Places to Visit in Famagusta
CLOSED STARTER / MAGOSA:
It was captured by the Turks in the peace operation in 1974. Neither Turks nor Greeks currently live. Maraş region, which was the most spectacular holiday destination of the Mediterranean at the time, turned into a dead city. As it can be seen from the outside, the entire city has been waiting for the first time in the city for years.
NAMIC KEMAL SQUARE / MAGOSA:
Namık Kemal was exiled to Famagusta for his famous play “Vatan or silistire”. He lived in Famagusta for 38 months. He also wrote his best works here. Namık Kemal square is the most touristic square of Famagusta. There are Namık Kemal Museum, cafes, restaurants and historical places in Namık Kemal’s dungeon.
It is a two-storey building with a rectangular plan, located in the courtyard of the Venice Palace west of Namık Kemal Square. The door of the single cell opens to the courtyard of the Venetian Palace. There is a falcon in front of the rectangular room on the upper floor. Namık Kemal was exiled to Cyprus on April 5, 1873 after the play “Vatan or Silistre” was played at the Istanbul Gedik Pasha theater on April 9, 1873. The poet, which was previously closed to the dungeon on the lower floor, was taken to the upper floor after a while with the permission of the Cyprus governor Veyis Pasha. On 3 June 1876, he was forgiven by V. Murat and returned to Istanbul. The restoration and landscaping works of “Namık Kemal dungeon and Museum” were carried out in 1993 by the Survey and Restoration Branch of the Antiquities and Museums Department.
LALA MUSTAFA PAŞA MOSQUE / MAGOSA:
Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque, formerly St Nicholas Cathedral, is located in Namık Kemal Square. This mosque built by the Lusignans is the same as the Selimiye Mosque in Nicosia and is one of the most magnificent buildings of my time. Besides, there is a gum tree, which is the old tree of the island, with a 750-year-old age.
The building, which was built between 1298 and 1312 during the Lusignans, is one of the most beautiful Gothic buildings in the entire Mediterranean world. The Lusignan kings, first in St. Nicosia. King of Cyprus at Sophia Cathedral and then St. Famagusta. They were crowned as King of Jerusalem in St. Nicholas Cathedral. These ceremonies were held until it was converted into a mosque in 1571. The architecture of the most beautiful and best preserved western facade of the cathedral was influenced by the Reims Cathedral in France.
The 16th century Venice gallery of the cathedral, which has a unique window with a gothic style, is located in the courtyard and is now used as a fountain. A Venetian coat of arms can be seen above the round windows at the entrance. It is believed that the relief decorated with some animal figures came from a temple in Salamis. The apse of the cathedral, like most Cyprus churches, is in the Eastern style and has three compartments.
The windows above are well preserved and there are two chapels on the west side and on the side. The historical tweezer tree in front of the building is a tropical fig species that is rarely found in the north of the island. (Ficus Sycomorus). It is said that this tree was erected when the construction started and it is peer to the cathedral. The most distinctive feature of the tree is that it bears fruit seven times a year.
BARNABAS MONASTERY / MAGOSA:
It is a monastery built in 477 for St Barnabas, who came to Cyprus to spread Christianity, including his grave. It is a place that must be visited because of its works and the works exhibited.
SALAMİS RUINS / MAGOSA:
It was founded in the Bronze Age and was the capital of Cyprus at the time. The Salamis Ruins include the Forum, the Roman Gymnasium, the Roman Theater, the Marketplace, the Temple of Zeus, and the tomb of the Salamis kings. Even today it is one of the rare ancient cities where you can find the magnificence of the city at that time.
Famagusta Othello Castle
Othello Castle, built by the Lusignans in the 14th century, was used as one of the main entrances to the city of Famagusta. Hanging on the castle entrance. Under the relief of Mark Lion, the name of Captain Nicolo Foscari, who reshaped the castle, and the date of 1492 can be seen. Surrounded by a deep moat, the Castle has towers and corridors ending with artillery batteries. In the courtyard of the castle, there are cannons, iron cannons and stone cannons, some of which belong to the Ottomans and some to the Spanish. The Black Gate is protected by a Ravelin (half-moon-shaped bastion). In addition to the passages and cannons here, there are underground rooms used as a chapel and dungeon.
The present name of the castle began to be used in the British period. Part of Sheakespeare’s famous tragedy takes place in a port city in Cyprus. The protagonist of the game, Othello, is introduced as one of the Moroccan (Moor). It is believed that the author heard the name of Christophoro Moro, the meaning of the island’s Venetian governor’s surname, ‘Moor’, and mistakenly thought he was a Moroccan.
The hall inside the castle hosts many art and cultural events today. Flat of Famagusta Municipality
Kuzy are both plants grown in the south and 38 of them.
Carlina Involucrata (Cyprus Bününcük Pig’s Thorn)
Ophrus Kotschyi (Cyprus Orchid) etc.
Cyprus Butterflies and Northern Cyprus Ladybugs CORNER:
The names and information of the butterflies that exist all over Cyprus and the ladybugs unique only to Northern Cyprus are displayed with pictures.
NORTHERN CYPRUS BIRDS CORNER:
Three endangered birds that exist only in Northern Cyprus.
Otus Scops Cyprius (Cyprus Jesus Bird)
Oenanthe Cypriaca (Cypriot Wagtail)
Syluia Melanothorax (Cypriot Warbler)
Besides, they are exhibited as information and pictures in Migratory Birds, Sea Turtles, Wetlands, Frogs and Reptiles. In addition, a Butterfly Collection is exhibited in the exhibition hall of the Center.
The Wildlife Information Center also has a cute garden where the staff takes care of and organizes. Especially in spring and winter, Cyprus-specific plants growing green on the relevant rock and endangered are attracting the attention of tourists. You can visit our center to see all these plants and get information.