Entrepôts Harsch, Genève (CH) 14 September 2019
European Heritage Days 2019
For the second time, the Fondation Gandur pour l'Art is opening the doors of its archaeological collections, by participating in the 2019 Heritage Days, on the theme of Colours. D'or et d'azur, it is the theme chosen to invite the public to a journey into the symbolism of two important colours in antiquity, yellow and blue. Strolling through time and space with the curators who will comment on ancient objects from the Mediterranean basin, these visits will be an opportunity to discover an extraordinary archaeological collection.
Two colours, yellow and blue, sometimes sublimate themselves in the gold of the stars and in the azure of the sky. They have always fascinated men. In Egypt, blue takes the form of oushabtis (fig. 1), flows into an infinite number of amulets against disease and the evil eye (fig. 2), becomes a ring (fig. 3), a dwarf grimace (fig. 4) or a scarab (fig. 5).
What about gold? Associated with light, it is the sign of the gods among the Greeks (figs. 6 and 7). In the distant Colchis, land of the Golden Fleece, small turtles seize it to become the pearls of a necklace (fig. 8).
It is to a journey through the symbolism of these two colours, - today, those of the European flag - to a stroll through time and space that the curators of the Fondation Gandur pour l'Art archaeological collection invite the public to attend the European Heritage Days. These visits will be an opportunity for the public to discover an extraordinary archaeological collection.
