Greece
The Byzantine and ChristianMuseum in Athens is a national state-owned museum, dedicated to the Byzantine and post-Byzantine period. The museum collection contains more than 30,000 objects, such as icons, sculptures, ceramics, ecclesiastical textiles, paintings, manuscripts, works on paper, minor arts and architectural elements (wall paintings and mosaics). The artifacts cover an extensive time period, from the 3rd through the 20th century, originating not only from the Hellenic territory, but also from the wider Balkan Peninsula, Asia Minor and other areas that once belonged to the Byzantine Empire.
The permanent exhibition of the museum is divided in two main parts. The first part is dedicated to Byzantium (4th - 15th century AD) and contains 1.200 artifacts and the second part, which opened to the public just this year, entitled "From Byzantium to the modern era" presents 1.500 artworks dating from the 15th to the 20th century. The main feature of the exhibition is that, it tries to propose interpretive approaches for the understanding of the exhibits and their integration into the broader historical context of the societies that created them. Organized in themed sections, the ByzantineMuseum's permanent exhibition attempts, in other words, to communicate with today's diverse audience and to reach out to new categories of visitors.
We value the Museum's participation in the ROMA ROUTES project of great importance. Our involvement is an excellent opportunity to plan actions towards two distinct directions: On the one hand, there will be an organized attempt to attract, for the first time, to the Byzantine Museum, members of the Greek Roma community, a group of people which, among other parameters that keep them marginalized, are often excluded from access to cultural heritage and wider cultural events. On the other hand, we will enable the other visitors of the Byzantine Museum to learn about aspects of the culture, history, as well as the current living conditions of the Roma, who despite their long presence in Greece, remain an unrecognized population, inherent with prejudices and negative stereotypes.
Within this framework, the ByzantineMuseum will implement a variety of actions, which will start during the following weeks and will climax by June 2011. Specifically, we have planned:
1. Educational activities for groups of children, youth or adult Roma, as an opportunity to get acquainted with the Byzantine and ChristianMuseum, utilizing mainly the permanent, as well as the periodical exhibitions.
2. Pilot training of young Roma as informal "mediators" between the ByzantineMuseum and the community, in an attempt to establish a more stable and long term cooperation with Roma visitors.
3. Events to promote the artistic creation of the Roma.
4. Events to promote the history and the current living conditions of Roma in Greece.
Contact:
www.byzantinemuseum.gr
Byzantine & ChristianMuseum, Athens - Greece
Mr Stathis GOTSIS, Mr Panos VOSNIDIST: +30 2132139591/592
E: edu@byzantinemuseum.gr
Ms Artemis STAMATELOU
T: +30 2132139509
E: europeanprojects@byzantinemuseum.gr
