Church of Saint Lazarus

Christian tradition holds that Lazarus, after being raised at Bethany, came to Cyprus, was made bishop of Kition and died here a second time. His tomb was found in 890 with an inscription naming him, and the emperor Leo VI had this church built over it, a stone building with three domes, later given a Baroque bell tower. The crypt under the altar holds sarcophagi, and a carved wooden iconostasis of the eighteenth century fills the church. The relics themselves were largely taken to Constantinople.

What you actually see

• The crypt - stone sarcophagi beneath the altar, reached by narrow steps.
• The iconostasis - a carved and gilded eighteenth-century screen.
• The Byzantine fabric - ninth-century stonework beneath the later alterations.
• The bell tower - a Baroque addition of 1857 above the church.

When to go

Year round. The church closes for a long midday break. The Saturday before Palm Sunday brings a procession with the icon through Larnaca and is the busiest day of the year.

Honest expectations

The crypt steps are steep, narrow and often wet. Modest dress is required. The church is small and busy with coach groups in the middle of the day.

Nearby

Larnaca Salt Lake is southwest, and Panagia Angeloktisti is at Kiti.