Nektarios Karadimas (Aegeus - Society for Aegean Prehistory)
Swedish Institute at Athens (Μitseon 9, Acropolis Metro station)
In his recent film entitled “Kapodistrias”, the award-winning director Yiannis Smaragdis presented a meeting between Ioannis Kapodistrias and the Austrian Chancellor, Klemens von Metternich, at the Congress of Vienna in 1815. There, Metternich, arguing that no Greek race exists, received the following reply from Kapodistrias: “The race I speak of is descended from three civilisations: the Minoan, the classical Greek and the Byzantine. What other people possess a triple civilisation?” Could this immensely important Greek politician, in 1815 –or even at any point up to the end of his life– has given such an answer?
Stella Spantidaki (ARTEX Centre – Hellenic Centre for Research and Conservation of Archaeological Textiles)
Swedish Institute at Athens (Μitseon 9, Acropolis Metro station)
Οι περισσότερες πληροφορίες που διαθέτουμε για την τεχνολογία των μυκηναϊκών υφασμάτων προέρχονται από δεδομένα της ανακτορικής περιόδου (ΥΕ ΙΙΙ) και βασίζονται κυρίως σε έμμεσες πηγές, όπως γραπτές μαρτυρίες, εργαλεία κλωστοϋφαντουργίας, εικονογραφία και άλλα αρχαιολογικά ευρήματα. Γνωρίζουμε, πράγματι, πως τα μυκηναϊκά ανάκτορα ήλεγχαν μια ισχυρή «βιομηχανία» υφασμάτων που αποτελούσε σημαντικό κλάδο της οικονομίας και στην οποία εμπλεκόταν μεγάλο μέρος του πληθυσμού. Ωστόσο, οι γνώσεις μας για τα υφάσματα της πρώιμης Μυκηναϊκής περιόδου είναι πολύ περιορισμένες.
Swedish Institute at Athens (Μitseon 9, Acropolis Metro station)
The so-called “Strong Building” is one of the largest and most significant buildings of the Minoan settlement at Kato Zakros and has yielded a rich assemblage of artifacts. Recently, the study of its architectural features and movable finds was completed and has highlighted its distinctive layout and internal organization, the function of its rooms and the range of activities that took place within, thus offering a starting point for studying the composition and the character of the domestic group that inhabited it.
Artemios Oikonomou (Fitch Laboratory, British School at Athens)
Swedish Institute at Athens (Μitseon 9, Acropolis Metro station)
Glass has a fascinating history of more than 4000 years from today which reflects a captivating journey of innovation and cultural exchange. In the Late Bronze Age, glass was mostly manufactured in Egypt and Mesopotamia while the Mycenaeans had a significant role and were involved mostly to glassworking rather than glassmaking activities.
