Church of Panagia Melandrina

Most likely, it was built in the 15th century with one span. Moreover, the Church could be built on the foundation of an older temple ^[1] : archaeological remains scattered around the monastery indicate the presence of an earlier settlement. Further rebuilt. ^[3] . The name of the monastery comes from the words μέλι - “ honey ” and δρυς - “ oak ”. The latter are very common in this region ^[4] .

During the Ottoman period, there was a school in the monastery where Greek was taught. Until 1878, the children of the village of Agios Amvrosios, as well as the neighboring villages of Kalograia and Tripeméni, were trained by the monks of the monastery of Panagia Melandrin ^[4] .

Art historian Camille Enlart , who visited the monastery in 1896 , mentions the presence of wall paintings with strong Western influence. Currently, none of the frescoes have been preserved. All the furniture of the church, including the beautiful iconostasis of the 16th century , was not preserved ^[3] .

At the beginning of the XX century, the monastery fell into decay. The last monk of this monastery named Anfim died in 1940. The monastery could administratively belong to the village of Agios Amvrosios, but it could also be served by the priests of the village of Kalograia, who also took care of it. In addition to August 15 (the main festival of the monastery), services were also held here on February 2 at the Presentation of the Lord ^[4] .

After the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974, the church of the monastery of Panagia Melandrina was defeated and destroyed by the Turkish invaders. The icons were stolen, and the iconostasis was removed and destroyed. All religious supplies were stolen or destroyed ^[4] .

In May 2012, an application was received by the United Nations with a request to take urgent measures to save this church from permission ^[5] . The church reconstruction project was funded by the European Union and has been implemented since May 2013 by UNDP in partnership with the Technical Committee for Cultural Heritage. Work was done to build the church and prevent the collapse of the roof. Emergency measures included: general cleaning, removing debris and vegetation from the building and inside the yard, strengthening the destroyed masonry to prevent its further destruction, control of organic growth, excavation, preserving wood and strengthening walls and providing a temporary roof to prevent rainwater from entering. To achieve the stability of the church, both inside and outside, an appropriate formwork system was installed, both outside the temple and inside. It was installed in such a way as to help in the next stage of the full restoration of the Church. The roof was closed to protect the interior from rain, water, birds or other possible damage. All holes and cracks were closed ^[3] .

On June 20, 2014, the Technical Committee for Cultural Heritage announced the completion of emergency measures to save the church of Panagia Melandrina. The total cost (including additional safety features, design and work) is 137,000 euros ^[6] .

Church furniture was cleaned and placed back in its original place, and the altar was also repaired. Plots of garden stone walls were also repaired, and on February 25, 2015, olive trees were planted in the Church’s garden during the ceremony marking the completion of restoration work to create an “olive grove for peace” ^[7] .

The rectangular structure is covered with a barrel-shaped arch enclosed to the east by a hemispherical apse with a five-sided outer wall. The structure is supported by three buttresses in the form of pilasters on each of the long sides. Five flying buttresses are, without a doubt, later periods. The bell tower is also a later addition to the church ^[3] .