A collection of historic papers discovered in a Long Island basement has been donated to the Gennadius Library in Athens. Susan Vera, a psychology teacher from New York, uncovered the archival chest in 2023 while going through family belongings. The materials once belonged to her ancestors and had been stored for generations, according to an article by Vicky Katehaki in ekathimerini.com.
The archive contains around 550 documents dating from the late 1700s to the early 1900s. At its center is Louis Brest, who was posted on the island of Milos when the Venus de Milo was unearthed in 1820. Brest played a role in helping secure the famed statue for the Louvre Museum in Paris.
Historian Mark Mazower, who helped arrange the donation, said the papers shed light on the historical setting surrounding the statue’s discovery during the Greek War of Independence.
“The documents allow us to see the discovery of Venus de Milo within the context of the island’s broader history,” Mazower said.
Beyond the statue’s story, the archive traces diplomatic work, commercial exchanges and social connections across the Aegean region. Carefully preserved over generations – largely by women in the family – the collection traveled across continents before finally making its way to Greece.
Now housed in Athens, the documents are expected to support new research into Milos’ local history and the wider political and cultural landscape of the era.
Source: ekathimerini.com