Looking for wedding dresses is not just an activity that only future brides can enjoy, at least not since the magnificent bridal exhibition has come to the Benaki Museum! This exhibition presents a large collection of wedding clothing from the 19th to the dawn of the 21st century and is organized by the Peloponnesian Folklore Foundation with the collaboration of the Benaki Museum.

Going around this exhibition, you can see the variety and change in traditional clothing: from the most traditional Greek wedding dress to the more widespread influence of European fashion. From the elegant and simple style of the 19th century to the most fascinating and eccentric wedding dresses of the 21st century, this exhibition shows how the style of wedding dresses is intrinsically linked and inspired by the latest trends in fashion.

The collection is rich with bridal artifacts and is accompanied by appropriate photographic material of the brides during their ceremonies. In these photographs, you can recognize the customs of a specific period of time and some of them show the groom’s fashion as well. Each dress is unique and has its own style; different shapes, textiles, colors, lengths, even the tiniest differences can indicate the background of the bride and the morals of the era. These dresses have been worn by actual brides and there are labels below each article clothing that identify the name of the bride along with the year and location of the wedding.

This exhibition is a big attraction, not only for “fashion lovers,” but for people that are interested in Greek tradition and history, as weddings are a telling indicator of culture!

Photo Credit: Villy Zafeiri

Villy (Paraskevi) Zafeiri is a student of the MA in Heritage Management 2013. She has studied Conservation of Antiquities and Works of Art and with a focus on stone conservation. She has worked in museum conservation laboratories, in the public sector and on excavations as well. Besides conservation of antiquities she is an ”art lover” mainly interested in modern art.