PLACES OF INTEREST IN THE TOWN OF
LEMESOS (LIMASSOL)

The Archaeological Museum
Kaningos - Vyronos corner, near the Public Garden. Tel. no.. 305132
The museum provides a very interesting collection of antiquities found in the district of Lemesos (Limassol), dating from the Neolithic age to the Roman period.

Some of the archaeological discoveries are:
Stone axes of the Neolithic and Chalcolithic period, potteries and objects of the ancient cities of Curium and Amathus, as well as roman terra cottas, gold jewelery, coins, sculptures, columns, vases, earrings, rings, necklaces, marble statues etc.

The Folk Art Museum
253, Ayiou Andreou Street, Tel. 362303
This beautifully preserved old house provides a very interesting collection of Cypriot Folk Art of the last two centuries. Some of the most fascinating objects of the collection are: national costumes, tapestry, embroidery, wooden chests, waistcoats, men’s jackets, necklaces, a variety of light clothes, town costumes, country tools etc.
The museum was established in 1985. More than 500 exhibits are housed in its six rooms. The museum was awarded the Europa Nostra prize, in 1989. Here, the visitor can study Cypriot culture through the hand-made exhibits.

The Municipal Art Gallery
28th October Str., Tel. 343212
The Gallery has a splendid collection of paintings, including works of Cypriot artists, on permanent display. Some of them are:

The Medieval Museum
(Within the Castle), Tel. no. (05) 305419
This rich medieval museum is found inside the castle of the town, which is close to the old port. The collection that the museum provides covers the era of 400 - l870 A.D. A visitor can see numerous exhibits: cannons, wood carvings of the 17th and 18th century, paintings and tombstones, statues, suits of armor, coins, terracotta, metalware and pottery, glass and marble articrafts.
According to the tradition, Richard the Lionheart is said to have married Queen Berengaria of Navarre in this castle in 181 and crowned her Queen of England.

The Castle
The Castle was built by the Byzantines around l000 A.D. Around the same period, a chapel was also built there. According to the legend, it was in this chapel that the wedding of Richard the Lionheart with Berengaria took place, when the king was landed near Amathus, on his way to the Holy Land during the third Crusade. When the chapel was destroyed by an earthquake in 184, a new church of Gothic style was built in its place by the Knights Templar in the same year. With the extension later of the Castle the church came to be included in the Castle grounds. Later on, in 1382, the interior of the church (today’s basement chapel, cells, towers) became part of the castle.

The Castle was conquered by the Mamelukes in 1426 and it later on surrendered to the Knights of the Order of St. John. The Venetians pulled the oId Castle down and used the stones to build the city walls, between 1559 and 1567. The Turks erected part of the Castle in 1570, using it for the defense of the city. The Castle was used as a prison, between 1790-1940. After a few minor repairs in 1951, it was temporarily used as the Archaeological Museum of Lemesos (Limassol).

The Public Garden and the Zoo
They are situated on the coastal road. They provide a great variety of vegetation: eucalyptus trees, pine trees and cypresses. In this beautiful environment the citizens of Lemesos (Limassol) and many visitors can walk around and enjoy themselves.

The two stone statues of lions, which were placed in the south entrance of the garden in 1911, keep wakeful guard over the garden and its visitors. A little further, there is the magnificent bust of Christodoulos Sozos, a hero who was a Mayor of Lemesos (Limassol), and a Member of Parliament. He died while he was fighting for liberty and democracy on the 6th of December 1912, on the hill of the prophet Elias at loannina, in Creece. His bust was placed there on the 14th June 1915.

Inside the garden, there is a small zoo. There, the visitor can see deer, moufflons, ostriches, pheasants, tigers, lions, an elephant, monkeys, vultures, pelicans and other animals and different kinds of birds.

Not far from the zoo there is the small natural history museum and the garden theatre that is reconstructed to host famous international groups. A few yards away there is the bust of the Limassolian writer N. Nicolaides bearing the inscription «Nicos Nicolaides Artist, a distinguished writer, 1884-1956».

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