Church of Agios Dimitrianos
The church of Agios Dimitrianos is a very important ecclesiastic building. It was constructed in the beginning of the 19th century and it is situated in the center of the village among the traditional houses.
The building is stone made and its style is gothic. Its capacity is 250 people. It has a beautiful and very tall bell tower with three electronic bells and one more in case that the other three do not work. The bell tower is placed on the west side of the church and it abuts on it.
The yard of the church is very big with fencing but it does not have paved floor. The Community Council tries to cover the floor with stones from the area within the efforts to improve the community with the contribution of the European Union.
The inside of the church is decorated with a magnificent wooden iconostasis with many old icons, a despotic throne, a pulpit and a special case for portable icons. They are all restored and in a very good condition. The special case near the west door of the church is framed with a small icon of Agios Dimitrianos. The large double face icon of the Saint is on the iconostasis. There are no wall paintings or gallery inside the church. A gallery will be constructed, as this church is the central one of the village.
The feast day of Agios Dimitrianos is on 6th November and there is a celebrating service in his church followed by a procession of his icon.
Chapel of Panagia Kousouliotissa
The exact date of the construction of the chapel is unknown but some old books which were found, claim that the chapel was built 18th century. In older times it used to be a monastery. Its capacity is around 55 people. There are two versions concerning the name of Kousouliotissa which was given to Panagia. The first one says that the man who offered the money for the construction of the church was called Kousoulos and the second one says that Panagia could heal the infants (“kousoulouthkia” is the Cypriot dialect).
The chapel is placed on the east side of the village in a field which is full of tall pines. Its architecture is not very interesting. It is singled-aisled with arches and it has tiles on the roof. It is stone made (the stones were taken from the mountains) and its color is white. In 1963 the chapel was burnt and the ecclesiastic equipment (iconostasis, icons and pslaters) was replaced with a new one.
Next to the church there is a tree where people hang a piece of clothe, praying for their sick loved ones.
It celebrates mass 5-6 times a year. On Easter Tuesday there is a celebrating service and a procession of the icon.
Chapel of Saint George Lamproforos
The chapel of Saint George Lamproforos was the first church of the community. Now, it is under the protection of the Department of Antiquities. It was built in the 17th century and it is situated eastern of the village, next to the cemetery. Its architecture is not very important. It is singled-aisled with arches and tiles on the roof. It is stone made and the external walls were painted white. The yard is very small and cemented. Its bell tower abuts on the ecclesiastic building and it is placed on the west side of the church.
The inside is decorated with an old wooden iconostasis and a wooden gallery. The Department of Antiquities has undertaken its restoration. There is an old icon of Saint George which is placed on the iconostasis. The chapel celebrates mass 2-3 times a year. The feast day of the saint is on 23rd April.
Chapel of Agios Andronikos and Agia Athanasia
On the west side of Flassou you can meet the chapel of Agios Andronikos and Agia Athanasia. It was built in the 19th century in a field outside the village. Its architecture is very simple. It has a rectangular form with tiles on the roof, it is stone made and white. The bell tower is based on metallic piles and the bell is not electronic. It works with the pull of a rope. It is a very small and flat church with a wooden iconostasis and psaletrs, both recently made.
In older times there was another chapel which was dedicated to Agia Mavri. Today you can see only the ruins of the church. The holy icon of Agia Mavri was taken in the chapel of Agios Andronikos and Agia Athanasia. It celebrates mass on Easter Monday.
Chapel of Agios Georgios Epitidiotis
Among the trees and western of the village you will see the small chapel of Agios Georgios Epitidiotis. His was named Epitidios after the “epitidia” which are the needles of the pine.
The exact date of its construction is unknown but tradition says that it was built in the 17th century. Its form is rectangular and simple and it has tiles on the roof. It is stone made and its stones are in a good condition to this day. It was restored by the Department of Antiquities. The bell tower is based on metallic piles and it has only one bell which is not electronic. The chapel celebrates mass 2-3 times a year.
The capacity of the chapel is around 50 people. On the inside of the church, on the right wall there is a large wall painting of Agios Georgios which the locals say is a miracle one. The iconostasis and the holy icons are old and wooden. There is also a wooden psalter. The church is very simple and flat.
The feast day of Agios Georgios Epitidiotis is on 23rd April and there is a celebrating mass on the St Thomas Sunday. At that day there is a big festival and a lot of people from the village and the surrounding areas attend to it. Recently it has been decided that the chapel will celebrate mass every Saturday.
Courtesy of the Community Council of CTO
