Object Description
A set of three slides with white plastic frames. Each slide has an image of a landmark on the island of Corfu. The slides, along with a tag, are encased in a plastic wrapping, which is stapled to the tag. The tag identifies the subject of the slides as "Mistra" in "Greece." This set of slides is "set two," and the manufacturer is "Pana-vue." These particular slides are "Superdia Slides," which "fit all 2" x 2" slide viewers and projectors. The first slide is identified as being an image of the "Palace of the Despot," the second is "Vrontochion Monastery," and the third is "St. Sophia Church." The words "Made in Belgium" are printed on the back of each frame.
Origin
It is unclear when exactly these slides were made, although it may have been sometime in the 1960s. They were manufactured in Belgium. The fact that they are images of Greek landmarks suggests that they may have been purchased in Greece.
Each slide contains an image of a landmark from the Medieval fortified town of Mistra (Mystras in Greek). The town flourished during the 14th and 15th centuries, when it served as the capital of the Despotate of Morea in the Byzantine Empire, but was eventually abandoned in the 1830s.
The Palace of the Despot was home to the Despot of Morea. In the Byzantine Empire, the title "despot" was given to people who ruled semi-independent states within the empire and were often close family members of the emperor. The Despotate of Morea existed from the mid-14th to the mid-15th century and covered most of the Peloponnese to its largest extent.
The Vrontochian monastery was built during the Middle Ages, probably while Mystras was the capital of Morea. It was the wealthiest monastery in Mystras.
St. Sophia (or Agia Sofia) Church is one of several medieval churches in the town of Mystras.
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Citation
Slide, 1960s, National Hellenic Museum, https://collections.nationalhellenicmuseum.org/Detail/objects/11103. Accessed 03/29/24.