Page 46 - MYCONIAN COLLECTION MAGAZINE 2024

SA CRED ISLA ND

Delos Museum of Delos, established in “IN THE FIRST CENTURY BC, there were
A LIVING MUSEUM
approximately 30,000 inhabitants on this
Alongside the Archaeological
small island in the Cyclades. Most of them
A REALM natural landscapes are safeguarded, were Athenians, but there were also people
1931 and expanded in 1972, the
island itself stands as an open-air
from other parts of the Mediterranean.
museum. Spanning various ancient
They lived peacefully, they wrote and spoke
epochs, its myriad antiquities and
Greek and they worshipped their gods”, the
of Ancient Majesty curated, and cherished under the Director of the Ephorate of Antiquities of
stewardship of the Ephorate of
Cyclades, Dr Dimitris Athanasoulis, begins.
Antiquities of the Cyclades.
Firmly grounded in today’s world, with
a scientific background and a vision for
contemporary archaeological sites and
museums, the archaeologist uses simple
words to impart his knowledge and share
his love of narratives of the past. “This
era is typical of Delos, as it is only here
and nowhere else in Greece that visitors
can grasp the meaning of the first instinct
for globalisation which materialised in
the Hellenistic kingdoms after the death
of Alexander the Great. That part of the
city, which is still in the process of being
excavated, is in excellent condition. So, we
could say that during that period, Delos
was a huge multicultural centre, similar to
the Mykonos of today. Visitors to Delos are
mainly tourists who choose Mykonos for
its attractions, and take the trip to Delos
because of its proximity”, Athanasoulis
makes clear from the beginning. “So, this
is a very interesting, paradoxical pair of
attractions for visitors.
Truly incomparable What is Mykonos today? A world-renowned
cosmopolitan island, one big party! To
use one of Foucault’s favourite terms, it is
and among the a heterotopia. Visitors to Mykonos escape
their daily life and find themselves in an
environment where ‘non-time’ prevails; a
Mediterranean's time for unlimited entertainment. During
their stay, there is no sense of time, as they
foremost historical and find themselves in a timeless place. Delos,
however, is the exact opposite. As with
every museum or archaeological site, it is
mythological treasures, a time warp – for example, when you climb
up the Acropolis, you travel back to the 5th
century BC. The advantage to Delos is that
Delos embodies history you experience the journey back in time
even as you travel there, reaching the island
by a small boat much like the inhabitants of
itself—an experience old. The boat trip is a prelude. So, this is the
first reason why it is worthwhile for revellers
that transcends time. of ‘non-time’ Mykonos to visit Delos and
experience these extreme contrasts. It is a
voyage of a different kind, something worth
getting your head around – and whatever
your state of mind, you cannot avoid a sense
of altered states whilst on Delos! Although

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