A unique exhibition where through images are unfolded city-ports developed during the Medieval era in the Aegean, the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, will be presented to the residents and visitors of Odessa from Thursday 5th September 2013 at the Branch of the Hellenic Foundation for Culture.
It is a visual journey to the maritime routes of the East, the journey of “Olkas”, the Byzantine merchant ship carrying goods and for centuries connecting people, cities, ports and cultures. This time, “olkas” carries unique historical images, prints, gravures, postcards and photographs, all presented for the first time in a manner that promotes the history of each port city and its cultural heritage.
Thessaloniki, Chalkidiki, Kavala, Avdera, Thasos, Maronia, Istanbul, Sozopol, Varna, Anchialos, Constanta, Odessa, Sevastopol, Batumi, Baku and other eighteen ports are the stations of our journey which starts from the northern Aegean, continues to Istanbul, the largest cultural and political centre of the era, and enters the area of the Black Sea heading for the ports of Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Georgia. By the port of Baku “olkas” passes in the Caspian Sea opening new roads to the maritime routes of the East.
Sailing from port to port the myth meets the history and the present, and visitors have the opportunity of a visual travel through which they become aware of the history and get inspired for their own real journey at the mythical area of the Black Sea.
The exhibition is organized by the European Centre of Byzantine and Post Byzantine Monuments (E.K.B.M.M.) in cooperation with the Branch of the Hellenic Foundation for Culture, Cultural Centre of the Region of Central Macedonia and the Centre for Study and Development of Greek Civilization of the Black Sea. It is included in the actions of the Project “OLKAS: From the Aegean to the Black Sea. Medieval Ports in the Maritime Routes of the East”.
The project “OLKAS” is funded by the European program «Joint Operational Program “BLACK SEA 2007-2013″» and by national resources and is coordinated by the European Centre of Byzantine and Post Byzantine Monuments (E.K.B.M.M.). Its aim is to create an inter-state cooperation network among the Black Sea countries, to record and promote the common medieval cultural heritage and to develop cultural tourism. Six Black Sea region countries including Greece, Turkey, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Romania and Georgia have undertaken the study, promotion and enhancement of the medieval cultural heritage of each country.
Opening of the exhibition: Thursday 5th September 2013, Time 16.00
Duration: 5/09/2013 – 30/10/2013
