Chypre à la BnF

Organizer: Cyprus Presidency - Council of the European Union, Deputy Ministry of Culture, Bank of Cyprus Cultural Foundation, The Bibliothèque Nationale De France – Richelieu
Admission Status: Free Entry 

Exhibition

The National Library of France honours Cyprus within the framework of a scientific collaboration with the Cultural Foundation of the Bank of Cyprus.
Precious antiquities, manuscripts, drawings, engravings and archival documents narrate the island’s journey from antiquity and its Byzantine heritage to the Frankish and Venetian periods and into modern times, highlighting its ties with France and Europe.

A special place is held by the works of Louis François Cassas, as well as important icons of the 17th–18th centuries, on loan from the Cultural Foundation of the Bank of Cyprus and the Church of Panagia Faneromeni in Lefkosia, which underscore the significance of the island’s Orthodox Byzantine tradition. Moreover, the Cypriot collections of the BnF – the largest manuscript collection worldwide – together with coins, maps, archaeological artefacts and 19th-century artworks, highlight the continuity and brilliance of our cultural identity.