In the village of Nicosia, Mitsero, there is a small chapel dedicated to Panagia Lampadiotissa. It is a single aisled basilica and it has a tiled roof. It was built by residents of the village, after a certain vision. It is said that as he was asleep, a man had a vision that someone pushed him to wake up and showed him where to find gold liras. This person was frightened and he did not dare to go to that point, due to the darkness. In the morning, along with other villagers, he went to that point and dug until they found the gold liras. They decided to build a church dedicated to the Virgin with this money.
The construction of the Church began in 1966, next to the foundations of a church dedicated to Agios Ioannis Lampadistis. The Cypriot Saint that originated from the settlement of Lampadou, that was found east of one of the villages of Solea, Galata. The church of Agios Ioannis had a Byzantine style and it was destroyed when the Latins conquered the island.
There is a disagreement about the location of the ancient village with the name “Lampadou”. Others believe that the village was at the peak of the hill of Koroni and others say that it was located in the area of Galata. Written texts refer to Agios Ioiannis Lampadistis originating from the “settlement of Lampadou in the periphery of Galata” and that “He was Cypriot from the district of Solea from the village of Lampadou”.
From the place where the chapel is found, a little lower from the peak of the hill “Koroni”, you can have panoramic and unobstructed views to Mitsero and other villages on the east side of it. The view from “Koroni” is indeed incredible.
From the parking lot found north of the Church, there are steps taking you to the Holy Water. It is a natural source of potable water gushing from the rock, on which two other Churches are found. Next to the Holy Water there is another small, artificial cave with some icons of Saints.
The church of Panagia Lampadiotissa receives dozens of believers each day. They are people coming from all the areas of the island. For this reason, the door of the Church is always open.
To get to the church, you have to pass through the village, and after you leave the building hosting the offices of the community council behind you, you will find yourselves in front of the guiding sign taking you to the right. Follow this turn where the road becomes very steep taking you from the bottom of Koroni, to the peak, a few hundreds of metres away, where the church is found.
After you are done with what you went for, do not forget to blow out the candles, if you lit any. It would be a shame for such a beautiful, frescoed Church to be destroyed due to a carelessness.
