According to andyeducation, Cyprus is located in Europe, in the eastern part of the Mediterranean. The island is rugged by sandy beaches, coastal, hills and forest-lined mountains. The greatest heights are reached in the centrally located Troodos Mountains (more than 1,950 meters). This area is popular with skiers in the winter season. Between the Troodos Mountains and the hill country along the north coast lies the Messaoria plain. The Morphou Plain extends in the western part of Cyprus.
Nicosia has been the capital of Cyprus since the 11th century. The beautiful old town lies within the old Venetian wall. Here the old and the new archiepiscopal palace can be admired.
The southeast of Cyprus is very different from the rest of the island. The once dreamy Larnaka now has beautiful sandy bays, an international airport, a new port and a marina for 400 boats. Near the airport is the Hala Sultan Tekke mosque, the fourth most important holy place in Islam.
Larnaca (Cyprus)
Larnaca is one Port cityon the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. The city has 77,000 residents. The former city-kingdom of Kition used to be one of the most important ancient city-kingdoms ruins extend to the 13th century BC. The capital of the kingdom was today’s Larnaka.
The temple of Melkart was built in the city at this time. IN Roman times, Aesculapia, Hercules and Arthemis Paralia were worshiped here.
In the eighteenth century the Greek city was an important trading center and seat of European consulates. However, Larnaka only experienced its soaring since 1974, when the two ports of Kyrenia and Nicosia Airport had been occupied by the Turks.
In Larnaka there are many silent witnesses to the old and exciting history of the city. Many of the ancient ruins have already been excavated. Among them are the Mycenaean temples and Cyclops walls of the old city. One of the most important finds is the Kition stele.
There are other sights to see in Larnaka. This includes the Archaeological Museum on Kalogreon Square. Impressive finds from the area can be exhibited here. In the Pierides Museum, you can visit a private collection of Cypriot antiquities.
The Turkish fort is also worth seeing. It dates from 1625 and was built on the remains of a previous Venetian building. During the years of British colonial rule, the building was used as a prison.
Something special is the wonderful Agios Lazaros Church, which Emperor Leon VI. built in the ninth century.
You should be in Larnaka especially eight days before Easter. On this day the icon of St. Lazarus, a bishop of Kition, is carried through the city in a colorful procession.
According to legend, this is where Lazarus came from. He later became the bishop of Kition.
Limassol in Cyprus
Limassol is a city on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. The Cypriot city has a population of almost a quarter of a million. Limassol is the second largest city on the island, it is located on the south coast of Cyprus. In Limassol you can have a wonderful beach vacation because it is exactly in the bay of Akrotiri.
The city has grown into one since the division of Cyprusgreek and a part of Turkey experienced a rapid economic boom and since then has been one of the most important financial centers, as many offshore companies are based here.
Tourists like to come to Limassol. There are a number of large four-star hotels in the city. Most of the hotels are located directly on the beaches so that vacationers don’t have to go far for swimming or sunbathing.
But you don’t just have to spend the day on the beach in Limassol, because there are some sights to explore here.
The Limassol Archaeological Museum should not be missed. The museum shows ancient exhibits related to the history of Cyprus.
The castle and medieval museum are something special. The town’s fort was built in the thirteenth century on the ruins of an old fortification. In the past, the fort served various purposes. So it was fortification, military headquarters and also prison. Richard the Lionheart Berengaria of Navarre is said to have married here in 1191. In 1291 Limassol became the property of the Johanniter. Today the castle houses a museum where you can marvel at finds from the Middle Ages.
Culture
World Heritage Sites
- Paphos Ruins (1980)
- Byzantine churches in Troodos (1985)
- Neolithic settlement Choirokoitia (1989)
Archeology in Cyprus
From an archaeological point of view, research on Cyprus began with the Italian-born American Luigi Palma di Cesnola (* 1832, † 1904), who, after participating in the Crimean War and the American Civil War, spent his free time as an American consul in still Ottoman Cyprus (robbery) Digs filled. He sold his collection to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, which was newly founded in 1870, and became its first director in 1879. Interest in the culturally forgotten island was awakened. The Swedish Cyprus Expedition (1927–31) should also be emphasized, the extensive documentation of which is still the basis of much research today.