FOLK ART MUSEUM
HISTORY
EXHIBIT
OF THE MONTH
DIGITAL
COLLECTIONS
History
 The
Cyprus Folk Art Museum was founded by a few keen members of the
Society of Cypriot Studies in 1937 and is housed in the premises of
the old Archbishopric Palace. In 1961 the seat of the Archbishop of
Cyprus was moved to the new palace. The Society then approached the
Archbishop who graciously handed over the whole of the premises of
the Old Archbishopric to the Society, to be used for its activities.
It was at that time from 1962 to 1964 that extensive reconstruction
of the
 building
was carried out, at the very great
expense of the Society with the help of His Beatitude Makarios III (Diamantis,
1973, 1).
The
building of the Museum dates back to the 15th century and
is Gothic with earlier additions. In the beginning of
 the
13th century, the area was French (Latin) and was used as
a monastery by the order of the Benedictines. Besides, the Order of
St. John-Hospitaliers- built a church in honour of St. John, their
patron saint. Hugo 1st was buried here in 1218. The Greek
Orthodox Church began using it sometime before the Ottoman
Occupation (1571-1878). The richly decorated Gothic arch with the 16th
century fresco of the Annunciation, which bears the end of a Greek
inscription was uncovered in 1950. The fresco was conserved in 1995
by the Society and the Department of Antiquities.Many of the items
of this museum were donated, others were bought either directly from
the villagers
or from
private collections. Most of the items were made in areas that are
now occupied by Turkish troops. Samples of weaving, pottery,
embroidery, lace,
costumes, metalwork, woodcarving, basketry,
leatherwork, naïve painting, agricultural
and weaving tools
are to be found in the museum collections.
An important item is the door of St Mamas Church (19ος),
that inspired the novel poet George Seferis. The poet refers to the
little owl of the door on his poem “Little things of Cyprus”. The
poem is dedicated to his friend and first Director of the Museum,
Adamantios Diamantis.
Today the number
of items catalogued is over 5000.
During 1955-1959 troubles, the Museum was forced to close in three
different occasions.
 Also,
in the summer of 1974 when the Turkish invasion took place, the
collection was transported to safer areas and the Museum was
closed for over a year’s period. Though, the adventures were not
over. The artifacts needed immediate conservation, the roof of the
building was about to collapse and the humidity was causing
irreparable damage to the exhibits. In 1990 His Beatitude Archbishop
Chrysostomos generously offered to cover the expenses and thus,
extensive repair work took place that was finished in April 1996
when the new exhibitions in the ground floor opened for the public.
In June 1999, the Silk Industry
Exhibitions were inaugurated in the first floor of the building.
The old Archbishopric is situated in the
square named after Archbishop Kyprianos who was hanged by the Turks
in 1821 with the commencement of the Greek Revolution, so that it
would not spread in Cyprus that was under Ottoman rule as well as
the Greek mainland. Kyprianos was actually taken from a room in this
building to the place of his martyrdom. On the first floor there is
the room which was used by him and is known by his name. Across the
street is the Pancyprian Gymnasium, the oldest and largest gymnasium
in Cyprus, which is the continuation of the Greek school founded by
Archbishop Kyprianos in 1812 and dedicated to the Holy Trinity.
Exhibit of
the Month August
Τhe Museum of Folk Art
exhibits the only oblation which has survived
from the Church of Chrysosotiros in Akanthou in
the occupied area of Cyprus, which has become a
mosque after the Turkish invasion of 1974. The
oblation is a wax figure of a woman 73cm tall.
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