Explore Cyprus with Our Interactive Map

Featured Articles

Explore our top stories and discover ideas worth your time.

View all articles
Leventis Gallery Cyprus Art Heritage

Leventis Gallery Cyprus Art Heritage

The Leventis Gallery is an art gallery in Nicosia, Cyprus. Opened in 2014, it houses a collection of over 800 paintings from Cypriot, Greek, and European artists. The institution operates under the A. G. Leventis Foundation and represents the fulfillment of a vision conceived more than fifty years earlier. The building sits a few steps from Nicosia's old city center and was designed by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios through an international architectural competition launched by RIBA Competitions. The architects created a modern cultural center embodying the personality of the family collection while contributing to urban regeneration. The building was conceived as a monolithic stone sculpture cut away to create courtyards, terraces, and roof gardens. The gallery features minimized energy use, enhanced insulation, airtightness, and extensive use of natural daylighting. The institution currently holds three distinct collections: the Paris Collection of European art, the Greek Collection from the 19th and 20th centuries, and the Cyprus Collection of modern Cypriot art. Historical Background Anastasios G. Leventis was born in Cyprus in December 1902, in the Cypriot mountain village of Lemythou. His father was a minister of the Greek Orthodox Church and worked as a schoolmaster. After World War I, Leventis went to Marseilles, where he worked and studied commerce in Bordeaux. At the age of 16, he traveled to France to look…

Read more
Olive Trees in Cyprus

Olive Trees in Cyprus

On rocky hillsides and gentle terraces across Cyprus, trees with shimmering silver-green leaves stand like wise elders, their twisted trunks telling stories of centuries under the Mediterranean sun. These are the olive trees, living treasures that have shaped the island’s landscape, diet and culture since the dawn of human settlement here. A Classic Evergreen of the Olive Family Known to science as Olea europaea, the olive belongs to the family Oleaceae within the order Lamiales. In Cyprus it thrives both as the familiar cultivated form in orchards and as the wild oleaster (Olea europaea var. sylvestris), a tougher, smaller-fruited version that grows naturally in maquis and garigue vegetation alongside carob and wild pistachio. Echoes from the Dawn of Cypriot Civilisation Olives have been part of Cyprus since at least the Bronze Age, with ancient pollen records and archaeological finds showing they were already valued for oil and fruit more than 4,000 years ago. Phoenician, Greek and Roman settlers expanded their cultivation, while the wild oleaster formed part of the original maquis shrublands described in 19th-century British forest reports. Over time, centuries of human care turned scattered wild trees into the productive groves that still cloak the island’s lower slopes today. Graceful Form and Enduring Strength The olive is an evergreen tree reaching 8–15 metres, with a short, often gnarled trunk…

Read more
Wild Oregano treasure hunt

Wild Oregano treasure hunt

Imagine wandering the sun-drenched paths of Cyprus's Troodos Mountains, where a humble herb releases a spicy, earthy aroma that whispers of age-old remedies and hearty island feasts. This is oregano, a wild treasure that's flavored Cypriot life for centuries, inviting us to uncover its simple joys and hidden strengths. A Spicy Star in the Mint Family Oregano is a fragrant herb from the vast Lamiaceae family, a group that includes over 7,000 species worldwide, like mints, sages, and basils – all sharing square stems and leaves packed with essential oils that give them their punchy scents and flavors. In Cyprus, it grows as a tough little bush in rocky spots, a classic example of Mediterranean wild plants that thrive in harsh, sunny environments. A Gift from Mountain Spirits The name "oregano" springs from ancient Greek words – "oros" for mountain and "ganos" for joy – beautifully capturing how this resilient plant thrives on sunny hillsides and brings simple delight to those who stumble upon it. In Cyprus, its tale reaches back to the island's earliest settlers around 10,000 years ago, who likely gathered it for nourishment and healing, much like their kin across the Mediterranean waves. Locally known as ρίγανη (rigani), it echoes this joyful legacy, cherished by ancient inhabitants for its seasoning and soothing powers long before tales were…

Read more