Local LARNAkA Itinerary 73 kilometres
Fig. 340. Palm trees, beach front Larnaka.
Church of Agios Lazaros / Church Museum, Larnaka The Church of Agios Lazaros is the Cathedral of Larnaka, dedicated to the bosom friend of Christ, the first bishop of the town. It is one of the most imposing Byzantine churches of Cyprus that dominates through its size and bulk. Unfortunately, the three domes that used to exist along the length of the church have been destroyed, resulting in its aesthetic degradation. Despite this, it is a revered place of worship for the Orthodox faithful. The church is considered a gift and construction of the Byzantine Emperor Leo III the Wise in exchange for the transportation of the relics of Saint Lazaros to Constantinople and dates to around 900 A.D. Its architectural style is basically a combination of three barrel-vaulted naves along its longitudinal axis. Beneath the Holy Altar part of a Roman cemetery has been excavated in which sarcophagi have survived. The open ambulatory built on the south side of the church must have belonged to the period of Frankish rule, while the imposing bell tower was built in 1857. The carved wooden iconostasis of the church dates to the 18th century. In the enclosed courtyard there is a church museum. Figs 341, 342. Church of Agios Lazaros, Larnaka.
Church of Panagia Angeloktisti, Kiti One of the most important Byzantine monuments of Cyprus, it is situated in the village of Kiti near Larnaka. Basically, it consists of a building complex constructed in different periods. The church is built above the ruins of an early Christian basilica of which only the apse of the Holy Bema has survived; it is decorated with a magnificent mosaic representation of the Virgin Mary of the 6th century A.D. The church of today, in which the 6th century apse has been incorporated, is an edifice probably built in the 11th century and is a cruciform, barrel-vaulted church with a dome. Later in the 12th century on the north side a chapel of small proportions and with a steeply-pitched Fig. 343. Engraving “Agia Maria”, Kiti village. roof was added, dedicated to the ‘Anargyrous’ Saints Kosmas and Damianos. During the period of Frankish rule, in the 14th century, a Latin chapel with marked Gothic features was added on the south side of the church. The mosaics that decorate the vault of the apse show Panagia upright holding the baby Jesus, while on the left and right are depicted the Archangels Gabriil and Michail; the whole composition is circumscribed by a decorative band. This mosaic, which dates to the end of the 6th century, is considered to be of tremendous importance to our knowledge of early Christian art. In the church wall-paintings of the 12th and 14th centuries have been preserved.
Church of Archangelos Michail, Kato Lefkara The Church of Archangelos Michail is built on an attractive site close to the south of the village of Kato Lefkara. It is a single-naved, cruciform barrelvaulted church with a dome and with a more recent narthex on its west side. The church has a few surviving wall-paintings of the end of the 12th and of the 15th centuries. It is likely that the church is the only surviving remnant of a ruined monastery, which was the seat of the Orthodox bishop during the years of Frankish rule, later ousted by the Latins.
Fig. 344. Church of Archangelos Michail, Kato Lefkara.
Church of Timios Stavros, Pano Lefkara It is the central church of the provincial town, whose size and imposing aspect dominate. A church of large proportions with three naves, it has an imposing and remarkably decorated belltower. In the church a silver cross has been preserved that
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