More specifically, according to the announcement of the Hellenic Ministry of Tourism, on Friday August 12th, 2022, 105 archaeological sites, historical sites, museums and monuments, throughout the country, will welcome the public under the light of the full moon. Events will be held at 50 archaeological sites and museums, while 55 will remain open to the public with free entry. This year's event will be framed by events on August 11, as well as on August 13, 19, 20 and 27. The program, which is carried out under the coordination of the General Directorate of Antiquities and Cultural Heritage of the Ministry of Antiquities, mainly includes concerts, but also theater and dance performances, poetry evenings, screenings, stargazing and guided tours, many of which are carried out in collaboration with the local government and local clubs.
Other events are as follows:
- Acropolis Museum courtyard, 21:00, the Hellenic Air Force bank will perform Greek and foreign songs about the moon. The band members, which includes musicians with professional music studies, will accompany two singers. Entrance to the museum is free on Friday as of 21:00, and the restaurant will operate the same times, staying open until midnight. The event is free. (Restaurant reservations at 210 9000915)
- National Archaeological Museum, free entrance from 20:00 to 23:30. A tour of the museum will be provided. Other events include talks by curators at 20:30 and 21:30.
- Thessaloniki, Museum of Byzantine Culture, a concert of three musicians at 21:00 performing remixes of traditional songs of Crete, Asia Minor and Thrace, as well as works by Domeniconi, Yilmaz and Dyens. Reservations at 2313306421, 2313396422. The museum will have free entrance from 18:00 to 21:00.
This year, 100 years since the Asia Minor Catastrophe, the event is dedicated to the event of the Exodus of Hellenism from Asia Minor and the mark it left on the collective memory. A photo by Boissonnas was chosen as the theme of the event poster entitled "Achiropoiitos as a camp for Greek refugees from Thrace and Asia Minor". It was taken in 1919 and the refugee children captured were found there from other disasters brought about by the First World War. However, this photograph is a timeless record of uprooting, unexpected loss, flight and wonder in the face of an imposed fate.
The Ministry of the Interior thanks the Services of the General Directorate of Antiquities and Cultural Heritage, as well as the Services of the General Directorate of Restoration, Museums and Technical Works, which participates this year for the first time in the organization, for the continuation of the institution of the August full moon events at our monuments, which already counts 22 years of uninterrupted conduct.
The events and the public visit to the archaeological sites and museums will be conducted in accordance with the applicable security protocols drawn up for each archaeological site and museum, in the context of limiting the spread of the COVID 19 coronavirus and in accordance with the applicable security measures during the period their implementation.
