The new temporary exhibition of the Diachronic Museum of Larissa entitled "The Return of the Muses. Scholars, merchants and artists in Thessaly on the eve of the 1821 Revolution", which inaugurated by the Minister of Culture Mrs. Lina Mendoni on the 4th of July 2021, is a tribute to the 200 years since the beginning of the Greek Revolution and presents the art in Thessaly at the end of the 18th and at early 19th century.

At this time the Greek Enlightenment is at its peak. Through works of painting, gold embroidery and silversmithing, religious relics in their majority, the change of the sponsors' preferences is gradually seen and a new society is revealed, formed by the open borders of trade and knowledge. Churches and monasteries continue to be the poles of Christian society, increasing support for educational institutions and publications. In the books dedications of the time, active scholars and merchants appear with a common admiration for the enlightened Europe, while at the same time, they develop a new relationship with the ancient Greek heritage through the Enlightenment.

Through these changes and despite the disturbances created by the continuous revolutionary movements, one observes the gradual formation of the national identity and the inevitable course towards the National Uprising.

The Metropolis of Larissa and Tyrnavos and the Metropolis of Elassona are collaborating in the exhibition, by lending most of the objects. Other exhibits come from the Public Central Library of Larissa "Konstantinos Koumas", the Municipal Library of Tyrnavos, the Benaki Museum and the collections of the Antiquities Ephorate of Larissa.

The part of the Rigas Charta, which is exhibited for the first time, is a loan from the Collection of Efthymios and Charalambos Doganis, and comes from the Mansion of Georgios Schwartz in Ambelakia. This Mansion, a symbol of the transformation that characterizes the whole era, dominates the exhibition, mainly through the digital projection of the pioneering project of Ambelakia.

Below you can find an exhibition tour (in greek), presented by the Director of the Antiquities Ephorate of Larissa, Mrs Stavroula Sdrolia.