The archaeological museum of Tripolis is housed in a wonderful neo-classical building with a wonderfully damp and drippy basement, which is a pity as the wall-mounted exhibits have suffered as a result.
Probably in an effort to avoid photographs of exploding drippy basement wall plaster, or else because some researcher has not been properly arsed to publish his or her material, photography in the museum is banned and as a result the guards, two older ladies not so well informed about what they are watching over but certainly well enough informed of the ban will follow and hound any prospective photographer ensuring that this ban of dubious legality is not circumvented. I mention dubious legality as according to law it should be possible to photograph the exhibits free of charge for personal use in the museums of Greece. See my posts on Naxos and the New Acropolis Museum...
Anyway – so there we were in September last year on a great Peloponnesian north/south roadtrip with an overnight in Tripolis. The museum was just across the street from the hotel, and I took Ariadne and went.
Ariadne enjoys the garden of the Tripolis museum…
Once you get over the bad state of the museum itself and the museological side of things, there are a few gems housed within. On the left on the ground floor, the finds from the LHIIIC Palaiochora chamber cemetery, pretty much exclusively ceramic but certainly worth a visit. In the basement, the sculptures from the villa of Heroides Atticus are also very much worth a visit, despite whatever feelings one may have about Roman-era 'art'. Most of the rest of the museum actually reinforces whatever feelings you may have of Roman-era 'art'. Well, it did for me…
Probably in an effort to avoid photographs of exploding drippy basement wall plaster, or else because some researcher has not been properly arsed to publish his or her material, photography in the museum is banned and as a result the guards, two older ladies not so well informed about what they are watching over but certainly well enough informed of the ban will follow and hound any prospective photographer ensuring that this ban of dubious legality is not circumvented. I mention dubious legality as according to law it should be possible to photograph the exhibits free of charge for personal use in the museums of Greece. See my posts on Naxos and the New Acropolis Museum...
Anyway – so there we were in September last year on a great Peloponnesian north/south roadtrip with an overnight in Tripolis. The museum was just across the street from the hotel, and I took Ariadne and went.
Ariadne enjoys the garden of the Tripolis museum…
Once you get over the bad state of the museum itself and the museological side of things, there are a few gems housed within. On the left on the ground floor, the finds from the LHIIIC Palaiochora chamber cemetery, pretty much exclusively ceramic but certainly worth a visit. In the basement, the sculptures from the villa of Heroides Atticus are also very much worth a visit, despite whatever feelings one may have about Roman-era 'art'. Most of the rest of the museum actually reinforces whatever feelings you may have of Roman-era 'art'. Well, it did for me…
For the rest of the road trip, click:
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| 2011 Peloponnesian road trip |
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