Thermeia ( el, Θέρμεια; tr, Doğanköy) is a historic village, now a suburb of

Kyrenia Kyrenia ( el, Κερύνεια ; tr, Girne ) is a city on the northern coast of Cyprus, noted for its historic harbour and castle. It is under the ''de facto'' control of Northern Cyprus. While there is evidence showing that the wider region ...

, Cyprus. ''

De facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

'', it is under the control of

Northern Cyprus Northern Cyprus ( tr, Kuzey Kıbrıs), officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC; tr, Kuzey Kıbrıs Türk Cumhuriyeti, ''KKTC''), is a ''de facto'' state that comprises the northeastern portion of the Geography of Cyprus, isl ...

. Its population in 2011 was 868. Thermia road 1973 35 mm

History

Thermeia is an ancient village located to the south-east of Kyrenia and is now a suburb of that town. George Jeffery reports that the village was a ''Çiftlik'', an old Turkish farmstead. A stone-and-pebble paved road from Kyrenia passed through old olive groves to the village. Girne BVM 14 7 2009

Monuments

The oldest building in the village is a small

Orthodox church Orthodox Church may refer to: * Eastern Orthodox Church * Oriental Orthodox Churches * Orthodox Presbyterian Church * Orthodox Presbyterian Church of New Zealand * State church of the Roman Empire * True Orthodox church See also * Orthodox (di ...

dedicated to the

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

. The church, overlooking a river gorge, was built in several phases. The dome, belonging to the eleventh or twelfth century, indicates the building was first planned as a simple

cross-in-square A cross-in-square or crossed-dome floor plan, plan was the dominant architectural form of middle- and late-period Byzantine Empire, Byzantine church architecture, churches. It featured a square centre with an internal structure shaped like a cross ...

church of the Byzantine type. The

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

, as well as the masonry encasing the walls round the base of the dome, were constructed subsequently, probably in the fifteenth or sixteenth century to judge from the style north door. The bell tower on western corner was added later, perhaps in the eighteenth century. Similar additions and sequences are found in many Cypriot churches, a good parallel being the old Agia Marina in Pyrga, Larnaca. Both Jeffery and Gunnis report that English sailors were buried at the Doğanköy church, but there was no trace of their graves in the 1970s. Gunnis mentions a "curious custom" whereby any child suffering from malaria was carried three times round the church and rolled back and forth in front of the west door. Inside, the church is white-washed and without decoration; the floor was given modern tiles in the 1950s or 1960s. The

iconostasis In Eastern Christianity, an iconostasis ( gr, εἰκονοστάσιον) is a wall of icons and religious paintings, separating the nave from the sanctuary in a Church (building), church. ''Iconostasis'' also refers to a portable icon stand t ...

dates to the nineteenth century; the historic icons were removed before 1974; the frame itself was damaged subsequently. Efforts to repair the church were undertaken beginning in 2000. While the grounds outside were being cleared of weeds, a number of glazed pot-sherds of the fifteenth or sixteenth century were found, testifying to the long life of the building and settlement. Also found beside the church was an early Christian pillar-base in marble; it may have been brought from Lambousa. The village proper is located to the west of the church, suggesting the settlement has shifted or that the church was originally surrounded by its own properties. The stone houses in the village retain the vernacular Gothic elements sometimes found in the traditional domestic buildings of Cyprus; according to Gunnis, the oldest of them dates to about 1740. This was the family home of

Dimitris Lipertis Dimitris Theophani Lipertis (; 1866–1937) was a Greek Cypriot poet. Biography Lipertis was born in Larnaca in 1866 (exact date disputed–either 22 September or 26 October). His father, Theofanis Lipertis hailed from Kyrenia, but moved to Larna ...

, best known for his poetry in the Cypriot dialect. The building was heavily restored in 1971-72 by the Department of Antiquities at which time two ruinous rooms to the east side of the house were rebuilt.Republic of Cyprus, Ministry of Communications and Works, ''Annual Report of the Director of the Department of Antiquities for the year 1972'' (Nicosia, 1973), p. 15.

References

{{Kyrenia District Communities in Kyrenia District Populated places in Girne District Historic sites in Cyprus