The church of Agios Mamas is situated in the southern part of the Troodos mountain range, in the village of Louvaras, 27 kilometres north of Lemesos. It is a small church that was built in 1455, according to the dedicatory inscription above the entrance of the west wall, which joins the narthex with the nave.
The church was erected by the chief priest Konstantino and was funded by the leading villagers Ioannis Kromides and Georgios Pelekanos and their wives Irini and Eleni.
The two couples are depicted in prayer, on either side of the inscription, which also states that Philippos Goul was the painter of the church. Goul also painted the church of Timios Stavros tou Agiasmati, in Platanistassa.
The church belongs to the architectural type of the timber-roofed structure. It was initially built without a narthex and it was of small dimensions.
Today’s narthex, at the west end of the church, is a later addition. The church of Agios Mamas has two entrances, one on the south and one on the west side, and there are hardly any windows. The church’s floor is laid with bricks.
Its interior is decorated with frescoes, dated by the inscription on the west wall to the year 1495. Interestingly enough, a large number of the frescoes are miniatures, owing to the church’s small size.
The frescoes are characterised by the blending of western trends with old prototypes of the Macedonian School.
However, the painter has succeeded in assimilating the influences he received.
The iconographic result is one of heavy proportions, even on the multi-figured scenes.
The proportions of the standing saints, painted on the lower level of the walls, are an exception.
Even though the church’s iconography has been severely damaged, the surviving frescoes retain quite a lot of their original characteristics.
The church’s painted walls are subdivided into three levels. The two upper levels consist of small, multi-figured scenes.
On the lower level, the standing figures of saints are depicted in almost life-size dimensions.
Finally, on the apse’s conch, the Virgin is depicted in the type of Vlachernitissa.
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Courtesy of CTO
