Not far from Nicosia, one of the most famous active Orthodox monasteries in Cyprus, the Maheras Monastery, is nestled among lush forests. It got its name thanks to the miracle-working icon of the Mother of God Maheriotissa, which translates as "knife". According to legend, the icon, written by the Apostle Luke, was brought to Cyprus from Constantinople at the time of iconoclasm and hidden in the mountains. For a long time no one knew exactly where it was. But in the 12th century, two hermit monks Ignatius and Neophytos managed to find a cave, which served as a hiding place for the icon. To get through the thick bushes into the cave, the monks used a knife found nearby. Since in Greek the word "knife" sounds like "Maheri", the icon itself and the monastery built on the site of the cave were named Maheras.
Funds for the construction of the monastery at the request of Neophytes and Ignatius were allocated by the Emperor of Constantinople Manuel Comnenus himself - at first a small chapel was put there, and over time a whole complex with a church, residential and household buildings appeared on that site, which was actively developing. In addition, Maheras received the status of stavropigial, i.e. independent of local dioceses, but subordinate directly to the patriarch.
Unfortunately, two large-scale fires - in 1530 and 1892 - almost completely destroyed the monastery, only the famous icon of the Mother of God was saved. Even the very knife with which it was found was burnt. However, gradually Maheras, though slowly, was restored. It was rebuilt again only by 1900.
After Cyprus gained independence in 1960, the life of the monastery improved - all the buildings were restored, new chapels and churches appeared. A monument to Gregory Afxentiou, the "Eagle of Maheras", the hero of Cyprus during the struggle against the British colonisers, was erected there.
At present, Maheras is home to a few dozen monks who are engaged in agriculture.
