Architecture sights in Kakopetria
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Panagia tis Podythou & Panagia Theotokou (Arhangelou)
A less commonly visited Unesco-listed church (or rather duo of churches) is this rather charming pair, made up of Panagia tis Podythou and Panagia Theotokou (Arhangelou), a couple of kilometres north of Kakopetria (the signpost is easy to miss). The main church was established in 1502 by Dimitrios de Coron, a Greek military officer in the service of James II, the king of Cyprus at the time. Up to about the 1950s the building was occupied by monks.
The church itself is rectangular, with a semicircular apse at the eastern end. A portico, constructed at a later date, surrounds the church on three sides. Again, you'll see the characteristic pitched roof with flat tiles, and t…
reviewed
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Panagia Forviotissa (Asinou)
This beautiful Unesco-listed church on the perimeter of the Adelfi Forest, 10km northeast as the crow flies from Kakopetria, is easily accessible from Kakopetria or Lefkosia. The church has arguably the finest set of Byzantine frescoes in the Troödos and, if you feel that you have overdosed elsewhere, its calm rural setting makes for a delightful day out. A visit to the church could also be combined with a picnic in the adjoining forest.
The styles and motifs of the frescoed interior cross several artistic generations and are quite arresting. Most of the interior images date from the 14th and 15th centuries, and portray many themes found elsewhere in the Troödos Byzantin…
reviewed
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Agios Nikolaos tis Stegis
This church is the more easily accessible (with road signs) and interesting of the two Unesco-listed churches close to Kakopetria. Known as St Nicholas of the Roof in English, this tall, barnlike church, founded in the 11th century, was named for its large, heavy roof. The dome and narthex came later, and the characteristic Troödos pitched roof was added in the 15th century as protection against the heavy snows that sometimes fall in the area.
As in other Troödos churches, the art of icon and fresco painting flourished here in the Middle Ages, when Orthodoxy sought refuge from the then-dominant Latin church administration in Cyprus. The frescoes at Agios Nikolaos are the…
reviewed
