St. John Theologian's Cathedral in Nicosia, Eastern Orthodox cathedral in Nicosia, Cyprus
St. John Theologian's Cathedral is an Eastern Orthodox church in the old town of Nicosia, set within the Archbishop's Palace complex. Unlike most Orthodox cathedrals, it has no dome, and its interior is covered by a barrel-vaulted ceiling that runs the full length of the building.
Construction began in 1662 under Archbishop Nikiforos, on the grounds of a former Benedictine abbey that dated to the Lusignan period of medieval Cyprus. The abbey buildings were cleared to make way for the new church, which was consecrated and became the main cathedral of the Orthodox community on the island.
The cathedral is the seat of the Archbishop of Cyprus, making it the most important Orthodox church on the island. Visitors often observe people lighting candles and praying quietly in front of the icons near the iconostasis.
The cathedral sits within the Archbishop's complex in the old town and is easy to reach on foot from the Laiki Geitonia neighborhood. Visitors are expected to dress modestly, with covered shoulders and long trousers, as the building is an active place of worship.
The cathedral's interior wall paintings, added in the mid-18th century, include scenes of Orthodox Christians persecuted under Ottoman rule, a subject rarely shown in churches of that period. The building itself replaced the Benedictine abbey of St. John the Evangelist, whose monks left Cyprus in 1426 during Mamluk invasions; the monastery then passed to the Orthodox, who kept the dedication.
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