Agios Artemon, Afaneia

Agios Artemon, Afaneia

The Agios Artemon Church in Afaneia/Gaziköy (also known as the Church of St. George) dates back to the Latin period (15th century). It is a two-aisled church, with the south one being the older; the north aisle was added to the structure some time between the 15th and 16th century.

The church is home to numerous historic artifacts. Prior to its recent restoration, a sarcophagus was found in the church, while during the restoration, which was completed in 2019, UNDP-PFF experts discovered Arabic graffiti on one of the walls; this was written by a Maronite priest from Lebanon during his visit in the 19th century. 

The monument is built with carbonate stones of different appearance, structure, texture and physico-mechanical properties. Their main properties are summarized below: 

• Apparent Density (EN 1936): 1550-2580 kg/m³
• Open Porosity (EN 1936): 2-39%
• Compressive Strength (EN 1926): 12.0-94.2 MPa  

The aforementioned tests for the characterization of the monument's stone were carried out in 2017, in the framework of a combined laboratory and in situ investigation that was conducted to determine the physico-mechanical and mineralogical characteristics of the building materials of the Agios Artemon Church. Sampling and testing were assigned to the Building Materials and LEDRA Laboratories of the University of Cyprus by the United Nations Development
Programme – Partnership for the Future, which is funded by the European Union.

University of Cyprus - Ledra and Building Materials Labs & The Cyprus Scientific and Technical Chamber (ΕΤΕΚ)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3u_qEPS_qNE

University of Cyprus - Ledra and Building Materials Labs & The Cyprus Scientific and Technical Chamber (ΕΤΕΚ)

University of Cyprus - Ledra and Building Materials Labs

University of Cyprus - Ledra and Building Materials Labs

Photos taken by Ioannis Ioannou, University of Cyprus - Ledra and Building Materials Labs