This is mainly concerned with nature as they studied the physical world hence they are also called physicalists and cosmologists. This is a very old field of thought that was uniquely Greek. It’s amply explained by the Wikipedia article and I can’t really add anything to it since it’s so well established already. I sometimes include things just to make you aware of them and for completeness. As far as I know there is no input from anyone outside of Athens since it was so long ago.
Now this is a little different to what I usually post about but since it details the life of Saint Cyril and his brother who are responsible for the Cyrillic alphabet I thought it worthy of a reblog.
He was a wayward soul hence he wasn’t recognised in his hometown and country until much later. He traveled widely through Greece and Europe having many affairs, marrying a couple of times and producing a couple although they often died shortly afterwards. Thus his life was full of sadness which powered his poetry.
He also taught Italian and Greek to help finance his restless nature. His become disgruntled with his family and his patron which led to his inability to settle anywhere for any length of time. He was constantly moving in search of something he couldn’t quite get.
Since he died in England it wasn’t until 1960 when George Seferis was the Greek ambassador that he arranged for the body of Andreas Kalvos to be returned to his native Zakynthos.
The reasoning for this is that Dionysios’s education on Zakynthos had been in Classical Greek and when he lived in Italy, Italian. When he tried to write in a more modern form (Dimotiki) it was extremely difficult for him as there were no poems to act as a reference since they were previously in Katharevousa. Therefore, he had to create a whole catalogue by himself.
It was himself that started the poetic revolution that questioned what version of the Greek language that people write in compared with how they talk. In typical Greek fashion this was only resolved in the 1970’s. So for approx 150 years they were unable to decide which should be the official versions.
Even Byron perhaps did not have that much effect on the Greek people although he did influence Dionysios. As usual this is not always corroborated by all the sites I have read but since people of similiar minds all tend to congregate in the same place he probably did have have an effect on him.
For perhaps a more authentic take and some clarity read this Dionysios Solomos.
This was the school of literature that Aristotle Valaoritis belonged to as well as Ioannis Zampelios who are very famous Lefkádian poets. Andreas Kalvos and Dionysios Solomos are in there too. The articles written about this school will tend to focus on people known to that locality ie you come across ones written from the view of a person from Zakynthos as Dionysios Solomos was from there and this one is written from the perspective of a Lefkadian since that’s where I am. Hence I mentioned Valaoritis first where usually you would see a note about pre Solomos, Solomos, and post Solomos poets.
The Heptanese school is characterised by a love of nature, freedom and homeland with reference to the role that religion played in their lives. It was also folkloreish in content and often romantized life in a way only poetry can taking inspiration from Italy. They were written in Dimotiki or Demotic as apposed to Katharevousa which is to say its written in the common Greek that was spoken as opposed to the posher, purist form which was a simplication of Ancient Greek that was used for formal, business occasions.
As I have already written ample amounts about the Lefkadian poets and I have never been to Zakynthos I can’t tell you much more as that’s the real centre of this particular movement.
For information on the other schools of thought see here
Brain, Mouth and me have known each other a long time but we have a difficult relationship. Brain likes to learn everything in the entire world and then have Mouth recite it to all and sundry wherever possible. This creates problems for me as that’s not how you communicate with people or connect with them. It’s almost a verbal barrage of information that is nonstop and only relents when there is no more information to impart. This can take a long time and usually is stopped by them leaving as the event has finished.
The other scenario that happens is where Brain is feeling remorseful for the above situation so refuses to give Mouth any words. Even if the day has been relaxed and I have done exactly as Brain and I wanted, Brain decides No! Yes I understand what you asked, meant, what I need to say in reply to you but can Brain release those words to Mouth? Oh No!
It’s highly embarrassing after 13 years to still be unable to say “τι θα θέλατε να πιείτε?” Μια Μπύρα Παρακαλω, “μικρο η μεγάλα?”, μικρο ευχαριστώ, “τι θέλις να φάε?” θέλω ένα τσιπούρα σημερα, etc.
Thanks Brain for causing all this distress for Me by not allowing Mouth to say What would you like to drink?, A beer please, Small or Large?, Small please, What do you want to eat?, I want a sea bream today, etc
It’s not a lot to ask but to have all these words at your command yet the inability to use any of them is soul destroying.
Have you experienced this before and if so how have you overcome this?
I thought as a nice follow up I would share some of my paintings with you.
Nidri bay in watercolourVliho bay watercolourVliho bayThe sunset over the Princess Islands watercolourThe sunset over the Princess Islands.On Nidri hill watercolour paintOn Nidri hill.Dimosari waterfall acrylic paintDimosari waterfall.A mountain goat I walked acrylic paintA mountain goat I walked.A view of Nidri bay from high up acrylic paintThe view of Nidri bay from high up.
