Armenian treasures bring centuries of history to Nicosia

The Byzantine Museum will be showcasing centuries of Armenian history, art and faith, presenting rare treasures from Yerevan’s History Museum of Armenia, this week in Nicosia. Titled “Faith and Identity: Treasures from the History Museum of Armenia”, the exhibition opens on October 9 and will run until April 9, 2027. It is the first international exhibition featuring artefacts from abroad to be hosted by the Byzantine Museum since its major renovation. The exhibition, organised in cooperation with the History Museum of Armenia, is held under the auspices of the Armenian embassy in Nicosia and the Armenian prelature of Cyprus. Among the highlights are four objects representing different periods of Armenian history. Items include an 18th-century silver pectoral cross, a 12th or 13th century glazed ceramic plate from Dvin, a silver half dram coin of King Leo I of Armenian Cilicia, and a 10th or 11th century bronze censer from Ani. The exhibition also explores Armenia’s rich manuscript tradition and the longstanding presence of the Armenian community in Cyprus. One particularly significant item is an Armenian gospel manuscript from St Makarios monastery in Pentadaktylos. The manuscript was removed after the 1974 Turkish invasion, taken to Munich and eventually returned to Cyprus in 2013. It is now kept and displayed at the Byzantine Museum with the consent of the Armenian prelature of Cyprus. The exhibition features three gilded gospels from the 18th and 19th centuries and a 1847 encyclical for the Armenian clergy in Cyprus. Significant items include gospels printed in Constantinople (1796), Etchmiadzin (1710) and Jerusalem (1868), showcasing the rich history of the Armenian community in Cyprus.