Faneromeni Square (; ) is an important historical

square In geometry, a square is a regular polygon, regular quadrilateral. It has four straight sides of equal length and four equal angles. Squares are special cases of rectangles, which have four equal angles, and of rhombuses, which have four equal si ...

Nicosia Nicosia, also known as Lefkosia and Lefkoşa, is the capital and largest city of Cyprus. It is the southeasternmost of all EU member states' capital cities. Nicosia has been continuously inhabited for over 5,500 years and has been the capi ...

, Cyprus. It is in an ancient part of Nicosia, within city walls built when it was under Venetian rule. It hosts a number of historical buildings and monuments including Faneromeni Church, Faneromeni School, Faneromeni Library, and the Marble Mausoleum.

Overview and historical background

Faneromeni Square and Church by night Nicosia Republic of Cyprus

Faneromeni Square was the centre of Nicosia before

Eleftheria Square Eleftheria Square (; ); literally meaning Liberty Square, is the main square in central Nicosia, the capital city of Cyprus, in Europe. It forms the intersection of Ledra and Onasagorou streets with Stasinou, Omirou, Kostaki Pantelidi, Konstand ...

superseded it in 1974. Faneromeni Church dominates the centre of the square; it was built in 1872 on the site of an ancient Orthodox nunnery. The church is dedicated to Holy Mary and it is the largest church within the city walls of Nicosia. Architecturally the church edifice features a mixture of Neoclassical,

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

and

Medieval Latin Medieval Latin was the form of Literary Latin used in Roman Catholic Church, Roman Catholic Western Europe during the Middle Ages. It was also the administrative language in the former Western Roman Empire, Roman Provinces of Mauretania, Numidi ...

styles. Faneromeni School, founded by Archbishop Makarios I in 1857, was the first all-girls school in Cyprus. It was founded to improve rates of literacy among girls and women on the island. The Marble Mausoleum on the eastern side of Faneromeni Church is situated at the front of the building. It was built in memory of four clerics executed by the Ottoman governor in 1821, following the Cypriot revolt after the

Greek War of Independence The Greek War of Independence, also known as the Greek Revolution or the Greek Revolution of 1821, was a successful war of independence by Greek revolutionaries against the Ottoman Empire between 1821 and 1829. In 1826, the Greeks were assisted ...

was declared. The square is surrounded by several Neoclassical buildings featuring predominantly Greek, as well as local Cypriot, architectural influences. These include the Faneromeni Library. Today the square is a meeting point for the

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and Political movement, movement that seeks to abolish all institutions that perpetuate authority, coercion, or Social hierarchy, hierarchy, primarily targeting the state (polity), state and capitalism. A ...

movement of Cyprus, anti-authoritarians,

libertarians Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

, many artists and musicians. It is also a stronghold of the

antifascist Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were op ...

movement on the island. The square is considered a central point for

counterculture A counterculture is a culture whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of mainstream society, sometimes diametrically opposed to mainstream cultural mores.Eric Donald Hirsch. ''The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy''. Ho ...

on the island.

Gallery

Historical buildings and monuments

File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 173.jpg, Marble Mausoleum & Faneromeni School File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 192.jpg, Marble Mausoleum in Faneromeni Square File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 186.jpg, Faneromeni School façade File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 221.jpg, Faneromeni Library File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 224.jpg, Faneromeni Library

Faneromeni Church

File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 218.jpg, Faneromeni Church: entrance to the square File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 199.jpg, Faneromeni Church and School File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 219.jpg, Faneromeni Church façade File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 212.jpg, Faneromeni Church façade (detail)

Typical architecture

File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 231.jpg, Typical architecture with Faneromeni Church in the background File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 230.jpg, Traditional architecture File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 202.jpg, Building with traditional Greek and local Cypriot Neoclassical features File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 204.jpg, Detail of building adjacent to Faneromeni Church File:NICOSIA, 11 AUGUST, 2011 205.jpg, Cluster of Neoclassical buildings and Faneromeni Library

References

{{Reflist Squares in Nicosia Nicosia