Must-seeUNESCO
St. Nicholas of the Roof (Agios Nikolaos tis Stegis)
One of the ten painted churches of Troodos on the UNESCO list
The story
The church stands in the upper Solea Valley in the Troodos Mountains, on the bank of the Karkotis stream, about two kilometers southwest of Kakopetria. It is the only surviving katholikon in Cyprus, that is, the main church, of an eleventh-century Byzantine monastery. In the early twelfth century a narthex was added. Later the church and narthex were covered with a steep wooden roof with flat tiles, hence the nickname “of the Roof”. The paintings inside were made over more than 600 years, from the eleventh century to 1633, so the church is called a museum of Byzantine painting. In 1985 the church was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List; today the list has ten painted churches of Troodos.
The painted Byzantine churches on the UNESCO list are in the Troodos Mountains, not in the Pentadaktylos in the north. St. Nicholas of the Roof near Kakopetria is one of these ten churches, on the list since 1985.
Visiting
According to the Department of Antiquities: free admission; Tue–Sat 9:00–16:00, Sun 11:00–16:00, closed on Mondays and holidays. Check the hours before you go.
On the way
Photos
Sources
- Department of Antiquities of Cyprus — Church of Agios Nikolaos tis Stegis (St. Nicholas of the Roof), Kakopetria
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre — Painted Churches in the Troodos Region (list no. 351)
- Deputy Ministry of Tourism — New Guide to Cyprus 2026 (Greek)
- Exam question bank: Byzantine churches of Troodos (unofficial collection)
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