Cycladic snapshots of the monuments and their people

An excellent exhibition, with the participation of the Ephorate of Antiquities of the Cyclades, institutions of the Church of Greece and material from the Ministry of Culture, and the French School of Athens, eloquently presents the difficult task of saving the monuments of the Cyclades. The exhibition which opened in November of 2018 and ends on February 2019, managed to attract the interest of hundreds of visitors regarding this exceptional saving work carried out in the Cyclades.

The exhibits, many of which are exhibited for the first time since the late 19th century, highlight the unique archaeological and cultural wealth of the Cyclades, while they reveal the extremely hard and tireless work of the people who have undertaken the rescue of the Cyclades’ monuments. The layout of the exhibition is chronological starting from the first excavations in Delos and Rhenia in the 19th century, focusing on the efforts of the French School of Athens and the Archaeological Service of the newly established at that time Greek state.

 The interest of the exhibition focuses on Nicholas Zafiropoulos, who among other things highlights the cemetery of ancient Thera in Sellada, revealing findings of rare beauty, with greater that of the model of a little house with 103 objects.

 In the last section of the exhibition are presented the efforts to preserve major Byzantine and post-Byzantine monuments and objects, Byzantine icons and wall paintings, with prominent among them the icon with Byzantine style painted by El Greco which was found in Syros in 1983. A rare wealth regarding the cultural continuity of the Cyclades which we should not miss!