we have scant knowledge. As an ancient spectator, to have entered the theatre from the brow of this hill, with the coastal panorama below, would have been nothing less than spectacular.	View from Fabrica Hill facing east, with the lighthouse just visible in the distance
View to the west