The MARQ delves into the culture and archaeological heritage of the Orihuela through a new exhibition. A total of 268 pieces mostly coming from the Regional Museum of the locality and of the annex Wall Museum make up this sample that analyses the historical evolution of the municipalityfrom prehistoric times to the contemporary era.
With the aim of enhancing the exhibition discourse of the collection, which will be inaugurated this evening at 19:00 hours.The latter is supplemented by funds from the building of the Orihuela City Councilof the Diocesan Museum of Sacred Artof the Patronato Histórico Artístico ciudad de Orihuela (Orihuela Historical and Artistic Board)of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Monserrate and various private collections..
The President of the Alicante Provincial Council Luisa Pastor and the local mayor Monserrate Guillén have presented this exhibition, which will be open to the public until next May and that, among its pieces, it includes a thirty artefacts recovered by the Restoration Laboratory of the MARQ. The event was also attended by the deputy of Culture Juan Bautista Rosellóthe technical director of the Alicante-based centre Manuel Olcina and the curator and director of the Museo Comarcal Emilio Diz.
Under the heading "Orihuela.Archaeology and Museum", the exhibition presents a original design which structures the historical discourse on the basis of two large central showcases simulating the course of the Segura River and which serve as containers for the smaller material. Among the most representative objects is a tremis of the Visigothic King Sisebuto (612-621), a gold coin minted in Aorariola (Orihuela), that is exhibited to the public for the first time and which constitutes one of the few evidences of the wars waged by the Visigothic kings of Toledo against the Eastern Roman Empire.
Pastor said that This is a brilliant work, the result of collaboration between Orihuela Town Council and the provincial institution, comprising more than 200 objects, and which has the enormous attraction of having an almost unique piece. It is a seventh century gold coin from the private collection of Antonio Orol, whom I would like to thank for his collaboration..
Particularly significant in this exhibition, which features the Sponsorship of the Cajamurcia Foundationare also some of the ceramics of Argaric chronology found in the excavations carried out by the Father Julio Furgúsas well as the well-known "Idol of Orihuela", piece also dated to the Bronze Age and coming from the Llano de San Miguel and which has recently been donated to the museum.
In addition, a the excavated materials from the excavations of the oriental settlement of Los Saladaresa dated Hebraic stele in the 6th-7th centuries from the old holdings of the Museo de Santo Domingo and various Islamic ceramics, late medieval Christian and modern obtained from the excavation of plots in the urban area of the city, including a 10th-century tombstone.
As for the pieces on loan from other cultural spaces in the city, it is worth highlighting a gargoyle of the Diocesan Museum of Orihuela or the Necklace of the Rector of the University of Orihuelamade of gilt silver, enamel and gemstones, manufactured in 1753. The exhibition also includes a number of original editions of the main publications by the pioneers of archaeology in Orihuela: Julio Furgús,Santiago Moreno,Pierre Paris or Francisco Vázquez Almarche.
The exhibition is completed by the edition of a catalogue and an audiovisual which contain exhaustive information on the history and archaeological heritage of Orihuela.
Guillén emphasised the importance of this exhibition for his municipality and pointed out that This work, promoted by the Diputación de Alicante, will allow us to showcase our archaeological heritage. I would like to encourage all the citizens of the province to visit this exhibition and get to know a piece of the history of an incredible town..
On the other hand, and in line with the actions developed by the museum to promote the integration and accessibility of people with disabilities, the following have been carried out reproduced and adapted to different touch parts and have been designed braille text labels which will enable blind and visually impaired people to enjoy the contents of the exhibition.
The centre has also set up a audiovisual in sign language and has programmed various guided and dramatised tours taught by people with disabilities. All of these proposals have been carried out thanks to the cooperation of Cajamar and the ONCE.
This is the eleventh show of the programme "Municipal Museums at MARQ"an initiative that started in 2004 and with which the Alicante complex aims to showcase the province's most important archaeological collections. This proposal also allows the contents of the cultural centres to be renewed through the incorporation of restored pieces and the inclusion of new museographic formats.