The above school was founded by Panagiotis Doxaras (1662-1729) and continued by his son Nikolaos Doxaras (1705-75). They too have a street named after them.
During Panagiotis’s life he was rewarded with land on Lefkas from the Venetians who were currently ruling. This was a reward for his services in the army. This enabled him to focus on his art and he didvided his time between where he was born in Corfu although his family was from Kalamata, Corfu and Zante.
The Heptanese school shows a gradual evolution of style away from the previous Byzantine influences towards a more Venetian style. There still religious in content but new techniques are being introduced to differentiate them from previous works. The major factor here was the introduction of oil paint instead of mixing with egg white and the move towards a Western Renaissance style in the realistic depiction of faces in portraiture.
Panagiotis also wrote on the subject of painting which was so controversial it wasn’t published until after his death and is still being debated today albeit in scholarly circles that concentrate on 18th century art.
Nikolaos, having been born in Kalamata, returned to Lefkas to join the army base here and continued painting in a style inspired by Leonardi Da Vinci and the other Italians greats in an effort to modernise Greek painting for a new era. His work is on display in Zakynthos and in the National Art Gallery of Greece in Athens.
The Heptanese school of painting also contains works by Spyridon Ventouras (1761-1833) whose work has sold well at auction previously.
There are many schools that are called Ionian/ Heptanese so you have to follow them with what they refer to ie Painting, literature, Philosophy and Music.
For a look at my other work see here Series links.
This is the 2nd oldest in Greece with only the one in Corfu being older. It took part in the 1864 union of Greece, the 1896 Olympics, the 1906 intercalculated games and in 1983 was awarded by the Academy of Athens.
There has been a famous conductor in the past called Nikos “Morinas” Thanos. He was born on Lefkás in 1930 and he was the leader of the Orfeas Music and Literature Club of Lefkáda, the Philharmonic Society of Lefkás, the Philharmonic Society of Amfilohia which is nearby and the mandolin orchestra of “Apollon” in Karya on the island.
He also has a maritime museum in the basement of the Faneromeni monastery. It contains his handmade ships and tools. There is 60 in total and there is a variety of styles from British, Egyptian, Greek, Roman and Chinese.Other museums in Lefkás
There is also a youth band festival here in the summer but when I went past I couldn’t find any opening hours. When I looked online it said it’s open 5-10pm which is very unusual.
It does however have the street it’s on named after itself so that’s handy.
Today I went to the gramophone museum and it’s really a guy’s memorial to his family as there is a picture of his parents on the wall and himself when he was a young man. It also has pictures of Aristotle Onassis, Jackie Kennedy, Maria Callas along with Angelos Sikelianos as an older man and Aristotle Valaoritis.
There is a working gramophone which he will demonstrate and the older peg version which you also get to try for yourself.
He has dramachas on display and it’s quite quaint. It reminds you of an antique shop all of these objects from yester year.
He also has syrtaki cds and one of traditional Greek music which costs €5 euros but since his English is not all that good you think that is the price of admission. It’s pretty much the only place you get to buy traditional music here though so it’s worth supporting him. He does says on his sign outside that if it’s not open call the number and he will come immediately to open up. I was initially skeptical of this because of the speed of Greek life but it may be true. However you would only know this information if you can read Greek and the reply will most likely will also be Greek so not much help to the average tourist. By the way it’s open 10-2pm and 7-10pm but don’t count on it as the first time I went at 1:30pm and it was most certainly shut with no one in sight to open up for customers.
Along with the purely Greek sign there is a small display of traditional ladies dresses with one from 1900’s and the other from 1920’s.
She was born on Lefkás and started playing piano at 6 years old. By the time she was 14 she moved to Athens to further her singing career.
She studied in Athens on a Maria Callas scholarship.
Upstairs in the music room at the top of the folklore museum in Lefkás town there is a picture of her along with Aristotle Valaoritis who was involved with many Lefkás town newspapers that previously existed and Angelos Sikelianos.
There is a Wikipedia article on her to fill in the details of her life. Agni Baltsa.
Other series include Greek Poets, Painters, Authors, Musicians, Museums, Famous Greeks, Greek islands, Rural Villages in Lefkás, specific Greek fields of interest and foreigners with an interest in Greece. All the links can be found here Series links.
He was a scholar and a folklorist responsible for the creation of the folklore museum in Lefkás town. He was born in Kavalos on the island which is near to Sfakiotes so the folklore museum there is also named after him.
