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Theophilos
Museum:
This is located in the delightfully cool region of
Akrotiri in the suburb of Varea, four Km from the
town of Mytilini just off the road to the airport. It was built at the instigation
and expense of the Parisian art critic Stratis
Eleftheriades aka Teriade who was from Lesvos.
The museum is divided into five halls and houses 86 works by
the folk painter Theophilos Chatzimicheal who was
recognized as a great folk artist after his death
following a life where he lived in poverty and had
to paint the walls of cafeneons for food. There
are some of his works visible in old buildings
around the island and in the area called Karini near Agiassos you can see the hollowed out tree where he actually lived and painted. The Theophilos Museum, the Teriade museumnext door, and the Iakovidis Digital Museum should not be missed by anyone with an interest in art.
For more on Theophilos
click here.
The
Teriade Library and Museum of Modern
Art: In the
same region of Vareia, which has been
characterized as a landscape of exceptional
beauty, Teriade erected at his own expense, a
building which houses his publications. It is in a
marvelous olive grove where his family home also
stands. The contents of the museum consist of
twenty-nine rare books by the art critic with
hundreds of pictures done by the great artists of
our time, Picasso, Matisse, Giacometti, Chagall,
Le Corbusier, Miro and others. The books are in
special cases and pages are framed on the walls so
that one can see and enjoy the inspiration and the
modern designs of the great painters who made
history in Paris. In the museum-library are also
the forty paintings by Theophilos that Teriade
presented at the Louvre which made the folk artist
known world-wide. The Museum
building has an area of around 1,000 square meters
and it's architectural morphology is distinguished
by its simplicity. This was Teriade's wish so that
the building would harmoniously bond to its
surroundings. The Teriade museum-library is unique
in the world for it constitutes both a large
school of art and a research center for artists
and those involved with the arts while still being
of interest to ordinary visitors.The museum holds
exhibitions of many famous
painters.
Georgios Iakovidis Digital Art Museum.
 Located in the tiny village of Xidera on the road between Kaloni and Eressos near the village of Vatousa is Greece's first digital art museum and one of the few in Europe. With backlit digital photos the viewer is able to see the art as it must have looked when painted over a century
ago. Iakovidis is probably Greece's greatist painter. Had he been born French or Dutch his name would be a household word. This is one museum you should not miss.
For more information see Iakovidis Digital Museum of Lesvos
The
Archeological Museum of
Mytilini: A
traditional mansion near the harbor in Mytilini is
the Archeological museum. In its two halls are
display cases with typical examples of prehistoric
ceramics and clay figurines from the Early
Helladic settlement of Thermi. Geometric and
Archaic pottery from classical and hellenistic
times come from various regions of the island. In
the courtyard are Aeolian columns, votive alters,
a headless femal statue from the Roman period, the
marble throne of Potamonas, a reconstructed
fountain from the Turkish occupation and other
artifacts. The Old Museum is on
Agryri Eftalioti street. The New Archaeological
Museum is on 8th of November street between the
harbor and the
castle.
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The
Ecclesesiastical-Byzantine
Museum:
Facing the church of Saint Therapon in the ground
floor of the Philanthropic Foundation of Mytilini,
this museum contains many sacred and valuable
icons and other holy relics.
It's on Agios
Therapontos street right behind the catherdral in
the market.
The
Folk Art
Museum:
This is housed in the lovely, refurbished Old
Harbor office on the waterfront. There are
abundant examples of which express the culture of
the island including clay plates from Agiassos
with scenes from daily life, bowls. pitchers,
wooden mortars, cheese-molds, chests with highly
artistic carvings, pistols, scimitars, swords,
muskets, lamps, earrings, fabulous hand-towels,
local male and female costumes, paintings by
Theophilos and more.
It's on Kontouriotou
street near the square in the main part of the
port.
The Old
Lesvos
House:
This museum was formed
at the initiative of the progressive and diligent
Marika Vlachou Molinou, President of the Woman's
Association of Lesvos and is in the ground floor
of her mansion near the cathedral. It is a revival
in complete detail of the island house of
1800-1900 which also gives a complete picture of
local folk art, folk artistic feeling and
housekeeping.
The
Museum of Costume and Embroidery of
Lesvos:
This is another acheivement of the Women's
Association of Lesvos. Its rooms, in a building on
Komninaki Street, display the whole spectrum of
attire from the past century, male and
female.
The
Gogo Museum of Vatoussa
(photo) exhibits
different aspects of Village life, with historical
photos, clothing, utensils and a gallery of local
artists. Located in the village of Vaoussa near
the upper platia
this museum will give
you a good idea of what village life is like. The
old mansion it is housed in is quite beautiful
too. Of particular interest are the paintings of British artist Anne Welsh whose works are often on display here.
You can also
visit the
Archeological
Museums of
Erressos and Mithymna which exhibit the ancient
past of these city states.
Many of the towns and
villages have museums including Plomari which has
the
Barbayannis
Ouzo
Museum. In
the town of Vrissa near Vatera is the
Museum
of Natural History
which holds a recent
and extraordinary discovery of Palaeolithic
fossis, unique not only to Greece but to all of
Europe. Vrissa is the closest town to Vatera which is one of Europe's richest areas in fossils and one of the most interesting areas for geologic phenomena including hot springs and colorful rivers and streams of mineral deposits. The
Leimonos
Monastery
exhibits many
ecclesiastic treasures and notable specimens of
folk art.
One of the most facinating museums
in Lesvos, and one of the newest is the Natural History Museum of the
Lesvos Petrified Forest in Sigri, located at the top of the
village where you can see some splendid examples of petrified
wood and see the geologic history of the island through the
museum's many exhibits. For information on the museum and the
Petrified forest see petrified
forest and the official information from the Natural
History Museum This museum is well worth the trip to Sigri
where you can also have a nice meal and swim at one nearby beaches,
among the best on the island, some of which you can find pieces
of pretrified wood among the stones washed up by the sea.
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