Kourion Cyprus
“So being sent out by the Holy Spirit…they sailed to Cyprus…When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. And they had John to assist them. When they had gone through the whole island …”
Acts 13:4-6
Kourion is not named in the New Testament, but it was a major Roman city directly along Paul’s Cypriot mission route. Its archaeology places the height of Kourion’s grandeur and influence in the era of Paul’s missionary journeys. Within a couple generations of Paul, John and Barnabus sharing the gospel on Cyprus, Kourion went from a stronghold of the worship of Apollo (from the 8th c BC to the 1 st century AD) to a major center of Christianity with 3 huge Christian basilicas. Much of Kourion was destroyed by earthquake in 365 AD, which began the decline of the city. By the 7th c AD it was abandoned.
Kourion’s basilica ruins and Christian mosaic inscription reflect the lasting impact of the first missionary journey recorded in Acts. The city is set at the top of a bluff overlooking the sea and the largest basilica had a prominent location looking over the bluff. At the end of the large basilica nave is an hexagonal cistern that held water for the baptistery complex in the smaller baptistery basilica next door. Another basilica is located below the bluff, just off the beach. The site is fenced off but our drone was able to capture the layout of the church - and we didn’t even crash it into the dramatic cliff face right next to the ruins!! Another Christian basilica is just to the west of Kourion, near the stadium and the Sanctuary of Apollo Hyalites. It too was fenced off.
One of the large villas excavated at Kourion has a mosaic floor in what perhaps was the dining hall. The floor is full of early Christian motifs; doves, fish, birds, and the words “ in place of rock and iron or gleaming bronze and diamonds, this house is girded with the much venerated signs of Christ”.
This is a huge and beautiful site and worth hours of exploration. the Apollo sanctuary area is also restored just enough to be able to get a good sense of what it must have been like in the 1st c AD.
Kourion Grand Basilica with the smaller adjacent Baptistery Basilica on the right
