Victoria street was one of the main arteries of Nicosia, joining the Paphos and Kyrenia Gates. It was first inhabited largely by prosperous Armenians whose affluence is attested in the existence of two and three-storey houses. Towards the Kyrenia Gate end, Victoria street hosted a number of brothels whose ladies became notorious for the ways in which they practised their trade and solicited the gentlemen who patronised their establishments.
The watercolour portrays the Paphos Gate end of the street in the early twentieth century. Most of the houses, and not necessarily the Turkish ones, have a kiosk, an Ottoman architectural feature adopted widely by various communities in Cyprus. The artist painstakingly tries to show the dilapidated state of the road and the poor condition of the houses suffering from dampness. The first house on the left appears to be the entrance to the Armenian church (c. 14th), the main monument in the street. Children, mothers, elderly people and animal-pulled carts create a picturesque effect attesting to the use of the street as one of the most frequented in Nicosia.
PNT-00029 > Anonymous, Victoria Street Nicosia, Watercolour, 38x23 cm, 1900.
The 'Sneak Peek' series is supported by The Hellenic Initiative Canada.
