Kolossi

Kolossi is a village of the district of Limassol in Cyprus and is situated about 15 km from Limassol, 50 kilometers from Nicosia, 60 km from Paphos, and almost 80 km from Larnaca.

In the middle of a fertile valley where sugar cane, vines and cotton have been cultivated for centuries, feeding its residents, Kolossi is a village with a long history as a famous Frankish center for the noble and has been mentioned in many reports of travelers in the Middle Ages.

The history of the village is connected with the Crusades and, more specifically, when the king of England Richard I the Lionheart, in 1191 defeated the Byzantine ruler of Cyprus Isaac Comnenus in Kolossi, took over the island and then handed it over to the Templar Knights. The people revolted against the exploitation and the island of Cyprus was resold to Guy de Lusignan, who divided Cyprus into the known feuds. This particular area came under the rule of Garinous De Colos, who is believed to have given his name to the village. Based on the above mentioned legend, the imposing castle of Kolossi was built in the 13th century to serve as a control base for the Order of the Knights and was later turned into an administrative center known as “Grande Commanderie” and finally created with this name the myth surrounding the local sweet wine, Commandaria. There you will also find the historic church of Agios Evstathios (St. Eustatius) of Kolossi, with the 15th century frescoes, which is a popular destination for religious visitors.

The fact that Kolossi is situated near the center of Limassol and was close to the strategically important to the British Akrotiri Lemesou, provided the settlement with the right opportunities for development and progress in the region. Today, the settlement counts approximately 4500 residents, most of whom are engaged in the cultivation of sugarcane. This occupation was particularly widespread in the 10th century, when the village had a sugar cane mill and a sugar refinery. Actually in the past, Cyprus, along with Egypt and Syria, was one of the countries supplying with sugar the Mediterranean and Western Europe.

Once you enter Kolossi the first things you see are the Heroes Monuments and the remnants of the old Hani. In its inner courtyard is preserved a part of the paved floor and some arches. In the center of the village the visitor can see the church of Agios Loukas (St. Luke), a 1880’s building, which celebrates on 18 October. A few kilometers away you will also find the miraculous Panagia (Virgin Mary) Vournakiotissa, built inside the rock. Another cultural attraction of the village is the old mill of the 1947, which always operated under the direction of the ecclesiastical committee and worked 24 hours per day. The mill attracted apart from the locals also many Paphians, Pissouriotes and others, due to the fact that the olive oil of Kolossi is famous for its special processing in the traditional way – the so-called “Zempylion”, while today the mill is used only as an oil production Museum for the public.

In Kolossi there is a kindergarten and a primary school, for children from other areas as well, and the high school Apostolou Louka of Kolossi, built in as recently as 2012. There, the visitor will also find a number of accommodation and catering facilities, while Erimi village with the Cypriote Wine Museum and the settlement of Episkopi Lemesou are both situated within a couple of kilometers.