The Antikythera shipwreck, the hunt of antiquity thieves, and an exhibition exploring the healing practices of the Ancient Hellenes

Sometimes there is quite a bit of interesting news, but it's not big enough to warrant its own post. I'll collect a few of those today--on the Antikythera shipwreck, the hunt of antiquity thieves, and an exhibition exploring the healing practices of the Ancient Hellenes.


Public to get sneak peek at Antikythera shipwreck finds

Scientists exploring the 1st century BC Antikythera shipwreck off Greece’s southern coast will be unveiling findings from the first part of an international mission in Piraeus on Wednesday report Ekthimerini.

Underwater Antiquities Ephorate chief Angeliki Simosi has revealed that the event at the Laskaridis Foundation Library will include the display of a few of the finds made at the site that yielded the world’s oldest computer.


Greek Professor Chasing Antiquity Thieves Around the World

Let's applaud a hero today. Dr. Christos Tsirogiannis has been working as a Research Assistant in the Scottish Center for Crime and Justice Research at the University of Glasgow. His job entails the tracking and procurement of antiquities that are being illegally sold.

Just a few days ago, Tsirogiannis was able to track an ancient Sardinian marble statue of a woman who was dated to 2,000 BC, that was featured in a Christie’s auction. He immediately came in contact with U.S. and Italian police forces and managed to procure the 1.2 million dollar antiquity. The statue was featured in the files of Giacomo Medici, an Italian art dealer that has been sentenced for antiquity smuggling. This, however, is not the first time that Tsirogiannis was able to save an ancient artifact. Between 2004 and 2008 he worked on 174 similar cases in Greece, while over the last decade he has managed to procure at least 1,000 antiquities.

One of his associates in the antiquities smuggling unit in Athens had provided Tsirogiannis with the personal files of various smugglers such as Giacomo Medini, Symes and Michaelides. He uses the files to compare pictures of antiquities that have been stolen with auction databases and identify any object that might be sold illegally. He has been able to find 721 antiquities just through the Symes-Michaelides files.


Exhibition explores the healing practices of the Ancient Hellenes

From the dawn of its existence, humanity has strived to improve all aspects of living conditions. Achieving and maintaining good health, seeking to understand the causes of diseases and, mainly, searching for solutions to fight and treat illnesses have been a primary concern and interest throughout all periods of civilization.

The Museum of Cycladic Art presents the major archaeological exhibition Hygieia: Health, Illness and Treatment from Homer to Galen, focusing on the universal subject of Health, providing an overview of the evolution of ancient medical practices: the transition from magico-religious healing practices to rational, scientific medicine.

The exhibition presents approximately 300 artefacts with the participation of 41 international museums, including the Louvre, the British Museum, the National Archaeological Museum of Athens, the Musei Capitolini. Read more here.