COUNT YOUR TEARS IN A LACRYMARIA

 

COUNT YOUR TEARS IN A LACRYMARIA

Aurela Zymeri

24.05.2022

The fourth Tuesday of May found me in the Archeological Museum of  Kosova, located in the capital city of Prishtina. It might be surprising, but even though it is in my country, this was the first time I went there. Together with my best friends, we decided to visit the museum. There were a lot of things to see and learn. The guide told us the characteristics of the Early Neolithic Period to Antiquity, Roman Period I-IV century. Exactly this last period of time, it told me that tears had been counted! What I mean by that, you will get to see..

As Albania is a country of ancient culture, its territory is home to a huge number of historical monuments that have risen to the surface in the shape of ruins. Some of those monuments, unfortunately did not survive to this day, but all of the others found were sent to the museum to be protected and not lose their value. Some of the archeological artifacts that are now placed in the museum are a lot of different vessels made from trim animal nails, as the guide told us. There were masks for rituals, small ovens made of mud, storage vessels, jewelry etc,. You could also see the graves of people in prehistory, who were buried like the baby found in the womb.  

 We were told that near those graves, some little glass bottles called  “Lacrymaria” were found. Those bottles were of different sizes and represented something interesting. They represented the grief that women of that time felt when they lost a close member of the family. There were some little bottles and some larger ones. The little bottles were used by those who did not cry that much. The big bottles were used by those who mourn their loss in a greater way. How did they fill the bottle? Well, the guide told us that the women would take one of the bottles, according to their grief, and put it on their face. They offered the bottle in the stream of tears when the tears began to fall, and the bottle was thus filled. For a moment I thought to myself how many of these bottles I might need to fill         every time I miss my dad, who's flying with the angels. 

There were a lot of interesting objects to see and facts to learn. Various dishes and decorations of that time, necklaces and jewelry which have become fashionable even today. I would like to see one of them hanging around my neck. I was amazed by what I saw in the museum.

Apart from the objects mentioned above, I got the chance to meet “The Goddess of the Throne”. A tiny sculpture with a big value. The symbol of Prishtina. It was found in a bus station in 2004 and I learnt that it was violently held in Serbia for a long time among other artifacts which we didn’t get the chance to take back too.

The time has changed a lot. It was such a great experience to be part of the museum and to enrich my knowledge with the deeds and characteristics of my nation before. 
To tourists: If you want to know more about Albania and Kosova, just visit the Archeological and Historical museum in Prishtina, not that far from the center. Believe me, you will not be disappointed.

 Photo credits: Edona Mehmeti