The Museum
The Silk Museum presents the different phases of sericulture and silk manufacturing in detail and focuses on how the town of Soufli became a major silk-producing centre in the late 19th through to the mid-20th century.
What is on display?
The Silk Museum initiates you to the pre-industrial procedure of silkworm rearing and the processing of silk. It introduces you to the architectural, social and economic context of the period that made the town of Soufli a major silk-producing centre in Greece.
On the upper floor you shall acquaint yourself with details from all the phases composing the cycle of sericulture:
The production and hatching of the seed (silkworm eggs)
The mulberry tree and the silkworm
The different stages of the silkworm's development (instars)
The weaving of the precious cocoon (mounting of the branches and harvesting)
The cleaning and sorting of the cocoons
The silkworm's stifling and the completion of its lifecycle. Following this, discover the stages of silk manufacturing through authentic exhibits, supported by audiovisual material:
Reeling or the unwinding of the cocoon's thread
The dyeing and weaving of silk yarns and fabrics
The documentaries projected in this section of the exhibition help connect sericulture and silk manufacturing to a specific space- and time- frame: the local society, economy, architecture and culture. Special mention is made to the Givre Brothers' Silk Mills, equivalent to a «registered trademark» of Soufli at the time.
In the module «Costumes of Soufli» you will admire unique accessories of the Soufliot attire.
Of interest to children
Young visitors have the opportunity to see reproductions of all the stages of silk processing.
The Museum organizes educational programmes with games and activities, for schools and group visits, such as the programme «Let's weave», where the children are taught the cycle of sericulture, the process of weaving and the dyeing of silk yarns and fabrics.
Opening hours
From March 1st through to October 15th: Daily (except Tuesdays) 10 am - 6 pm.
From October 16th through to February 28th: Daily (except Tuesdays) 10 am - 5 pm.
Closed on: Tuesdays, January 1st, Good Friday (until 12 noon), (Greek Orthodox) Easter Sunday, May 1st, September 14th (local patronal feast), August 15th, December 25th and 26th.
Admission
Standard entrance fee: € 3,00
Concessionary ticket: € 1.50
Days of free admission: May 18th (International Museum Day), June 5th (World Environment Day), Last weekend in September (European Heritage Days)
Source and for more information about the Silk Museum at www.piop.gr
