Unique artwork from the Velimezis Collection
The exhibition presents 68 post-Byzantine icons from 15th to 19th century, coming from various parts of Greece. Most of the icons belong to the well-known “Velimezis Collection”, which was created by Emilios Velimezis during 1934-1946.
The icons are mostly artworks of exceptional quality from Cretan and Ionian islands’ workshops of the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, some of which bear a signature or can be attributed to well-known painters. The “Passion of Christ”, an early creation of Domenikos Theotokopoulos (El Greco), holds a special place. The 18th and 19th centuries are also represented by icons from almost all over Greece.
“The Emilios Velimezis and successors Icons Collection. Donation of the families of Margaritis and Makris” was acquired by the Aikaterinis Laskaridis Foundation in 2018 and includes 136 artefacts. After 2000, the donors Emilios and Christos Margaritis and Alexandros Makris continued to enrich the Collection with new acquisitions from purchases and donations, with anthivola and designs of hagiographers from the 18th century to the present day, with important icons of the 15th – 19th c., with bema doors and the silver plating of the “Life-bearing Source”, as well as representative religious liturgical objects.