It was the beginning of the 12th century, when a boat coming from Syria approached the shores of Cyprus carrying the Emir of the country and his daughter who was born blind, to visit competent doctors to cure her. Upon arriving at the sea area east of the Amathounta Kingdom, the daughter had a vision and “saw” light high on a mountain.
The Emir commanded to moor the boat, and followed his daugther who guided them by “seeing” the light with his cortege. They walked a distance of 25 kilometres among forests and wild plantation. Upon reaching the point where his daughter “saw” the light, they found a small source gushing out through a hard rock and on its base there was a small icon of Our Lady with a baby in her arms.
The blind daughter got water from the source and washed her face. Then, she saw the world around her for the first time. For the first time she looked her father in the eyes and talked to him with words of admiration, about the miracle.
The Emir, after he believed in the miracle, built a small Church in the area, and sponsored the foundation of the Monastery, giving it big areas of land and gold. In the years that followed, the Monastery grew and the number of monks exceeded a hundred.
During the leap years of the Ottoman Empire, just like all the Christian Monasteries, the Monastery of Panagia tis Emiours or as it was later called Panagia tis Amirous, declined and was abandoned by its Monks.
Just a few years ago, an effort of its reconstruction began. Some constructions have been completed and others are at the stage of advanced construction. It is a female monastery.
It is built on a small plateau of the Kakomallis mountain, it offers unobstructed view of more than 25 kilometres away, where the shores of Cyprus are found, in the green. Dozens of fruit bearing trees decorate the forecourt, thus offering an amazing garden for whoever wishes to relax.
In the yard of Panagia tis Amirous, you will see dozens of people from all over Cyprus, as well as from abroad, looking for a solution to sight issues they may have. The small icon of Our Lady that was found at the point where the water that cured the blind daughter of the Emir, gushes out still today, keeps giving light to the people who have problem with their sight. The multiple offerings of gold and silver found in the Church are testimonies of the miracle, but the believers themselves testify that it is true.
The Monastery of Panagia tis Amirous is found six kilometres northeast of the Apsiou village, or four kilometres north of the Mathikoloni village.
