The Museum of Cretan Ethnology, with funding from Greece and the European Community, has undertaken the promotion of traditional Cretan society on the Internet within the framework of the national “Information Society” programme.
The intrinsic interest of Cretan society is obvious, given that it has preserved its typical cultural characteristics and ancient ancestral memories unchanged down the ages, in spite of 700 years of uninterrupted occupation by the Venetians and the Turks.
The Museum of Cretan Ethnology has chosen, in this first digital presentation of its exhibits on the Internet, to sketch a brief but multifaceted picture of the features and daily life of Cretan society, presenting four characteristic fields of material culture: metalwork in architecture , furniture-making , weaving and pottery . This material is the result of long-term systematic study and research, general and according to field, undertaken by the Management and collaborators of the Museum. It has been presented in a series of special publications first issued in 1985.
The museum presentation of the exhibition is intended for teaching purposes in a tasteful way, with information provided through texts, drawings and photographs. The Museum has been built according to the specifications of the French architect Georges-Henri RIVIERE, creator of the Musee National des Arts et Traditions Populaires in Paris.
The Management and scientific collaborators of the “Museum of Cretan Ethnology” Foundation hope that this presentation will attract the attention of visitors to our countryside and impress on them the power, simplicity and good taste of Cretan popular culture.