ATHENS – Exhibits relating to the life and work of “the inventor of the 20th century” Nikola Tesla will be on show at the Kotsanas Museum of Ancient Greek Technology in downtown Athens (Pindarou 6 & Akadimias, Kolonaki) until January 2020, in an exhibition entitled “Nikola Tesla: the man from the future.”

The exhibition, based on items from the permanent collection of the Nikola Tesla Museum in Belgrade,  explores the life of the eccentric Serb-American genius who was responsible for inventions as fundamental to our lives as alternating current, the Tesla coil, the induction motor, radio waves and three-phase electric current.

“The archival, historic and bibliographic material is stored and researched by the appropriate departments of the [Nikola Tesla Museum]. It is worth noting that all of it was included by UNESCO in 2003 in its Memory of the World Register,” said the curator of the Kotsanas Museum, Mina Mitsobonou, talking to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA) ahead of the official inauguration of the exhibition on Wednesday. The ceremony will be attended by the founder of the Kotsanas Museum, Kostas Kotsanas, the the head of the Serbian museum, Ivona Jevtic.

The decision to organise a Tesla tribute in a museum on ancient technologies, according to Mitsobonou, sought to provide audiences with a “journey” from the ancient great inventors to the technology of the present age, where Tesla’s contribution looms large.
The main part of the exhibit consists of interactive models of Tesla’s inventions – including a Tesla coil that Mitsobonou singled out as a ‘highlight’ for most visitors – and reconstructions of his laboratories, while also focusing on his unique personality and his dedication to science and progress for its own sake, rather than for personal gain.

The exhibition, which opened its doors to the public on October 1, seeks to teach but also hopes to inspire visitors and create the incentives that will lead to tomorrow’s inventors,” Mitsobonou said. Based on the comments in the visitors’ book, the public’s response has been enthusiastic and it makes an ideal destination for families, with exhibits that appeal to both young and old.