DK Travel : Cyprus : Museums & Galleries

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Agios Georgios Alamanos Convent

Lovingly tended flower and herb gardens surround this small convent, which was founded almost 900 years ago. They are cultivated by a small community of nuns, who also paint attractive icons and make their own honey for sale here.
Agios Irakleidos Convent

An air of age-old mystery hovers over this oldest of monasteries, founded in AD 400 in honour of Irakleidos. He welcomed St Paul and St Barnabas to Cyprus, who brought with them Christianity, and he thus became the first Bishop of Tamassos. His bones are displayed in an ornate silver reliquary. It is now run by nuns (see Agios Irakleidios Convent).
Agios Minas Convent

Graceful white cloisters surround a small 15th-century church and house a community of nuns whose fine icons are sought-after by collectors.
Agios Neofytos Monastery

The elaborate iron crowns and silken vestments of Orthodox bishops are among the highlights of this monastery’s museum. Equally fascinating are the frescoes in its cave-like chapel, a grotto dug by Neofytos, the hermit who founded it in the late 12th century.
Aglandjia Museum of Natural History

Stuffed birds.
Antique Copperware

Look out for old kettles and coffee pots, jugs and antique hubble-bubble pipes in Nicosia.
Byzantine Museum and Art Galleries, Nicosia

The magnificent, early Christian Kanakaria mosaics are the gem of this museum, which also has a splendid collection of more than 200 colourful icons mounted in gilt and silver. The oldest date from the 9th century AD.
Ceramics

Pretty plates, bowls and pitchers in traditional patterns make great gifts, and there are plenty of imaginatively-painted modern pieces too.
Chrysorrogiatissa Monastery

The monks of this impressive monastery, devoted to “Our Lady of the Golden Pomegranate” (the symbol of Cyprus), guard a treasury of icons and costly religious ornaments which have been hoarded here since its foundation in the 12th century (see Chryssorogiatissa Monastery). These include an icon of the Virgin Mary, discovered by St Ignatius, and kept on the iconostasis. The monks also make some of Cyprus’s finest vintages on the premises, which can be tasted and bought at their winery, Monte Royia (see Monte Royia).
Cyprus Medieval Museum, Limassol

In the halls of Limassol’s castle, this collection features Lusignan swords, Byzantine silver and ceramics, and some fine icons.