The exhibition opens to the public on 21 April
Ambassador Terracciano during his speech at the opening reception for the exhibition
Ambassador Pasquale Terracciano took part, last night, in the opening of Sicily: culture and conquest, which will run at the British Museum from 21 April until 14 August 2016.
The exhibition has been made possible by the collaboration between the British Museum and the Sicilian Region Authority and aims at providing insight into the Mediterranean island’s long-standing and multicultural history.
The Italian Ambassador to the UK remarked in his opening speech how, “Sicily is much more than an island”, especially in an age in which terrorism and the migrant crisis are challenging the security of the Mediterranean. Indeed, over a period spanning more than 4000 years, Sicily acquired a unique multicultural identity and the role of a true maritime and commercial “super power” of the Mediterranean, thanks to the successive passage of Phoenicians, Greeks, Byzantines, Arabs and Normans and their pacific coexistence. Furthermore, in more recent times the ties between Sicily and the UK were strengthened thanks to the many British travelers and archeologists who visited the island.
The launch of the exhibition provided an occasion for the Ambassador to invite everyone to experience Sicily in person and explore its abundant treasures.
This exhibition, supported by the Italian Embassy and by the Italian Cultural Institute in London, is one of many important events on the 2016 cultural agenda, a year in which many of the main cultural institutions in London have decided to focus on Italy.
The entrance to the exhibition inside the British Museum.
