Tal
Medelhavsmuseet, Stockholm 29 januari 2009
Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth, Kulturminister
Tal på engelska av Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth - Inaguration of Cypriote Antiquities at the Medelhavsmuseet
Check against delivery.
Ladies and Gentlemen, friends:
In 2003 Medelhavsmuseet received a generous grant from the Leventis Foundation to be able to move the Cyprus exhibition from its rather hidden exhibition room to this, the main hall of the museum. Since then the movement of this collection has been an ongoing progress. Today we are here to celebrate the end of this work, and the opening of the Cyprus exhibition.
To give the Cyprus collection this central location is well in tune with the fact that this collection is the direct reason for the governmental decision more than 50 years ago to found a museum called Medelhavsmuseet.
We all know about the Swedish Cyprus Expedition in the late 1920's. This expedition and the work thereafter is the starting point for the studying of Cypriote archaeology in Sweden. Unfortunately one of the foremost in this field, professor Paul Åström, passed away last year. Hopefully this will not mean that there is an end to this long, fruitfull tradition.
The Cyprus collection is now the main exhibition here at Medelhavsmuseet. More than 1500 objects which cover more than 7000 years of Cypriote history are on display for the general public to see. Over the last years we have seen an increase in the number of people visiting museums and I dare to say that this exhibition will most definitely contribute to even more visitors. I hope that this exhibition will attract scholars and students. Perhaps this can also increase the interest and knowledge of Cypriote history.
I would like to extend my uttermost congratulation and admiration to the Director of Medelhavsmuseet Doctor Sanne Houby-Nielsen and of course to her staff, the architects of White and everyone else involved in the work with this exhibition. You have done an extraordinary job and I hope that you will enjoy this evening knowing this.
I would now like to declare this, the A.G. Leventis Gallery of Cypriote Antiquities, open!
/Minister for Culture Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth
