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“I
am indeed, the Lord of the World, but the
Law is the Lord of the sea.”
Roman Emperor Antoninus (138-161 A.D.),
Justinian’s Digest, Book XIV (Title I-II)
Under the auspices of the Cypriot Presidency of
the EU and on the occasion of the signing of the
Limassol declaration by the European member
states, the Evagoras and Kathleen Lanitis Foun-
dation organised an exhibition dedicated to nav-
igation in the Mediterranean Sea from the 16
th
century through the 19
th
century. The exhibition
was held at the Evagoras Lanitis Centre from 9
October until 15 November. The President of
the European Commission, José
Manuel
Bar-
roso, and President Demetris Christofias inau-
gurated the exhibition on 8 October.
Mare Liberum
featured the origin and history
of Portolan charts, paid special attention to the
port cities that flourished along the Mediterra-
nean coastline between the 16
th
and 19
th
cen-
turies, and examined different types of ships
and a number of famous sea battles. Piracy,
both Christian and Muslim, was included in
the exhibition, whose final chapter was dedi-
cated to the Capitulation the Ottoman Empire
offered the European states, and to the origins
and development of maritime law in the Medi-
terranean.
The exhibition combined a sophisticated multi-
media production with original Portolan maps
from the Correr Museum of Venice, 19
th
Cen-
tury European sea charts from the collection of
the Cultural Foundation of the Bank of Cyprus,
and model ships from the Aristotle Onassis col-
lection, which “sailed” all the way to Cyprus
from the Hellenic Maritime Museum in Pi-
Mare Liberum, An Exhibition Dedicated to Navigation
in the Mediterranean Sea
Between the 16
th
and 19
th
centuries
9 October-15 November 2012
Freducci, Angelo de Conte, Ancona, 1550 (National
Maritime Museum Greenwich, London)
A model ship from Aristotle Onassis’ collection, which
travelled all the way from the Hellenic Maritime Museum
in Piraeus
Maggiolo, Vesconte - the Mediterranean, the Black Sea &
North-Eastern Atlantic. Genoa, 1548 (National Maritime
Museum Greenwich, London)