Posted by inka on Nov 14, 2012 in
art,
Day trips,
Greece trips,
Greek islands Don’t we all admire the fabulous Greek statues, some of immense size as the kouros to be found in the Historical Museum of the Greek island of Samos.
However, masters as the stone masons and artists of antiquity were, they were only human which means that sometimes they botched a job. Scarcely will we see anything less than perfect and if bits and pieces are missing it’s due to the passing of thousands of years, not to a lack of skill. A curious and interesting exception is the famous kouros, much visited on the Cycladic island of Naxos.
Near the town of Apollonas in the far north of the island are several marble quarries where some of the enormous statues were hewn out of the rock. And so was this ten meter long kouros, believed to have been designed as a statue of either Apollo or Poseidon. But, somehow the old masters got it wrong and the piece broke at the neck. What to do? Well, obviously, it couldn’t be moved anywhere, so it was just abandoned and left lying unfinished on its back for 2500 years.
For some reason I found this unfinished masterpiece even more interesting than the perfect statues and , standing at its feet, could just visualize the ancient stone masters, scratching their head when they heard the almighty ‘crack’. Couldn’t you? Have you seen a botched masterpiece anywhere in the world?
Tags: greek islands, greek statues, naxos, samos
Posted by inka on Apr 6, 2012 in
Day trips,
Festivals,
Greek islands Easter is the most important religious celebration of the Greek Orthodox Church, even more important than Christmas. Accordingly, many traditions and customs are being observed which vary from island to island and even from the mainland. Although I can’t go this year, I have been in the past and the experience of the Lighting of the Candles in church on the night of Holy Saturday is something which deeply moves the soul, regardless to your own religion or even if you have none.
I, of course have it good, because I have not one but two Greek islands practically at my door step: Kos and Samos. A short ferry ride from either Bodrum or Kusadasi and I am in a different country, a different world and never is it more spectacular than at Easter.
Ferries to Samos
One of Samos' spectacular sites
Festivity is in the air and godparents buy their godchildren new clothes. Eggs are boiled and painted red. Why red? Well, there are several stories and explanations. One is to represent the blood Christ shed to redeem mankind. Another is, that the Virgin Mary wept bloody tears when her son died and they happened to fall upon a basket of eggs she was carrying, dying them red. Yet another tells of a woman who carried a basket with eggs. When she heard about the resurrection, she didn’t believe it and exclaimed: ‘The dead won’t rise from their graves as unlikely as these eggs will turn red.’ Which, of course, they did!
Good Friday is dominated by processions. The image of Christ, covered in flowers, it taken out of the church and carried around the villages to the cemetery. People follow, many of them on their knees. At the cemetery candles are lit in memory of the dead. As you can see, candles play a major role in Greek Easter celebrations.
On Holy Saturday, mess starts at 11pm. Shortly before midnight, all lights are extinguished. At midnight, the priest comes out from behind the altar with a lighted candle and the light is passed on from person to person accompanied by rejoicing in the resurrection of Christ.
The traditional meal on Holy Saturday is magiritsa, a hot soup made from lamb intestine. Easter Sunday people attend another mess in church and feast at home on roast lamb, easter cake and lots of wine and ouzo.
Kos’s Easter specialty are cheese pies. Eggs are bumped and cracked between people, a tradition which goes back to Byzantine times when this was done with the King and Queen.
If you really want to see the Greeks have fun and celebrate, try to make it to one of the islands at Easter.
Tags: easter eggs, easter in greece, greek religious holidays, kos, samos
Posted by inka on Apr 29, 2011 in
Greek islands Don’t we all admire the fabulous Greek statues, some of immense size as the kouros to be found in the Historical Museum of the Greek island of Samos.
However, masters as the stone masons and artists of antiquity were, they were only human which means that sometimes they botched a job. Scarcely will we see anything less than perfect and if bits and pieces are missing it’s due to the passing of thousands of years, not to a lack of skill. A curious and interesting exception is the famous kouros, much visited on the Cycladic island of Naxos.
Near the town of Apollonas in the far north of the island are several marble quarries where some of the enormous statues were hewn out of the rock. And so was this ten meter long kouros, believed to have been designed as a statue of either Apollo or Poseidon. But, somehow the old masters got it wrong and the piece broke at the neck. What to do? Well, obviously, it couldn’t be moved anywhere, so it was just abandoned and left lying unfinished on its back for 2500 years.
For some reason I found this unfinished masterpiece even more interesting than the perfect statues and , standing at its feet, could just visualize the ancient stone masters, scratching their head when they heard the almighty ‘crack’. Couldn’t you? Have you seen a botched masterpiece anywhere in the world?
Tags: kouros, naxos, samos
