The best known and most noteworthy inventions of the ancient Greeks, some of which are revolutionary even by today’s standards, are presented at the 80th TIF Event, from 5-13 September, at the Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre. 

At the same time, along with the inventions, the musical instruments of the ancient Greeks are also coming to life in an unprecedented exhibition that proves that Greece is where the foundations for Western Civilization were laid. 

The “Most important inventions of the ancient Greeks” Exhibition reveals 40 exceptional machines and inventions, from Philon’s “robot-maid” and Aeneas’ hydraulic telegraph to Heron’s “cinema”, and from Ctesibius’ automatic clock and Ptolemy’s astrolabe to the analogue computer of Antikythera.

The exhibits come from Kostas Kotsanas’ Museum of Ancient Greek Technology, based in Katakolo and Ancient Olympia, which was was created after many years of detailed research of ancient Greek, Latin and Arabic scholarly texts, information found on vases and very few related archaeological finds. 

The exhibition aspires to promote this relatively unknown aspect of ancient Greek civilization and to prove that the technology of the ancient Greeks shortly before the end of the ancient Greek world was shockingly similar to the beginning of modern era technology.

Furthermore, “The Musical Instruments of the Ancient Greeks” Exhibition includes 42 reconstructed musical instruments from Kostas Kotsanas’ Museum of Ancient Greek Musical Instruments and Toys, which is also based in Katakolo. 

The musical instruments are fully operational and dependable and their construction is based exclusively on ancient Greek texts and depictions on vases. 

Some of the exhibits are: Pythagoras’ monochord, helicon and syntone, which the great philosopher used in order to study musical scales and proved the mathematical relationships that define them, Hermes’ lyre, Apollo’s magnificent guitar, the pandoura (trichord), the renowned Homeric forminx and archaic guitar, Dionysus’ barbitus, Orpheus’ guitar, Sappho’s pektis (lyre), the triangle, the sambyke, Ptolemy’s helicon, etc. 

The inventions and musical instruments of the ancient Greeks will be on display in Pavilion 3 of the Exhibition centre and admission is free for holders of tickets to the 80th TIF event. 

31/08/2015 – 11:42

The Enchanted’ are here. They have returned to Thessaloniki, their birthplace, after 151 years. The replicas of the renowned ‘Enchanted’ are now at the Thessaloniki International Exhibition Centre, while preparations of the venue where they will be exhibited during the anniversary 80th TIF event – at no extra charge for visitors – is fully underway.

After 14 months of efforts, contacts and negotiations, TIF-HELEXPO managed to complete a very special mission: to welcome ‘The Enchanted’ to Thessaloniki, so as to offer them to the visitors to the 80th TIF event and the city.

The four sculptures, the so-called “Caryatids” of Thessaloniki, will decorate Pavilion 3; once an agreement has been reached with the State – in  cooperation with local bodies – the national exhibition agency will donate the sculptures to the city. ‘The Enchanted’ and their legend are an integral link of the history and glorious past of Thessaloniki in line with the city’s current prospects and the role it has been called upon to play. Against this background, TIF becomes the web connecting past and present, while mapping the future. 

Significant contributions to the success of TIF-HELEXPO’s efforts were those made by the Ministry of Culture, the Municipality of Thessaloniki and the Ephorate of Byzantine Antiquities, while an active financial role in acquiring them was undertaken by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Thessaloniki, the Thessaloniki Port Authority Company (THPA S.A.) and the Water and Sewerage of Thessaloniki SA (EYATH S.A.). 

The close relationship of TIF-HELEXPO with culture was underlined at today’s Press Conference by the company President, Mr. Tasos Tzikas, who explained that the exhibition agency had observed previous efforts to bring ‘The Enchanted’ back to town and wanted, in turn, to contribute to the ambitious venture. Besides, given last year’s high number of visitors to the 79th TIF event, the company was looking for a way to make this year’s anniversary event even more attractive. “The city is proving that when we all join forces, we can achieve great things”, the President stressed, referring to the partnership of the participating bodies/agencies in the efforts for this common goal. 

TIF-HELEXPO CEO Kyriakos Pozrikidis characterized this day as a moving occasion, stressing that the Fair is returning the people’s love as a “dividend of joy” for the city. He also added that the national exhibition agency maintains its tradition of cultural contribution, referring –indicatively- to Zongolopoulos’ sculpture at the Fair entrance, which is one of TIF-HELEXPO’s assets. “It has not been an easy process and it required incredible coordination between various bodies in Greece and abroad, but we made it”, noted Mr. Pozrikidis. 

The great satisfaction of the Ephorate of Byzantine Antiquities of Thessaloniki for the “birth” of an idea that has been “in gestation” for years, was expressed by the agency’s Deputy Head Stamatis Chondrogiannis. “This monument helps us connect the present, who we are today, with the city’s history”, he said, underlining that we are lucky the present TIF-HELEXPO Board made this vision come true. 

In turn, the Mayor of Thessaloniki, Yiannis Boutaris, pointed out that the Fair has proven it is not just a commercial and financial event, but that it also supports cultural events illustrating how important it is to the city. He also expressed his joy that, at last, as he said, ‘The Enchanted’ have returned to Thessaloniki. 

Actions such as this promote small parts of our history, according to President and CEO of EYATH, Mr. Nikos Papadakis, who stressed that the company could not but support an effort to restore some of Thessaloniki’s glamour. 

On his part, the President of THPA S.A., Mr. Ioannis Pantis, announced that the port is “adopting” one of ‘The Enchanted’ and that when the company was asked for its financial support to the venture, there was not a moment of hesitation, while he characterized the return of the statues an event of significant importance. 

31/08/2015 – 11:54