The Tower of Gavras, in Chora of Amorgos, was granted in 1963 by the Amorgian woman Sofi Giannakou to the Association of Amorgines in order to house the Archaeological Collection of the island. Today, the Gavras Tower houses the important Archaeological Collection of Amorgos, which until 1971 included only a few objects that were stored in various public places of the island. Since 1972, however, the systematic archaeological exploration of the island and the donations of the inhabitants significantly enriched the Collection with excavation and accidental finds, the most important of which are currently exhibited in the rooms of the tower, while the rest are kept in warehouses.
In the reception hall on the same floor, mainly sculptures from the three ancient cities of Amorgos, Aegiali, Arkesini and Minoa (6th century BC - 2nd century AD) are exhibited. In the two showcases of the room, small craft items from various materials (copper, ivory, gold, etc.) found mainly in the excavation of Minoan (8th BC - 3rd AD century) are presented. In the "Courtyard" of the basement, as well as in the courtyard area of the basement, one can admire stone engravings, inscribed slabs and various other architectural members and sculptures dating from the archaic to early Christian times. In the two small rooms downstairs, the exhibition was recently completed, in 1998. In the first one, the important prehistoric collection of the island is exhibited, while the second houses the archaeological collection of the Amorgian archaeologist Emmanuel Ioannidis (1823-1906) which includes various finds (sculptures, statues and reliefs, ceramics, etc.) dating from the 3rd BC. millennium to the 3rd AD century.
Editor: Fotini Anastasopoulou
