Wednesday, January 14, 2009
A delegation from the Maniatakeion Foundation visited Greek and Italian research institutes in Venice, in preparation for the conference to be held by the Foundation, with Greek and foreign teachers, on the influence of Venetian domination in the region of Koroni and Methoni (Athens-Koroni, June 2009).
With a view to the cultural and economic development of the region and implementing the relevant Board decisions to organize a conference, a delegation from the Maniatakeion Foundation composed by the President Dimitris Maniatakis, Vice-President Helen Tagonidis-Maniatakis, the scientific advisor and member of the Board Prof. Andrea Nanetti and the member of the Advisory Committee Angeliki Gonou-Mitrou travelled to Venice and visited Greek and Italian Universities.
Specifically, on Wednesday 14 January, the delegation visited the Greek Institute of Byzantine and Post-Byzantine Studies in Venice and had a meeting with the Director of the Institute Chrysa Maltezou, Professor of the University of Athens in Venetian history. During the visit, they discussed issues relating to the period of Venetian domination of Messenia-Koroni and Methoni and the initiatives planned by the Maniatakeion Foundation to contribute substantially to further promote this period that affected the life and art of the two castle cities. After the discussion, Mrs. Maltezou, who also talked about the important work carried out in our region by Professor Petros Themelis, took the delegation on a tour of the treasures of the Institute gathered in Venice by Greek refugees after the fall of Constantinople in 1453.
The next day, the 4-member delegation visited the National Archives in Venice and was briefed by Professor Nanetti on various notarial documents authored in Koroni in the 14th century and on the oldest copy - the original has been lost – of the Treaty of Sapienza.
The delegation then had a meeting at the “Institute Veneto” Academy of Sciences, Letters and Arts - one of the five academies in Italy, with its Director, Professor of Medieval History Gerardo Ortalli. Since its establishment, in 1810, the Institute Veneto has played a leading role in promoting the culture of research and knowledge in the neighbouring country and Professor Ortalli offered the full support of the Veneto Institute in the research and development activity of the Maniatakeion Foundation.
The President Prof. Nanetti will inform the three other members of the conference temporary committee on the results of the meetings: the venerable Bishop of Messenia Chrysostomos, the Ambassador of Italy in Athens, Mr. Gianpaolo Scarante and the Professor of Medicine of Athens University Mr. Alkiviadis Kostakis.