OLIVES
Green,
crushed, half-ripened, half-bitter and carved, stored in salt-water.
Black, wrinkled and salted from the basket or the jug and pickled,
accompanied by slices of freshly cut lemon, necessary with ouzo drink at
the fish-taverns !
At Lesvos island three species of olive trees mainly
thrive : Adrammytian, Kolovi and Roupada. Eleven millions olive trees
offer their valuable fruit which is famous all over the world.
It's very important also the Museum of
Industrial Olive-Oil Production in Lesvos (MBEL) in Agia Paraskevi, that
has been founded and designed by the Piraeus Bank Group Cultural
Foundation (PIOP), which is also responsible for its operation. It is
housed in the premises of the old communal oil-mill — the Municipality of
Agia Paraskevi having ceded their right of use to the Foundation. The
project has been included in the 2000-2006 North Aegean Regional
Operational Program and has been financed by the Third EU Structural and
Cohesion Fund. This Museum is part of a network of thematic museums of
technology created by the Foundation and is a natural extension of the
Museum of the Olive and Greek Olive Oil in Sparta.
The Agia Paraskevi complex has been developed as “an oil-mill turned into
a museum of an oil-mill”, restoring both its architectural and mechanical
features to their original condition.
The old machinery and equipment that have been preserved, and fully
restored, are being exhibited in a unique way by being put into use for
demonstration’s sake, which is supported by digital shows.
One can witness the development of the
various machines, while special emphasis is given to the changes the
introduction of mechanical power brought into the process of
oil-production. In the main building the three basic steps of the
oil-production process (crushing the olives, pressing the olive-pulp,
separating oil from water) are shown, while reference is made to the
auxiliary operation of the flour-mill.
The former storage areas of the olive crop are used as auxiliary
exhibition halls, in which exhibits present the human element involved in
oil production. The larger storage areas hold detailed exhibits of: a) the
history of the communal oil-mill of Agia Paraskevi, noting especially the
communal ownership of the mill — a quite novel development for the time,
and its effects on the social and economic structure of the area; b) the
mechanization of oil production in Lesvos; and c) the wider socio-economic
background. In the smaller storage areas the full cycle of trades involved
in oil production is presented.
The Museum has also a hall for hosting
various types of events, a cafe, and a small open-air theatre.
The Museum of Industrial Olive-Oil Production in Lesvos aims at presenting
the industrial heritage of the island, not only in the oil-production
section but also in the wider field of technological development, as well
as projecting it against its architectural, social and cultural
background.
