Panagia tis Angeloktistis

The original structure was a wooden-roofed basilica; all other basilicas in Cyprus from this time had wooden roofs as well.[1] The basilica was most likely built in the 5th century [2] although the mosaic in the apse dates to the 6th century. The island of Cyprus had been part of the Byzantine Empire for more than 100 years at this point (see Cyprus in the Middle Ages and Cyprus).

Like many Cypriot basilicas, the Kiti basilica was destroyed around the 7th and 8th centuries. Some historians have noted that this destruction coincides with many Arab raids in the area as the Byzantine Empire struggled to sustain the periphery of its empire.[1] Other historians have noted that the churches were wooden structures and lit by oil lamps, “a bad fire risk at the best of times”.[3] The apse and the famous mosaic of Panagia tis Angeloktisti survived the destruction and were incorporated into the church that was later built over the basilica’s foundations. The apse, mosaic, and church all still exist today. Merrillees notes that “in 688-9 the caliph Abd al-Malik (reg 685-705) signed an agreement with Justinian II (reg 685-95; 705-11) in which Cyprus [became neutral territory] …. [and] owing to its neutral status, Cyprus was largely unaffected by the iconoclast controversy (730-843)”.[1]

There is dispute among historians whether the incorporation of the basilica remains were incorporated into the new structure because it allowed the new church to be built more quickly [4] or if the inclusion of the older structure would have been more difficult and labor intensive than building a new church, and only done because the older remains were important to the surrounding community.[5]

The church was constructed between the mid-11th and early 12th centuries, after Byzantine rule was re-established in Cyprus in 965.[5] The 11th and 12th centuries in particular saw an expansion of chapels and churches by the Byzantine governors of Cyprus and other officials.[1] The domed, cross-in-square church in Kiti was built over the remains of the destroyed basilica. Megaw notes that “an early basilica apse [was] incorporated into the small domed church of the Panagia tis Kyras (Livadia) ” in Livadia, Cyprus as well.[3] The incorporation of the basilica foundations meant the church had an elongated cross-in-square layout but with a centralized design.[5]

A small excavation of the basement in 1959 lead to the discovery of a number of graves built into the earlier foundations of the church, indicating that the early Christian basilica had served as a burial ground prior to the construction of the Middle Byzantine church.[5] This excavation also provided evidence that “the current church at Kiti was preceded by two construction phases, a columned basilica followed by a pier basilica in the 6th or 7th century”.[5] The church was constructed out of rubble masonry , like the Pangia Kyra, which was also rebuilt to include the remains of an earlier basilica and Christian mosaic [5]