Eight thousand icons and religious relics, of rare value, belonging to the Orthodox Church of Albania and have not been returned after the fall of the atheist regime, are hosted at the Medieval Art Museum of Korça, which attracts many tourists.
In the museum’s restoration workshop, a group works to restore those images (about 1,000) that have been damaged both by time and by the environment they were in.
Hoxha had confiscated icons and relics from churches and monasteries of the Orthodox communities of Albania when the religious persecution was declared.
They were piled in the old church of Zoodochos Pigi, which had been transformed into a museum. In the past years, after the reconstruction and renovation of this church was completed by Archbishop Anastasios, they were transported, with the help of a French expert, to the New Medieval Museum of Korça, the construction of which was also contributed by the Greek State.
The icons date from the 14th to the 19th century, while there are numerous exhibits, mainly related to the Byzantine and post-Byzantine period.
The icons of the 14th and 15th centuries come mainly from the region of Korça and especially from the big Prespa hermitages.
