Church of Saint Lazarus
Ninth-century Byzantine church over the tomb of Lazarus, with an icon museum alongside.
The Church of Saint Lazarus stands over a tomb traditionally identified as that of Lazarus of Bethany, who according to Cypriot tradition settled at Kition after his resurrection and served as the town's first bishop. The stone basilica was raised in the late ninth century during the reign of the Byzantine emperor Leo VI, following the discovery of a sarcophagus bearing the inscription naming Lazarus. Three domes originally crowned the nave, carried on four piers that divide the interior into aisles of heavy masonry.
Under Frankish and Venetian rule the building served Roman Catholic worship, and a Latin portico was added along the south side. The Ottoman authorities sold it back to the Orthodox community in 1589, and the belfry was rebuilt in 1857 after earlier campanili had been removed. A carved and gilded iconostasis by Hatzisavvas Taliadorou dominates the interior, while a small Byzantine museum in rooms off the courtyard displays icons, vestments, manuscripts and liturgical silver.
Highlights
- Rock-cut tomb beneath the sanctuary, reached by steps behind the iconostasis
- Baroque gilded iconostasis carved between 1773 and 1782
- Byzantine museum of icons, vestments and liturgical silver in the courtyard
- Bell tower of 1857, a landmark of the Larnaca seafront quarter
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