1991 – The Year of the Tightrope
On the eve of a new year, some people sing, others drink; some feast and others dance. Greeks, whose passion for all the pleasures of life is proverbial, do these things – and more.
Sacred Portraits
Religious icons are life companions for many Greeks, and the legends that surround them reveal their importance in the ethnic consciousness.
The Reptiles of Greece
In ancient times snakes played an important role in rituals and healing. In modern folklore, however, they are seen as a ‘repulsive vermin’. Reptiles are in fact, a precious national heritage.
A Three-Museum Family
The Demetris Z. Pierides Collection in Glyfada is one of the most important centres of contemporary art in the country. Pierides is the scion of a Cypriot family, the first of whose three museums was begun a century and a half ago
From Victory to Victory
The Greek offensive against the Italians in Albania just 50 years ago this month was the first military success of the Allies in World War II. Beyond the bravery and endurance of the Hellenes and the gallantry with which they threw back a far greater power, the Albanian campaign had an incalculable impact on the world by proving that the Axis was not invincible
A Spirit of Place
Surely Lawrence Durrell stood in celebration of life. He said that he learned this wisdom in Greece, but he was always a leg-puller and one can’t quite be sure.
Wearing Silver
The traditional jewellery in the possession of Katerina Korre-Zografou may be the richest private collection of this craft in Greece. The silver costume pieces alone are a stunning historical display of three centuries’ achievement in a superb folk art.
In Place of Other Gifts: The Disowned Talents of Patrick White
The Nobel Prize novelist who died last month at one time felt Greece to be a second home, but grew disenchanted by what he saw as the betrayal of its rural life.
When the Lights Went Out on Leonard Bernstein
The whole community was buzzing with the news. Leonard Bernstein was bringing the New York Philharmonic to Thessaloniki.
Walking Out
When Prime Minister Mitsotakis left in mid-September on his ill-fated trip to Japan to support Athens’ bid for the 1996 Olympics, he appealed for a few days’ truce since the political scene was heating up over the austere social security bill.