Nicolaidio Gymnasium of Paphos

Nicolaidio Gymnasium of Paphos is located in the homonymous city, on Griva Digeni Avenue, which is the main road to the historical center of the city, as one enters from the east.

One of the many public neoclassical buildings of this street that is a jewel for the whole of Cyprus, the Nicolaidio Gymnasium of Paphos is located in a town planning unit that was one of the first urban formations in Paphos. At this central location on the 28th October square, the complex of the buildings include Archbishop Makarios III Lyceum, Dimitrios Elementary School, Propylaia of Jacovio Gymnasium, Municipal Library of Paphos and the City Hall (Town Hall of Paphos).

Under the English domination and during a transitional period for Paphos, from a rural community to an urban center, this complex of neoclassical buildings was created by three architects, admirers of neoclassicism, Andreas Hadjidimitriou, Theodore Fotiadis and Andreas Christodoulides. All three worked consecutively in time (from the late 19th to the end of the 20th century), and although the buildings were formed gradually, a uniform architecture was followed in style, in the strong local character, in the simplicity of the structures and the economy in the use of decorative morphological elements.

Nicolaidio Gymnasium of Paphos was founded in January 1928 by Theodoros Fotiadis and is made of marble, while it is constructed in the shape of a Greek letter Π, with the rear side open and a gallery at its back. Its central entrance is decorated with a pediment and the whole configuration refers to the concept of the propylaea. Its name is due to the great benefactor Nicholas I. Nikolaidis, former mayor of Paphos, who, with his great donations and the services he offered from various positions, played an important role in the intellectual course of the town. Student of the Nicolaidio Gymnasium of Paphos was also the great hero Evagoras Pallikaridis, a leading figure in the struggle for the liberation of Cyprus.