1950

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When the prison was closed in 1940, the Castle passed into the custody of the Department of Antiquities. It had meanwhile been decided, on the recommendation of the Limassol District Antiquities Committee, to establish a local Museum in the Castle. However, the task of adapting the building for this purpose could not be undertaken till after the war

Adaptation of the Castle for Museum purposes.

The work was put in hand by the Antiquities Department in April 1947, the District Antiquities Committee having agreed with the proposals put before them. The internal walls, from which the modern plaster and whitewash had previously been removed, were first repaired where necessary at a cost of £200 to the Department's funds.

In June, with a special grant of £700 from the Government and £100 contributed by the Municipality of Limassol, the necessary alterations and improvements were started. The unsightly wooden galleries were removed and two main exhibition rooms were provided by restoring the floor between the two storeys of cells. The lower room was closed by rebuilding its west wall, which had been demolished when the building was in use for prison purposes.

The upper part of the derelict staircase was reconstructed and the lower part moved to a convenient position near the entrance. The unsightly roof over the upper exhibition room was concealed by a plaster ceiling and the shutters in its windows were replaced by glass.

In the western section of the lower part of the spiral staircase leading to the roof was reconstructed, and the passage leading to the basement vaults in the eastern section was enlarged and made safe. Finally, electric light was installed in all parts of the building insufficiently lit by daylight.

In all these works the Department was much aided by the advice and assistance of Mr. John Pericleous, the member of the District Antiquities Committee deputed for the purpose. Nor could they have been carried out for the relatively small sum of £800 without the contributions in material and free labour which he obtained from various citizens of Limassol.

What remains to be done.

The provision of cases and the arrangements of the exhibits, which will be supplemented from the Cyprus Museum, where possible, will be carried out in 1950 with a further Government grant of £100. In addition funds have been voted by Government to the Antiquities Department for the payment of a full-time caretaker. However, a recent inspection of the building by the District Antiquities Committee showed that in its present condition the Castle was not ready for use as a Museum, pending completion of certain outstanding works. These, with their estimated cost, are as follows:

(1) Provision /