From Ancient and Forgotten Times. Things Necessary for a Good Life

The University of Tartu Art Museum’s temporary exhibition brings together pieces from Estonian museums and libraries, and tells stories of distant cultures. The exhibition features nearly 200 items from ancient Sumeria and Egypt, ancient Greece and Rome, and from India, China and Japan.

The exhibition is open until 27 May 2023. It includes activities and interesting reading for both adults and children. The exhibition makes a contribution to history studies at both lower and upper secondary school level.  
 

An echo of distant cultures 

The exhibition takes visitors on a brief cultural journey through time and space. The exotic nature of distant lands and cultures fascinates us. Excitement and curiosity have inspired some to take long trips, whether to the world’s seven lands and seas or to the museums of major European cities. Fragments of these distant cultures are present even in Estonia’s museums and libraries, some of which are presented in the exhibition “From Ancient and Forgotten Times. Things Necessary for a Good Life”.  

The symbols of these ancient cultures may be thousands of years old or relatively young, but they all embody a long tradition. In the culture of the East, it is not the age of the object but rather its spiritual meaning and the transmission of aesthetic values that is most important. 

The objects made by people who lived in ancient times can help us understand their way of thinking. Just like today, people wanted to be beautiful and prosperous, to have a home and to have power in their lives, to entertain and to revitalise their souls.