For the first time, Ivan Aivazovsky’s monumental painting The Explosion of Arkadi Monastery is being exhibited at the monastery it depicts, bringing one of the most recognizable artistic images of the Cretan struggle back to the landscape that inspired it.
The painting, completed in 1867, has been loaned from the National Gallery – Alexandros Soutsos Museum, where it is normally held at the institution’s Nafplio branch. The work will remain on display at the historic Arkadi Monastery in Rethymno for three months.
The exhibition opened on Wednesday, September 2, during a ceremony attended by representatives of Rethymno’s local authorities and security services, the university community, and people involved in culture and the arts.
For visitors, however, the significance of the exhibition goes well beyond seeing a famous painting outside a museum.
This time, the painting is being seen at the place it depicts.
A Painting of One of Crete’s Defining Moments
Aivazovsky, the Russian painter of Armenian descent, created the work in the aftermath of the 1866 uprising in Crete.
The painting depicts the destruction of Arkadi Monastery during the siege of November 1866, when those inside the monastery chose to blow up the gunpowder store rather than surrender. The event became one of the defining episodes of the Cretan struggle against Ottoman rule and attracted international attention. The monastery remains closely associated with the idea of resistance and sacrifice for freedom.
The National Gallery dates Aivazovsky’s painting to 1867 and records it as an oil painting on canvas measuring 197 by 235 centimeters.
From Nafplio to Arkadi
The exhibition was made possible through cooperation between the National Gallery and the institutions responsible for the anniversary events at Arkadi.
Art historian and curator Lambrini Karakourti-Orfanopoulou, who is responsible for the National Gallery’s Nafplio branch, spoke at the opening about the artistic importance of the work and the particular significance of exhibiting it at Arkadi itself.
Rethymno and Avlopotamos Metropolitan Prodromos thanked the National Gallery and the exhibition organizers for agreeing to bring the painting to the monastery for the first time.
The monastery’s abbot, Archimandrite Tito Vamvakas, also took part in the ceremony.
Following the opening, visitors were able to see the painting in the monastery’s gallery.
The temporary exhibition offers visitors a rare opportunity to see Aivazovsky’s interpretation of the Arkadi tragedy at the historic site itself.
The National Gallery’s collection records the painting as Inventory No. Π.656 and confirms that it belongs to the museum’s collection.
The painting will remain at Arkadi for three months, allowing both local visitors and travelers to see it during a period when the monastery itself becomes part of the viewing experience.
For 159 years, Aivazovsky’s image of Arkadi has been separated from the place it portrays. For the next three months, the two are finally together.
