Kleanthis' personal
history mirrors that of Cyprus. He was born in 1958 in Kyrenia, on the
northern shores of the island, one of a family of eight. When Kleanthis was
only 16, Cyprus became divided and Kleanthis had to leave for the south.
More recently he has made his temporary home in Gialia, a village vacated by
Turkish Cypriots fleeing north at the same time as Kleanthis moved south.
In April of 2003, with Cypriots suddenly once again able to cross between
north and south, Kleanthis saw his old family home again after 29 years. He
had an emotional welcome from old and new Turkish Cypriot friends and in
turn, two weeks later, he met the previous inhabitants of Gialia who
returned searching for their old homes.
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This is the mosaic which was presented at the above ceremony showing the double headed eagle, which is the emblem of the church. |
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The opening of Kleanthis' mosaic exhibition in 2001 by the then President of Cyprus, Mr Glafkos Clerides. |
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Kleanthis presents a mosaic depicting the Guard's emblem to the general of the National Guard of Cyprus, Mr Evangelos Florakis. |
Contact; kmosaics@cytanet.com.cy
Contact; kmosaics@cytanet.com.cy
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Kleanthis delivering a presentation speech to the Bishop of Pafos, Chrysostomos, now Archbishop of Cyprus. |
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The mosaic shown left is HYPERION, which was made by Kleanthis and presented to the then foreign minister of Greece, Mr George Papandreou, and is now in his collection in Greece. |
This mosaic of Byzantine horses' heads was presented to HRH Princess Anne at a reception organised by the British High Commission.
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POSEIDON, created by Kleanthis in his workshop, is 4 metres long and is fitted into the reception area of the Coral Beach Hotel, Pafos. |
Kleanthis was present at the discovery of this sarcophagus dating back to the 5th century BC: unfortunately only half of the lid was intact but he was able to hand carve an exact replica of the missing half to fit with the original. This exhibit is now on display at Kouklia Museum, Paphos.
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This photograph shows a triumphant Kleanthis at the moment he discovered the method used by the ancient sailors to load 400 amphorae onto the original Kyrenia ship. This ship and all its contents sank off Kyrenia (on the north coast of Cyprus) during the time of Alexander the Great: it was raised in 1969 and is now on display in Kyrenia Castle, but it had previously seemed improbable that the ship could have carried such an enormous cargo. |
This is Kleanthis shown during the making of a film for the USA called The Lost Atlantis, filmed on the Kyrenia Liberty
Kyrenia Liberty
a replica of the ancient ship found off the shores of Kyrenia
Kleanthis and Susan Katzev
This dedication was written to Kleanthis by Susan W Katzev: Susan and her husband Professor Michael Katzev of the USA were the archaeologist divers who raised the Kyrenia ship in 1969.
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This photograph of Kleanthis was taken after a deep sea dive to examine a wreck. |
