Press release
"In Minos' Labyrinth"
Crete -- the first advanced European civilization
January 27th to April 29th, 2001 in the Karlsruhe Castle
The first major special exhibition about Minoan Crete
The first comprehensive exhibition of Minoan art and culture to be seen outside of Greece will be held in the Badisches Landesmuseum from January 27th to April 29th, 2001 in the Karlsruhe Castle. Europe's first advanced civilization will come alive through masterpieces, some up to 5,000 years old, that have been borrowed from international museums.
The everyday life and the splendor of palace culture on Crete, the island of the legendary King Minos, will be presented in a large-scale exhibition covering over 1,500 m2. Approximately 460 exhibition items on loan from museums in Greece, Germany, England, France, Holland, Switzerland, Lebanon, and Israel provide an overview of the entire time span of the Minoan culture from the Iron Age (around 3000 BC) to its final collapse in approximately 1200 AD. These items include precious jewelry, valuable pottery, fragments of famous colorful murals, stone and bronze vessels, seal stones and rings, writing tablets, sarcophagi, tools, weapons and the man-sized storage vessels typical for the Minoans.
Minoan culture
Cretan culture began developing almost 5000 years ago, and when it reached its high point around 2000 BC, it was comparable to the other major civilizations of the period in Egypt and in the Middle East. As excellent sailors, the Minoans maintained extensive trade relationships and controlled the seas around Crete. They were not only imaginative inventors and masterful architects and administrators, they also developed the first writing system in Europe. We have its artists and craftsmen to thank for some of the finest works of art of the time period. In addition to the unusually life-like depictions of animals and plants, the double axe and steer are repeated throughout, the most important symbols of the Cretan religion.
The exhibition
This unparalleled exhibition in the Karlsruhe Castle is divided into several categories which will illustrate life as it was in Minoan Crete. Exhibition visitors will gain insight into myths, sacred and religious cults, palace culture, daily life, sea and trade relationships, and Minoan-Mykenian Crete after the first invasions from the mainland.
After its collapse, Minoan civilization remained long forgotten until British archeologist Sir Arthur Evans began with the first excavations. The exhibition will also cast light on the exciting history of this impressive discovery.
Marc Cameron's fresco reconstructions are an "exhibition within the exhibition." In the 1960s this British archaeologist developed a new interpretation of Minoan imagery and symbolism. On the basis of his own research and the most current studies, he produced color drawings of these impressive murals which, in the context of a comprehensive presentation of the Minoan civilization, will now be shown for the first time.
In Minos' Labyrinth. Crete -- the first advanced European civilization
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In addition, several specially-prepared models of Minoan architecture will be presented.
For example, the Karlsruhe-based designers Uta and Peter Gautel have built the world's first authentic replica of the unique palace grounds of Knossos, "Minos' labyrinth."
The exhibition's architect, Kurt Ranger from Stuttgart, uses his arrangements to make the world of the Minoans come alive in a most impressive way. He has achieved this especially through his design of the holy shrines, the palaces and the Cretan landscape.
At the end of the exhibition, a typical Greek tavern offering Cretan cuisine provides the museum visitor with an opportunity to relax.
The accompanying program
Visitors of all ages are invited on the weekends to get some hands-on experience in an archaeological workshop in the "Grabungshaus" (excavation house). Other workshops are available which will introduce adults to the art of Minoan pottery making and mural painting and to the latest techniques of excavation and archaeological documentation.
In order to provide a comprehensive picture of the island of Crete and its culture, entertaining and informative special events will also accompany the exhibition. Interesting lectures will address individual aspects of the exhibition itself or present the traditional music and literature of Crete. The offerings are rounded out by "Cretan evenings" with a special tour followed by dinner in Kafenion, a film evening, concerts and a dance course. The highlight of the accompanying program is the German-Greek Easter celebration, which will be held in the Karlsruhe Castle on April 15th, 2001, the date for Easter among all Christian churches.
The catalogue
A 372-page catalogue containing approximately 770 pictures has been published by Biering and Brinkmann for the occasion of the exhibition. This volume, which could become the standard work on Minoan culture, can be purchased in the Badisches Landesmuseum for DM 58 (DM 78 hardcover) and is also available in bookstores.
Tours
An audio tour is included in the admission fee of DM 12 (reduced admission DM 8). Public tours held daily at 3 pm cost an additional DM 4.
Opening times
Tuesday through Sunday, 10 am - 6 pm.
Project director: Prof. Dr. Michael Maaß, Tel. 0721 / 926 6525, Fax: ... 6537
Badisches Landesmuseum Karlsruhe – Pressestelle – Schloss – 76131 Karlsruhe
Ursula RichardtTel. 0721 / 926 6389 – Fax: 0721 / 926 6801 – E-Mail:
Nina GotheTel. 0721 / 926 6339 – Fax: 0721 / 926 6801 – E-Mail: