Cyprus-Forum.com

[sylvia]

Does anyone know where I can buy the icon Ayios Christodoulos in Larnaca

[Bill]

Hi Sylvia

Probably at the icon etc shop opposite Ayios Lazarus church .

There is also a shop in the back streets near the municipal market place but the stuff there is cheap and tacky.

If you want an authentic hand painted by a monk icon -- then a trip to St George's Monastery in Alaminos is worth the journey.

The guy in the Icon shop can arrange for one to be painted specially for you including your name or message painted into the icon.

The guy there is ancient and quite deaf so make sure he understands what you want and make sure he puts the order in his book and not on a scrap of paper -- which he will lose later -- make sure he takes your telephone number and make a note of his so you don't make a wasted journey if it's not ready.

This forum is a wonderful source of information sometimes

Bill

[devil]

Visit Father Kallanikos at the Ayia Varvara monastery at the foot of Stavrovouni mountain. This 90-odd year old is a genius and a legend and has taught most of the recognised icon-painters on the island. He has had pupils coming from all over Orthodoxy.

Some of the most valued 20th c icons were painted by the three brothers (family) and monks who painted at the Ayios Varnavas monastery near Salamis/Engomi, in the occupied area. The monastery chapel is now an icon museum while the other buildings house a reasonably good collection of antiquities. In the southern apse of the chapel there is an important series of frescos, painted by the brothers, illustrating the discovery of the body of St Barnabas at the site and the presentation of the apostolic gospel found with it to the Byzantine Emperor Zeno in Constantinople, in return for which the Cyprus Archbishop was granted autocephaly of the Cypriot church, strong political powers and the right to sign in imperial purple ink, rights which exist to this day. Unfortunately, the frescos were painted with unsuitable materials and are now in need of expert restoration. The photo shows the fresco, in its present state, of the presentation of the gospel to Zeno. Note that the frescos were not damaged by Turkish invaders but simply by time. I also have a photo of the same fresco I took in 1952, in black and white, when it was still fresh.

[sylvia]

Thank you so much for that info. How beautiful those frescos are.

To Bill - I laughed at the bit about the 90 year old ancient. lol a bit like me haha

I've been looking for ages for Christodoulos but that piece of info is excellent

thanks a lot

[devil]

The other frescos in the series are difficult to photograph. The left hand one here shows the archbish receiving the vision of where the relics were lieing. To the right of the pillar is a small panel showing the discovery of the tomb with the gospels on top of the body. Note the 20th c. shovel!


This shows Zeno presenting the imperial sceptre to the archbish, as a symbol of the temporal powers given him.