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| The Illyrian helmet displayed in the exhibition to be held at the Field Museum, photo from the Field Museum |
Seventeen objects belonging to the Early Bronze Age, dating from 4,500 to 2,500 years ago, will represent Albania in a traveling exhibition in the US and Canada entitled "First Kings of Europe". which will be opened from March 31, 2023.
These objects of prehistoric heritage belong to the Fund of the Institute of Archaeology and the Collection of the Archaeological Museum in Tirana. They have been found in the burial mounds excavated throughout Albania, local media reports.
In addition to Albania, 10 other countries from Southeast Europe will participate in this exhibition. According to the "Field Museum of Natural History" in Chicago, which presents the exhibition, the collection contains 700 works, including jewelry, weapons, pottery, and others.
The main theme of this exhibition consists of the formation of social and political elites during the late prehistory of the Balkans.
"Travel back in time to 5000 BC to discover what prehistoric tools, weapons, and ritual sculptures can tell us about life in early Balkan societies," the museum's website says.
The objects in the exhibition have their own different meanings, showing stories ranging from beliefs and mortuary rituals that accompanied the dead during the early Bronze Age, to bronze and iron weapons of military elites and Illyrian helmets in the Kukës region.
Dr. Rovena Kurti, in collaboration with Dr. Rudenc Ruka and Prof. Luan Përzhita from the Institute of Archaeology/Albanian Studies Academy, worked on Albania's participation in this project.
The exhibition will be open from March 31, 2023, until January 28, 2024.