“The countless aspects of Beauty” at the Silversmithing Museum, in Ioannina

“The countless aspects of Beauty”
at the Silversmithing Museum, in Ioannina

The exhibition “The countless aspects of Beauty” is presently on view at the Silversmithing Museum, in the Castle of Ioannina (Citadel of Its Kalé). This is the second station of the itinerant exhibition comprising ancient artefacts from the National Archaeological Museum (NAM), which started off in Sparta, at the Museum of the Olive and Greek Olive Oil and, after Ioannina, will move to the Museum of Marble Crafts on Tinos, also part of the Museum Network established and run by the Piraeus Bank Group Cultural Foundation (PIOP). In its present location, the itinerant exhibition was co-organised by NAM and PIOP with the support of the Municipality of Ioannina.

Following the rationale of the large-scale temporary exhibition of the same title, which will be inaugurated on May 21st at National Archaeological Museum, the exhibition records mankind’s attempt through the ages to seek out Beauty and incorporate it into daily life, capturing it in art works, personal toilet articles and utensils of an everyday use.

In the context of the two-year collaboration between NAM and PIOP, forty ancient artefacts were selected from among the collections of Greece’s leading museum dating from prehistoric through to Roman times; many of them are being presented to the public for the first time, whereas all of them constitute brief comments-references to some of the aspects of Beauty. The criterion of their selection was based on the thematic subjects of the PIOP museums where they are being presented. Thus, the exhibition’s focus was on caring for the body with oils and perfumes in Sparta, while it is jewellery that is centre stage in Ioannina, with characteristic marble works of the Cycladic civilisation to become the pole of attraction on Tinos.

A statuette of the goddess Aphrodite flanked by winged Eroses welcomes the visitor, who will then have the opportunity to admire Cycladic figurines, vessels and miniatures. In the Silversmithing Museum, a particular place is occupied by pieces of jewellery made of gold, exquisite ancient ornaments from NAM’s collections, which converse with the silver jewellery and costume accessories of modern times (19th-20th century). As for the latter, these are articles either belonging to the Silversmithing Museum’s collection, or on loan to PIOP for the needs of the exhibition from the Municipality of Ioannina’s Department of Bequests, the Municipal Museum of Ioannina, the Museum of Ali Pasha and the Revolutionary Period (Fotis Rapakoussis Collection), and Mr Konstantinos Ioannidis. Most of these are from Ioannina and the wider region of Epirus, but representative samples from other parts of Greece are also displayed. With shaping techniques, such as hammering and casting, and decorating techniques, such as embossing, saváti (niello) and enamel, but also with mixed techniques, such as the popular filigree work, the craftsmen imprint on their pieces of jewellery the collective aesthetics, historical memory, as well as the social and ethnic identity of their owners. The wide range of techniques used to make and decorate them bear witness to the legacy in terms of know-how and also to the fine craftsmanship and refinement of their creators.

The ultimate goal of the collaboration between NAM and PIOP is for these exhibitions in the Greek provinces to function as “satellites” of the country’s most important museum, offering local societies the possibility to enjoy milestone works of Ancient Greek civilisation from the National Archaeological Museum’s unique collections.

The itinerant exhibition “The countless aspects of Beauty” is part of
the activities marking the European Year of Cultural Heritage 2018.

The exhibition runs from 26 April through to 17 June 2018
Opening hours: daily, except Tuesdays, 10am – 6pm

With the support of the Municipality of Ioannina	Sponsor

Silversmithing Museum
Citadel of Its Kalé, GR-452 21 Castle of Ioannina
T: (+30) 2651 064065 | www.piop.gr
 piopnews