Folklore Museum Emm. A. Lignos

Μετάφραση Greek Version

Folklore Museum Emm. A. Lignos

The Lignos Folklore Museum is a very interesting museum, housed in a cave home, built in 1861 in Kontochori, Fira. The museum gives an interesting little snapshot of life in Santorini during the late 19th century and early 20th century. It was founded by Emmanuel A. Hardy, lawyer, journalist, and director of a local newspaper. The house remained untouched by the devastating earthquake of 1956 and was renovated in 1973 to meet the needs of the museum. In 1993, a new wing was added in order to host more exhibits.

It is home to a traditional winery, some craft workshops, an Art Gallery with works by famous artists inspired by Santorini, historical archives and pictures of life on the island in past years. The most particular thing of the museum is probably the caves that where digged under the house, and where most of the activities was concentrated in the old times. The museum gives the perfect idea of how hard was the life in one island times ago.

The curator gives a tour thru the different rooms which is very interesting and informative with lots of artefacts and working/living spaces to discover. Outside the museum, there is a pretty courtyard with flowering trees and the Lignos family's private chapel, dedicated to Agios Konstantinos which is worth seeing.