Jena, 30.04.2026. The Institut für Altertumswissenschaften in Jena is highlighting its valuable cast collection in a new light. With a specially developed lighting concept, the massive plaster reproductions of ancient masterpieces are impressively staged and made accessible for both the public and research.
- What: Exhibition of historical plaster casts of ancient architectural sculptures (“Lichtwechsel”)
- Where: Institut für Altertumswissenschaften, Jena
- Exhibits: Replicas weighing up to 500 kilograms, including from the Parthenon of the Athenian Acropolis
- Special feature: Innovative lighting concept to highlight architectural details
Historical Value of the Reproductions
The pieces currently presented in the university collection are of enormous art-historical and documentary value. Among the exhibits are casts of world-famous monuments, including detailed reliefs of the Parthenon temple on the Athenian Acropolis. Some of these massive plaster slabs weigh up to half a ton.
The fact that plaster reproductions are protected and curated with such effort today has a solid conservation reason: in the present day, molds may no longer be taken from the ancient originals. The risk of damaging the millennia-old marble or limestone while creating negative molds is too great. This makes the existing historical casts irreplaceable unique items. They document the condition of the originals exactly at the time the casting was made – often before modern environmental influences caused further damage.
New Lighting Concept Creates Perspectives
To do justice to the historical and scientific significance of the collection, a completely new lighting concept was designed for the current exhibition. The precise and angle-dependent illumination emphasizes the fine contours, reliefs, and structures of the architectural sculptures, which often go unnoticed under standard diffuse lighting. This provides visitors with a very sculptural and detailed view of the craftsmanship of antiquity.
Background: The Tradition of Plaster Cast Collections
The Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena looks back on a long tradition in archaeological teaching. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, universities across Europe established plaster cast collections. Since traveling to the ancient sites of the Mediterranean was difficult and expensive for students and scholars at the time, exact full-scale copies of ancient artworks were brought directly into the local institutes. Today, these collections are not only teaching tools but also a fascinating testimony to European scientific history.
Source:
Lichtwechsel – Exhibition highlights plaster casts of ancient architectural sculptures
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