Cyprus opens underwater sculpture museum in a bid to attract diving tourists

The museum in Ayia Napa includes more than 130 sculptures that will serve as artificial coral reefs and eventually be part of an 'underwater forest'

Cypriot freediver Angels Savvas swims through the Museum of Underwater Sculpture Ayia Napa (Musan), billed as the world’s first underwater forest, consisting of a collection of 130 submarine figurative sculptures set in a series of sculpted organic trees and subterranean plants, in the Ayia Napa resort town on the southeastern coast of Cyprus. All Photos: AFP

The Museum of Underwater Sculpture Ayia Napa (Musan) is created by world-famous reef artist Jason deCaires Taylor

Cypriot freediver Angels Savvas poses with a sculpture in the Museum of Underwater Sculpture Ayia Napa, billed as the world’s first underwater forest

The Museum of Underwater Sculpture Ayia Napa is a "symbol to enhance the story of Ayia Napa’s newly created Marine Protected Zone, whilst acknowledging the deforestation practices of the past," according to the museum's website

The underwater sculptures use pH neutral cement to facilitate coral growth

The underwater museum's "narrative questions if the next generation will reinterpret the symbiotic relationship between mankind and nature to provide a better balance in favour of nurturing fragile ecosystems, highlighting how positive human intervention in the oceans can shape a more sustainable and productive future," says the museum's website

The park rests across more than 167 metres of sand at a depth of up to 10 metres, off the coast of Cyprus

The underwater museum "repositions the visitor as the attraction and sea life as the observer, [and] the sculptural installation will entice visitors under the surface to explore the beauty of the sub-aquatic environment," according to the museum's website

The configuration of the sculptures within the museum follows the topography of the seabed sitting within the open expanse of the sand situated south of Pernera Beach in Ayia Napa

A diver swims near a sculpture during the inauguration of the underwater museum in Ayia Napa.

A diver swims near sculptures during the inauguration of the underwater museum in Ayia Napa, Cyprus.

Divers swim near sculptures during the inauguration of the underwater museum in Ayia Napa.

Divers swim near sculptures during the inauguration of the underwater museum in Ayia Napa.

A diver swims near a sculpture during the inauguration of the underwater museum in Ayia Napa.

Divers swim near sculptures during the inauguration of the underwater museum in Ayia Napa.

Divers swim near sculptures during the inauguration of the underwater museum in Ayia Napa.

Divers swim near sculptures during the inauguration of the underwater museum in Ayia Napa.

A view of sculptures during the inauguration of the underwater museum in Ayia Napa.

A view of sculptures during the inauguration of the underwater museum in Ayia Napa, Cyprus, 01 August 2021. At the new Ayia Napa Underwater Sculpture Museum (MUSAN), located in the Pernera area of Ayia Napa, visitors, both swimmers with mask and flippers and divers, will be able to tour around an underwater forest, the first of its kind in the world. The whole project is inspired by British acclaimed sculptor Jason deCaires Taylor, a representatives of the eco-art movement who is behind the world's first underwater sculpture park - the Molinere Underwater Sculpture Park in Grenada. EPA / GEORGES NICOLAOU

Divers swim near sculptures during the inauguration of the underwater museum in Ayia Napa.

Cyprus's latest tourist attraction, the Museum of Underwater Sculpture of Ayia Napa (Musan), features a collection of 130 sculptures in a newly created Marine Protected Area.

The works at the museum, located in the resort town of Ayia Napa, range from botanical to figurative, including more than 90 sculptures by Jason deCaires Taylor, a British artist known for his site-specific creations that turn into artificial coral reefs.

With more than 1,000 sculptures installed around the world, including the Great Barrier Reef, deCaires Taylor specifically works with a type of cement that enables coral growth.

The site of the museum is in a marine protected area in Pernera, on the south-eastern coast of Cyprus and was selected specifically in order to emphasise its protected status. The works are installed all the way down to about 10 metres and spread out across more than 167 metres of sand.

Musan’s sculptures are made of sea materials, including stones, rocks and shells, and are meant to live harmoniously among the marine life. The museum has stated its intent to enrich the biodiversity of the area to allow the sculptures to turn into coral reefs and eventually an “underwater forest”.

Tourism is also a goal for the Cyprus government, which has backed the establishment of the museum. In 2014, the Ayia Napa municipal council proposed the idea and work began on Musan three years later. According to the Cyprus Mail, the cost of the museum has reached €1 million.

Visitors can dive or snorkel Musan for free, although reservations must be made ahead of time. The surrounding area will also have diving centres and schools for visitors.

Cyprus has included diving and snorkelling tourism as part of its national tourism strategy for 2030. Its diving sites include the ancient ruins of the Amathus harbour in Limassol, as well the wreck of the MS Zenobia ferry, which sank off the coast of Larnaca in 1980.

With the arrival of Musan, Ayia Napa’s local government hopes to tap into this market for their town too. By the local government’s predictions, Musan will be able to bring in 50,000 visitors annually.