Abstract
The paper discusses the goals and narrative strategies of a major exhibition, “Across Wine-Dark Seas: Art and Identity Beyond Ancient Greece,” opening at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, in December, 2026. The exhibition explores the interaction of Greeks and non-Greeks across the Mediterranean during the Archaic period (ca. 750-480 BCE) and stretching from Spain and France in the West to Etruria, Egypt and North Africa, the Balkans, Turkey, the Black Sea and beyond. Objects in every medium, including ceramics, stone and terracotta sculpture, coins, jewelry, bronze and precious metals, illustrate the spread of Greek aesthetic principles and iconographies to indigenous communities through the medium of trade and colonization. The paper presents some of the strategies used to create a coherent and compelling narrative to guide the museum visitor through a complex set of cultural interactions expressed in objects that also delight the senses.
Presenters
Alan ShapiroW. H. Collins Vickers Professor of Archaeology, Emeritus, Department of Classics, Johns Hopkins University, New York, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
2026 Special Focus—The Future of Museum Narratives
KEYWORDS
Greece, Exhibition, Mediterranean, Culture, Exchange, Trade, Colonization
