Opening of the exhibition "Miraculous Icons and Holy Relics of the Balkans" in Dupnitsa
In the renovated exhibition hall of the complex of the municipal art gallery in the town of Dupnitsa and in the presence of guests and the local government, the mobile exhibition "Miraculous Icons and Holy Relics of the Balkans" from the program "traveling expositions" of the State Cultural Institute under the Minister of Foreign Affairs was officially opened works. The event is organized with the support of the Municipality of Dupnitsa and the initiative of the Historical Museum - Dupnitsa.
The event opened with magnificent church chants by the male choir "St. Ivan Rilski", who appropriately recreated the atmosphere connecting the theme with faith and spirituality in the skirts of Rila and in the immediate vicinity of the birthplace of the patron saint of the city of Dupnitsa, St. John of Rilski.
The director of the State Cultural Institute, Snezhana Joveva, expressed her gratitude to the hosts for the invitation and emphasized: "On the eve of the bright Easter holidays, you have the opportunity to touch some very interesting stories about miracles, about faith, which are part of our essence, but here in this exhibition is presented in a professional manner by a team of scientists from the Duychev Center. The exhibition has been visited in dozens of places around the world and every time arouses excitement and respect in the viewer, I believe that you too will find your miracle in these stories not only from the Bulgarian monasteries, but also in the nearby Balkan ones presented here.
Official guests at the event were - the mayor of the city Parvan Dangov, deputy mayor Valentina Karaganova, the director of the Historical Museum Anelia Gerenska, residents and media.
The mobile phototype exhibition from the program of the State Cultural Institute under the Minister of Foreign Affairs was realized jointly with the Center for Slavic-Byzantine Studies "Prof. Ivan Duychev" at SU "St. Kliment Ohridski". Icons are one of the emblems of Orthodoxy and an inalienable part of the decoration of the Christian temple since ancient times. 24 panels show churches and monasteries where miraculous icons and holy relics are kept as precious relics. The exhibition uses photos from the archive of the Center for Slavic-Byzantine Studies "Prof. Ivan Duichev" at the University of St. Kliment Ohridksi and photos provided with the courtesy of the abbots of the Rila, Bachkovo, Troyan and Bigor monasteries. The history of each monastery, the legendary biography of each miraculous icon and the customs associated with the temple holidays and the holidays of the saints whose relics are kept in them are briefly described.
The exposition has been presented internationally so far in Venice, Rome, Geneva, Belgrade, Skopje, Tirana, Elbasan, Pretoria, Minsk, Toronto, at the Pontifical Gregorian University, the Ambrosiana Library in Milan, Charles University in Prague, and in Bulgaria - Sofia, Plovdiv, Kyustendil, Asenovgrad, Museum of Tourism at UNIBIT, Pernik, Samokov, etc.
In the city of Dupnitsa, the exhibition will be open every weekday until May 16.