Folklore museum plaque
The folklore museum is a continuation of the history of Lefkás from where the Archeological museum In Lefkás Town finished. As you may recall I said previously that there was a big gap in the history of Lefkás from when the Romans left until the Venetians turn up in the 15th century. Other museums in Lefkás details other aspects of Lefkadian life but these are based outside of Lefkas town.
The folklore museum covers the period from the Venetians in the 15th century, through the Ottoman Empire, French, British and finally when they are free to rule themselves. There is also Santa Maura fort Lefkás if you wish to see the result of these battles.
At the start, it documents the newspapers, geography and men’s occupations like the ball game they used to play which is like boules. It also talks about the activities of the market place or the special events of Easter and Faneromeni which is coming up on Monday 17th June.
The emphasis here though is very much on female life as the are drawers upon drawers of women’s clothes, there is household linen and how it was made in the first place, carpets, examples of food that they ate including information about wine, olive oil, Eglouvi lentils and bread.
It also shows upstairs the setup of a typical bedroom and dining room. There is a loom on display that they would have used so that clothes could be woven. It details the different types of dresses worn by a girl, a bride and a woman as well as Sunday dress. There differences between rural and urban ladies are listed on the wall with what was expected of both. It also talks about the dowry that went with a girl upon marriage.
In the very last room is a music room with pictures of Aristotle Valaoritis, Angelos Sikelianos and Agni Baltsa. This is to complement the bouzoukis you see in the entrance hall. For related musical posts see here:
This contains the Lefkada Hearn exhibition which contains all the information you ever need to know about him, (on your right as you walk in)
Lefkás Cultural centre, Lefkáda Hearn exhibition
The National Gallery (straight ahead)
Archeology museum (on the left)
Archeology museum poster
On the stairs leading to the basement there used to be the Nikos Svoronos Library along with the Haramoglis Library but this moved a while ago and is now looking like an abandoned office.
If you instead go up the stairs or in the lift, you can see some maps of the Lefkás area from ancient times up to more modern times. Also there is well the folklore Festivals held in Lefkás festival archives on the top floor.
It’s open from 8am-3pm all week but the archeology museum is closed on Tuesday not Monday as Google will tell you.
When Ana moved to Athens, she was excited. She couldn’t wait to meet new people, wander around the city, absorb every second of her new life there. She was prepared to face the challenges: different language, culture, mentality. New habits, new rhythm and way of life. Ana spoke some Greek already …
We then got the Speech and Art festival in 1955. After this the organiser Antonis Tzevelekis came up with the International Folklore Festival. This started in 1962 and is now held every August. Initially it had only 3 countries but has now blossomed to hundreds of thousands of participants each and every year.
Cultural festival rundown
In the above picture it notes that Maria Callas turned up in 1964 to help kick the celebrations off.
It also mentions that in 1995 the then president of the Greek parliament Apostolis Kaklamanis who was himself a Lefkádian was attending.
The organiser Antonis Tzevelekis was himself commemorated when he died in 1989 after 30 years of dedicated to the cause. He also has a street and a square dedicated to himself in Lefkás town but I’m yet to come across a statue of his.
In the Cultural centre in Lefkás town there is a floor that contains all sorts of information about the yearly folklore festival. It costs a € to enter but you won’t know this until you open the door and someone comes rushing forward to tell you.
It’s worth it though as you get to see musical instruments from past participating countries as well as national costumes and dolls.
A traditional ladies festive costumeA traditional ladies bridal costume
You can even try them on (not the above ones but a special selection provided for you.) But I didn’t get the feeling that was a good idea despite the empty changing room and available full length mirror. You get the idea your trespassing during the whole cultural centre not just the upper floor as it’s so empty. It feels abandoned despite it being open, staffed and well maintained.
There is also a room full of objects belonging to Antonis Tzevelekis and these phrases which are not translated but tell you about his life.
An excerpt from 60 years of Lefkádian artAnother excerpt from 60 years of Lefkádian art
There is of course the Mardi Gras festival they have every year to celebrate the beginning of Lent. The costumes always look fantastic from the pictures friends put online and compare to festivals I have been to like Pirates Week and Batabano in the Cayman Islands as well as Notting Hill carnival in London.
The celebrations in New Orleans, the Canary Islands and Rio de Janeiro are similar I believe as there all for the same reason.
Since I’m never here that early in the season (February) I can’t tell you or show what it’s really like. If you like Museums though check out these articles
This is the 2nd oldest in Greece with only the one in Corfu being older. It took part in the 1864 union of Greece, the 1896 Olympics, the 1906 intercalculated games and in 1983 was awarded by the Academy of Athens.
The English Introvert 