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Larnaca - Culture |
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Angeloktisti means 'Built by
the Angels'. This I lth century Byzantine church was built on a destroyed
early Christian basilica, the apse of which survives together with one of
the finest pieces of Byzantine art, a 6th century mosaic of the Virgin
Mary and Child between two archangels, which rivals the Ravenna Mosaics. 8
km from Skarinou, off the Nicosia Limassol road, 40 km from Larnaca. A
picturesque village, partly restored and protected, famous for its local
lace known as 'Lefkaritika'and for its silver - ware. According to
tradition, Leonardo Da Vinci visited the village and bought an altar
cloth, which he donated to the Milan cathedral. 'Lefkaritika' is easily
available from shops in all towns, which are ordered from the lacemakers
in the village direct at very competitive prices. The House of Patsalos,
which is being restored, houses the Lace and Silver-ware Museum of Lefkara.
Perched on a rocky peak, 750
meters above sea level, Stavrovouni means the Mountain of the Cross, and
according to tradition was founded by Saint Helena, mother of Constantine
the Great, who left a fragment of the Holy Cross to the monastery. The
brotherhood is extremely devout, keeping vows as strict as those of the
Mount Athos, brotherhood in Greece. Women are not allowed in the monastery 3 km west of Larnaca on the
road to Kiti, passing the Larnaca Airport. Built in 1816 over the tomb of
Umm Haram, who died on this spot in 649 during the first, Arab raids.
Pyrga village, 35 km south of
Nicosia, 32 km from Larnaca. Built by the Lusignan King -Tanus in 1421, it
contains a wall
painting of the king with his wife, Charlotte de Bourbon, on one of its
walls. Considered to be one of the most interesting structures surviving
from the Frankish Period, it was restored in 1977. 48 km south of Nicosia,
off the Nicosia Limassol road and 32 km from Larnaca. Neolithic settlement dated to
6800 BC. Excavations have brought to light one of the earliest Neolithic
cultures in the world. Finds from Khirokitia are displayed at the Cyprus
Museum in Nicosia. |
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The church of the Archangel
Michael in Kato Lefkara is of the single-aisled domed type and has wall
paintings of the late 12th century. At Pano Lefkara, there is the church
of the Holy Cross with a beautiful 18th century iconostasis and a unique
13th century silver cross. A religious fair takes place on the 13th- I 4th
September, day of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. 
According to legend Umm Haram
was a relative of the Prophet Mohammed and the Tekke is an important place
of Moslem pilgrimage ranking immediately after the shrines of Mecca,
Medina and al Aksha in Jerusalem. 