Kythrea

Kythrea
Κυθραία/Κυθρεα(Greek) Değirmenlik (Turkish)
Kythrea Location in Cyprus
Coordinates: 35°15′0″N 33°29′0″E
Country	De jure Cyprus De facto North Cyprus
District	De jure Nicosia District De facto Lefkoşa District
Municipality
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)

Kythrea (Greek: Κυθραία, Κυθρεα; Turkish: Değirmenlik) is a small town on the island of Cyprus. It is under the de facto control of the so called "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus", an entity only recognised by Turkey.

History

Kythrea, a small town 10 km northeast of the capital Nicosia, is situated near the ancient kingdom of Chytroi which was founded by Chytros, grandson of the Athenian King Akamas. Chytroi was one of the ten city-kingdoms of Cyprus in antiquity. According to one tradition the name Kythrea came from Chytroi (Χυτροι-Χυτρεα-Κυθρεα). According to another tradition the name Kythrea is derived from the name of the Greek Ionian island Kythera from where millstones were transferred to Kythrea's watermills. The small town was watered for millennia by the Kefalovrysos spring. However, shortly after the Turkish invasion of Cyprus the water stopped flowing.

With the spread of Christianity in Cyprus, Chytroi became the official seat of a bishop. The most glorious bishop of Chytroi was Demetrianos. Kythrea is undoubtedly a remarkable archaeological area, brutally looted after the turkish invasion. One outstanding statue discovered in the area is the magnificent bronze statue of Roman Emperor Sepimius Severus, exhibited in the archaeological museum of Nicosia.The Kythrea Municipality was founded in 1915.