Archaeologists report that the site of Paphos has been inhabited since the Neolithic period. It was a centre of the cult of Aphrodite and of pre-Hellenic fertility deities.

Aphrodite's legendary birthplace was on this island, where her temple was erected by the Myceneans in the twelfth century BC. The remains of villas, palaces, theatres, fortresses and tombs of the Classical, Hellenistic and Roman periods mean that the site is of exceptional architectural and historic value.

The mosaics of Nea Paphos are among the most beautiful in the world.

The port of Paphos was rebuilt by Nicocles, the last king of Paphos, at the time of Alexander the Great. It became the capital of the island replacing Salamis during the Hellenistic era, under the successors of Alexander the Great – the Ptolemies who favoured a location closer to their capital, Alexandria.

The theatre dating to the end of the fourth century BC has been under excavation by the University of Sydney since 1995: it was partly excavated from its hillside setting and partly built up with earth embankments.