New
Gallery of the Bronze Age Aegean Opens November 5
Explore
the rise and enigmatic fall of once-flourishing
civilizations of the Aegean Sea
(Toronto,
Ontario – October 19, 2005) The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) is proud to
announce the opening of the new permanent Gallery
of the Bronze Age Aegean
on
the third floor of the Philosophers’ Walk building. From Saturday
November 5, 2005,
visitors can experience the diverse cultures that evolved into modern-day
Greece. With more than
300
artifacts on display, the gallery explores the rise and enigmatic fall of
once-flourishing civilizations in the Aegean region – on the Cycladic
islands, on the island of Crete and mainland Greece – from approximately
3000 to 1100 BC.
“The
Museum’s beautiful Gallery of Greece has always been a focal point for
visitors,” says William Thorsell, the ROM’s Director and CEO. “Now,
with the creation of the permanent Gallery of the Bronze Age Aegean,
visitors will be introduced to the early civilizations that helped mould
modern Greece.”
The
Aegean Bronze Age is unique in that it was not one specific area that
excelled but a group of civilizations at different times, stretching over
nearly two thousand years of history.
Each
culture – Cycladic, Minoan, and Mycenaean – took centre stage at
different eras in the Bronze Age. An impressive far-reaching trade network
was established in the Eastern Mediterranean during the Bronze Age with
Cyprus being the Aegean civilization’s main source for copper. Objects
were then exported far and wide, supporting the continued bronze
trade.
“The
new Gallery of the Bronze Age Aegean offers visitors the opportunity to
see the ROM’s important collection of Cycladic, Minoan, and Mycenaean
art for the first time in 25 years,”
says Paul Denis, Curator of the Greek and Roman collections at the ROM.
“We are very grateful for the generous support of the Government of
Greece and the Greek Communities of Canada for helping bring this
wonderful new space to the public.”
The
gallery features splendid marble vessels and small abstract human
figurines from the flourishing culture of the Cyclades, north of Crete.
The Minoan section is highlighted by a large larnax (or coffin) and a fine
selection
of vases. On mainland Greece, the powerful Mycenaeans emerged around 1600
BC. Their art, greatly influenced by that of Crete, is represented by a
series of important vases and a glass necklace.
The
Cycladic period (3200 to 2000 BC) centred on the culture that flourished
on the Cyclades, an island group south-east of the Greek mainland; the
nearly 200 islands form what could be considered the Greek archipelago in
the Aegean Sea. The period is known for its splendid female figurines made
from the island’s pure white marble. The Minoan period (2000 to 1100 BC)
flourished on the island of Crete, to
the
south of the Cyclades islands. The name Minoan was coined by Sir Arthur
Evans after the mythical king Minos.
The
Royal Ontario Museum’s earliest acquisitions of Minoan artifacts were
excavated in 1903 by its first director, Dr. C.T. Currelly. These were
clay votive figurines originating from the peak sanctuary at Petsophas.
Minoans worshipped in these peak sanctuaries or in caves. Religious themes
can be seen throughout this section of the gallery, as well as many
beautiful vases and terracotta figures.
The
last phase and height of the Aegean Bronze Age is the Mycenaean period
(1600 to 1050 BC). This culture flourished on mainland Greece and was
named after the principal city-state of Mycenae, home of
King
Agamemnon of Homer’s Iliad and
Odyssey. This
was also a time when fortified palaces were centres of power and commerce.
Artifacts from the ROM’s collection take centre stage in this section: a
fine glass
necklace
– the earliest example of glassmaking in Western Europe – as well as
vases and religious works.
The
Mycenaean period evolved into what archaeologists now consider a dark age,
ca. 1050 to 800 BC. It is not known why or how these prosperous cultures
started to slowly decline, but there is evidence
pointing
to mass destruction, depopulation and economic decay. Nearly 70 per cent
of the population left mainland Greece, with those remaining living in
small isolated farming communities, with very little contact with the
outside world.
The
Gallery of the Bronze Age Aegean is connected to the new Geometric
Gallery. The Geometric period (1050 to 700 BC) marked the beginning of the
Iron Age in Greece. Between 800 and 700 BC, a
revitalized
Greek civilization emerged focused around the city of Athens. During this
period, the Greek language and alphabet were established, as were cities
and in 776 BC, the Olympic Games. This period
also
marks the Greek colonization of southern Italy, Sicily and Asia Minor. The
art is very formalized, including human figures rendered in geometric
shapes.
The
Gallery of the Bronze Age Aegean, generously supported by the Hellenic
Republic and the Greek Communities of Canada, and the new A.G. Leventis
Foundation Gallery of Ancient Cyprus will open on
Saturday
November 5, 2005. The galleries work together to tell the story of early
Greek and Cypriote cultures before visitors enter the large open Gallery
of Greece, where the story of Greece continues with the Archaic, Classical
and early Hellenistic periods (600 to 300 BC).
A
symposium celebrating the opening of the ROM’s new Gallery of the Bronze
Age Aegean and the A.G.
Leventis
Foundation Gallery of Ancient Cyprus will take place on opening day,
Saturday November 5, 2005. Sponsored by the Hellenic Republic and the
Greek Communities of Canada, and the A.G. Leventis
Foundation,
five free
public lectures will be held at the
Isabel Bader Theatre (140 Charles Street West, Victoria University in the
University of Toronto) from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Each 40-minute lecture will
be
illustrated
with slides or Powerpoint images. See separate release, “Free Lectures
Celebrate Two New Gallery Openings”, for more information.
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Background:
The
Royal Ontario Museum (ROM)
is an agency of the Government of Ontario. Created in 1912, Canada’s
largest museum of natural history and world cultures has six million
objects in its collections and galleries showcasing art, archaeology and
natural science. March 19, 2004 marked the 90th anniversary of the ROM.
Renaissance
ROM is an ambitious expansion and
heritage renovation project that will transform the Royal Ontario Museum
into one of North America's great museums and a leading cultural
attraction for the city, province and country. The Museum's vast
collections, some of which have never before been displayed, will be
showcased in over 300,000 square feet of dramatic new and expanded
galleries and public spaces. A major new wing, the Michael
Lee-Chin Crystal, is being added to
the Museum,
designed
by renowned architect Daniel Libeskind in a joint venture with Bregman +
Hamann Architects. Haley Sharpe Design leads the gallery design process
and Vanbots Construction Corp. is Construction Manager. The Hon. Hilary M.
Weston leads an 80-member fundraising Campaign Cabinet that held its
Groundbreaking and Campaign Launch on May 28, 2003. The renovated heritage
galleries and Michael Lee-Chin
Crystal will open in stages from
December 26, 2005 through 2007. Renaissance ROM will allow the ROM to
expand its public programming, scientific research and educational
mandates.
