Sklivani is a mountain village in the Municipality of Dodoni. It is located south of the city of Ioannina and access for the visitor is easy, via the Ionian Road. The village, which consists of 8 mahalades, a typical example of a livestock route, is a core of history, culture and ecclesiastical art.

In the settlement, sacred temples with important decorations are preserved, there are two Museums, Ecclesiastical Art and Recent History, while in a nearby area there are ruins of the Molossian Acropolis of Sklivani, which is estimated to have been founded in the 4th BC. century.

The “Brotherhood of Sklivanites of Ioannina”, which has been operating since 1971, has a decisive role in preserving and promoting the heritage of the place. The president of the Brotherhood, Vassilis Maggioros, guides us around the village, the temples, the museums and provides all the information to APE-MPE .

The “Museum of Ecclesiastical Art of Sklivanis”, is housed in one of the 4 old stone-built schools of the village and has been in operation for 10 years.

Religious works of art, movable monuments, which come from the post-Byzantine temples of the region, are displayed in its showcases. These are portable icons, works of painting and metalwork, liturgical vessels, small objects, church objects, antiques, priestly gold-embroidered vestments mainly from the 19th century, as well as many silver ecclesiastical vessels, most of them the work of workshops in the city of Ioannina.

These collections constitute the richest source of documents for Sklivani, dating from the 16th to 20th centuries, with an emphasis on the 18th and 19th centuries.

In the settlement, there are preserved temples with great written and painted decoration from the 17th and 18th centuries. These are the churches of Agios Georgios, Agios Vlasios, Agios Nikolaos, the Dormition of the Virgin, Agia Marina, while the Monastery of Agios Nikolaos is also important.

The oldest of the icons in the Museum is that of the Resurrection, from the church of the Dormition of the Virgin. It is a work, probably of the 16th century, of particular delicacy, which goes hand in hand with the wider artistic spirit of that time in Epirus, with influences from Western art. The simple, conservative character of the 17th century painting is reflected in images, such as Christ the Almighty from the Monastery of Agios Nikolaos. Works-images of the 18th century are characterized by the vivid colors and expressive simplicity of the time, while the transition to the 19th century is represented by anonymous and less often named creators. The 20th century images express the intentions of church painting of the time for realistic rendering, but with obvious design weaknesses. Among them, the icon of Saint Christophoros is included, the work of “Polykarpo Zografou ek Hionade Konitsis”, a late representative of the circle of Hionade painters.

Museum of Modern History of Sklivani

The everyday life of the local society of yesterday, its survival, the production of goods, the popular creation, the historical past of the place, are reflected in the exhibits of the Sklivani Museum of Modern History. The Museum is housed and has been operating since 2016 in another school in the district of Theotokos, in the center of the village.

“The Museum’s permanent collection reflects the local history of the recent past, through the inseparable connection with the local community that it serves and highlights”, says Mr. Vassilis Maggioros and notes with emphasis that the Museum’s exhibits dating from the from the 19th to the middle of the 20th century, they are donations from the inhabitants of Sklivani.

The exhibits are classified into 3 thematic sections, in order for the visitor to better understand the perceptions, know-how, standards of past times.

The 1st thematic section concerns the “production and acquisition of goods”. We see in the showcases all the objects and tools that were used in every family, necessary for agriculture, animal husbandry, for their survival.

The 2nd topic is related to the “processing and processing of raw materials”. Objects used for domestic use, textiles and clothing are exhibited here. These are, in other words, the objects that helped to turn milk into butter and cheese, but also to turn wool into blankets, carpets, clothes.

The 3rd section has the theme of “National Resistance” and includes weapons and spoils of war, the flag of the Xirovouni Regiment, helmets and bayonets, as well as archival evidence from that time.

The visitor completes his experience at the Museum, in a large hall, where he admires “handicrafts”, such as clothing and complete regional costumes, underwear and footwear, jewelry and headgear as well as bed linen and tapestries.

In Sklivani, the past and the present coexist to offer the visitor a genuine, revelatory journey through time.