The terraces
The complex above the hills.
dimitrisvetsikas1969 — CC0 · dimitrisvetsikas1969 — CC0 · Zairon — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Zairon — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Zairon — CC BY-SA 4.0
Machairas Monastery is a historic monastery dedicated to the Virgin Mary, in the Machairas Forest near the village of Lazanias, about 40 km from Nicosia. It stands at about 900 m among terraced hills, and visitors come for its calm and mountain views. It was founded at the end of the 12th century. Legend says that two hermits from Palestine, Neophytos and Ignatius, found an icon of the Virgin in a cave in 1145 and cut their way to it through the plants, so it took the name Machairotissa from the Greek for knife, which gave the monastery its name. In 1172 Ignatius won the support of Emperor Manuel I. A fire in 1892 did great damage, and the buildings were then rebuilt. The monastery is rectangular with red-tiled roofs, with monks' cells and other buildings around a central Byzantine-style church, and from the road the complex shows clearly over its terraces. About 20 to 30 monks live here today from farming. Its feast falls on 21 November. It is 30 km in a straight line from Nicosia and 13 km from Lefkara, reached by car on winding mountain roads. It is a working monastery, so keep your voice down, dress modestly and ask before taking pictures inside. Bring a jacket in winter, as it is noticeably colder than the towns.
The complex above the hills.
Arches of stone and brick.
On the way to the monastery.
Machairas Forest, near Lazanias, Cyprus
From the Greek for knife, after the legend of hermits cutting their way to the icon.
Yes. They are 13 km apart in a straight line, though the mountain road is longer.