Lusignan House ( tr, Lüzinyan Evi) is a
mansion
A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word '' manse'' originally defined a property l ...
in the
Yeni Jami quarter of
North Nicosia. It is located on the Yeni Cami Street.
[
]
History
The house was built in the 15th century as a residential building for the Latin nobles during the Lusignan period. After the Ottoman conquest of Cyprus, the house was modified and a ''cumba'' ( bay window in Ottoman and Turkish architecture) was added. By 1872, the house was in a dilapidated state and was inhabited by the Turkish family of "Kaloria Al Effendi". In 1958, the house was transferred to the possession of the Cypriot government by the Classen family, which then used it as their place of residence and a weaving workshop. Subsequently, the house was partitioned, and after the Cyprus crisis of 1963–64, used by refugees. In the 1980s, it was emptied by the Turkish authorities.[ In 2013, the building underwent another renovation, which enabled it to be used for formal social events. There is also a café on the premises that serves traditional Cypriot food.]
Architecture
The two-floor building is a combination of the Lusignan Gothic architecture and Ottoman architecture. The entrance is through a Gothic arched doorway with Lusignan coats of arms carved on top. Some of these coats of arms are not well-preserved. On the ground floor, there is a large living room. In 1872, Archduke Louis Salvator
Archduke (feminine: Archduchess; German: ''Erzherzog'', feminine form: ''Erzherzogin'') was the title borne from 1358 by the Habsburg rulers of the Archduchy of Austria, and later by all senior members of that dynasty. It denotes a rank within ...
reported that the rooms had ornate windows and carvings, some reminiscent of the Maghrebi style, and doorways adorned with reliefs and carvings in the Turkish and Renaissance styles. He wrote in depth about richly carved shelves. In 1987, Haşmet Muzaffer Gürkan reported that much of these had not survived, but those that did survive included the ornately carved and painted ceiling in the upper floor.[
In the yard, next to the staircase that leads to the upper floor, there is a pool. Within the yard there are also some ]ashlar
Ashlar () is finely dressed (cut, worked) stone, either an individual stone that has been worked until squared, or a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, generally rectangular cuboid, mentioned by Vitruv ...
walls and arches, which, according to Gürkan, are remnants from "very old times".[ The inner courtyard has a rectangular plan and these arches could have previously been a part of the extensions of the mansion.][
]
References
{{coord missing, Cyprus