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An extensive programme of Athenian museums in 2014

01 January 2014 / 16:01:32  GRReporter
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The Acropolis Museum

The Acropolis Museum is preparing three main activities with the help of modern technology in 2014. The first and the major one will be related to a series of digital performances in the Hall of the Parthenon, where sculptures will be presented as they appeared in antiquity with the help of a three-dimensional image.

"This is something which we have already begun experimentally and will develop in the New Year for friezes, metopes and pediments. In ancient times, these sculptures did not look like they do today but had bronze parts such as weapons for warriors, horse bridles or crowns on the heads of the gods. With the digital image, the visitor will perceive a more complete image of the original form," explained Professor Dimitris Pantermalis, director of the museum.

The second archaeological activity includes the expansion of the restoration of colours and other ancient works that have retained some of their original colouring. According to Pantermalis, "the colours of at least five original works have been restored so far. In the New Year, we will recover much more, since our goal is where there is a possibility to represent colours, to do so, so that visitors can understand the original form better."

Finally, the cleaning of the caryatids will continue and the programme will expand to other exhibits. One of them is the famous statue of Procne, the daughter of King Pandion of Attica. The statue represents Procne in the dramatic moment when she decides to kill her son Ithis, in order to punish her husband. The statue is the work of famous sculptor of the 5th century BC Alkamenis.

The National Archaeological Museum

The programme of the museum in the first half of 2014 is very diverse. The exhibition “The Antikythera Shipwreck - The Ship, The treasures, The Mechanism” will be extended until 29 June 2014, because of the Greek EU Presidency.

"The exhibition was widely reported in Greece and abroad and has increased revenues of the museum from 45% to 81%," said deputy director of the museum, George Kakavas.

There will be many events related to global or commemorative days.

Thus, on Sunday, 6 April 2014, there will be a concert of a mixed European choir at the Music School of Ilion, which will include a cappella choir, as well as piano accompaniment of musical works from the 16th century until today. The choir's conductor is Antonis Palaskas. The event aims to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the opening of the National Archaeological Museum and will be held within the World Day of Monuments, which is on Good Friday this year - 18 April.

On 11 May, Sunday, the story for children from 4 to 11 will be dedicated to World Mother's Day (8 May) and on 17 May (European Museum Day) there will be a musical performance with piano, orchestra, choir and performers in the garden museum.

On 18 May, World Museum Day, there will be a musical evening with composer Mimis Plessas in the Great Hall of Vomos and the summer series of morning concerts, organized in collaboration with the Music Department will reach its peak on 21 June in order to celebrate European Music Day. The musical show "Harmony Ellinis - three millennia of Greek musical tradition" will also be held on the same day with an orchestra conducated by Konstantinos Politis and a choir. 

The Numismatic Museum

For the first half of 2014, the museum is planning:

- The completion of two periodic exhibitions: "The importance of time in antiquity", which was inaugurated on 21 October 2013 and will continue until 21 January, as well as "History of fire. Fire and money-Archaeology and fire," which will end on 31 March 2014.

-The beginning of three new periodic exhibitions: "Spiral. Primitive engravings - modern interpretations", planned to be inaugurated on 20 February and last until 20 June 2014 and which will include contemporary works by artist Takis Stefanos in a visual dialogue with works of art from prehistoric times to the 20th century; "Money in Latvia: from amber to the euro" in cooperation with the Latvian Embassy in Greece and which will be held from April to September 2014. In March 2014, the exhibition" Coins in the kingdom of Bactria" is planned to be held in cooperation with Alpha Bank.

On February 9, the periodic exhibition "Leaving a Mark on History. Treasures from Greek Museums" will end, which is a joint work of the Numismatic Museum and the National Archaeological Museum, as well as the National Archaeological Museum in Sofia.

The Museum of Cycladic Art

Until 30 March, the Museum of Cycladic Art will present the exhibition "Figures loved and idealised…". Illustrating poems by C.P.Cavafy." The exhibition presents 67 antiques in a dialogue with 27 poems of historical and mythical content of major Greek poets. Its curator is the museum’s director Professor Nicholas Chr. Stampolidis in cooperation with archaeologists Maria D.Tolis and Mimika Giannopoulou. The exhibition is organized in collaboration with the Archive of Cavafy/Onassis Foundation and the Ministry of Culture.

The Contemporary Art exhibition “Martin Kippenberger: A Cry For Freedom” will last until 26 January in cooperation with ΝΕΟΝ and curator Dimitris Paleocrassas. The exhibition presents 36 works by the German artist, paintings, sculptures, photographs and presents the human side of an artist.

A major archaeological exhibition entitled "Health, disease, treatment, from Homer to Galen" is scheduled for November 2014. This exhibition will be the second part of the trilogy of exhibitions that examine universal themes of antiquity, which began in 2010 with "Love" and will end with "Beyond" – the exhibition, which will be held at the Onassis Foundation in New York.

Finally, as part of the museum’s participation in modular activities organized by the Ministry of Culture on the occasion of the Year of El Greco (2014) and 400 years since the death of the leading Greek painter, the museum will host the exhibition "The Battle of Lepanto".

Tags: Acropolis Museum National Archaeological Museum the Numismatic Museum Museum of Cycladic art
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