St Luke

The post-gothic church of St Luke emerges in one of the most beautiful and picturesque sides of the village. It was built around 1930’s in the place of another older church with a wooden roof.

A well known scientist, George Jeffery, has written many interesting things for that wooden-roofed church. George Jeffrey has visited the church in the late 19th century or in the early 20th, one century before its renovation which took place in 1809. But even before this renovation, Jeffrey managed to spot on the floor of the church a marble which was similar with another one found in the church Acheropoiitou in Lampousa. This leads us to the conclusion that the previous church of St Luke was built before the 12th century. Jeffrey has also studied the wall paintings and the doors and concluded that the wall paintings were influenced by the Italian art of the 16th century and the doors from the Byzantine, medieval architecture.

Some years later the church was demolished and the only two things left were the bell tower and the iconostasis which were finally embodied to the new building. According to oral tradition, the demolition of the old church took place in 1924 and the scientist Rupert Gunnis notes that the new church was built in 1936. The reconstruction of the church was accomplished in a very short period of time.

From an architectural point of view, the church is a three-aisled basilica with a dome. On the outside, the church ends to a polygonal apse on the east side while on the west side it ends to an exonarthex (outer narthex). The access to this exonarthex is possible only from the north as its west side is adjacent to the vertical section of the ground. The windows on the north and south of the church are decorated with large arched openings. The access to the gallery (a special section of the church for women) is made from directly from the street.

As we have already mentioned, the iconostasis was saved from the previous church. The only alteration made on it is the epistyle, which according to some older people, was placed there after the reconstruction of the church. There are many icons in the church which are made in different times. More specific, the icons were made in between the 17th and 20th century. On the iconostasis we can see an inscription with the names of a member of the ecclesiastic council and the name of the sculptor Sofoklis Taliadoros from Larnaka.

The most important icon is the one of St Luke which was covered with a silver gilt veil made in 1869. The icon was manufactured in the 17th century. It is painted on a wooden base with golden leaves and tempera. It has also an impressive decoration on the gilt parts. The icon depicts the Saint in full face surrounded by Apostles and symbols. On the upper part of the icon there are figures from Great Deesis (Supplication) –Jesus Christ, Virgin Mary, John the Precursor. We should also note that on the lower part of the icon there is a grappling iron which was used for the procession.

A very important item in the church is the throne which is a wooden-carved piece of art. The specific throne was manufactured in 1860 as well as the icon of Apostle Varnavas which is on the throne.

The Department of Antiquities of Cyprus has started renovations inside and outside the church in 2005.

In conclusion, the church of Saint Luke is an impressive monument for the entire area as it has a very interesting past and it presents some great samples of the art of the 17th and 20th century. The architectural style and the several artistic items we can find inside the church, such as the throne and the icons, take us back to the post-gothic era. 

The church of Saint George

The church of Saint George is most probably a building of the 16th or 17th century, something we can conclude from the iconostasis and the icons. This small church is built among the traditional houses of the village, near the big “tremithia” which is more than 800 years old.

The church is wooden-roofed and is three-aisled divided by two rows of archs. The east part of the church forms a polygonal apse. This apse is decorated with tiles. The same tiles exist on the entire roof of the church, which is wooden pitched. More specific, the tiles are flat and nibbed. As we mentioned before, the iconostasis and the icons are dated back to the 16th or 17th century. The iconostasis is wooden carved and gilt. The iconostasis has obvious marks of alterations and modifications which had taken place in different periods.

There are also two very important wall paintings of Saint George the Drakontoktonou (who kills the dragon) and on of Agia Marina. The first one was made in 1869 and the second in 1909. The wall painting of Agia Marina was made on the top of another one which was most probably made in 1869.

An inscription placed on the north of the roof, reveals two dates: 1864 and 1865. They probably mark the beginning or the completion of the renovation of the roof. We must also note that the date is also written on the west side of the roof. The roof was once more renovated in 1980 by the Department of Antiquities.

The bell tower of the church was built on a later stage, in 1919, as written on an inscription and was donated by Savvas Markidis from Palaichori.

The church of Saint George, in the center of the village, adds cultural value to the entire village. The inner of the church is incredibly impressive. The icons, the iconostasis and the wall paintings create a holy atmosphere and are really worth seeing.

Chapel of Archangel Michael

The chapel of Archangel Michael is built in the area “Appi”, in the centre of one of the ancient settlements which surrounded the “old village”.

The chapel is built on the foundations of an older building which used to be an ecclesiastic centre of the old settlement. The president of the village council states that the chapel was renovated 20 twenty years ago. The most important icon in the chapel is the one of Archangel Michael.

The chapel, according to Kouroufexis (the president), celebrates mass twice a year: on the name day of Archangel Michael and on Tuesday after the Easter.