The exhibition is co-organized by the Maritime Museum of Crete and the Maritime Museum “Sergej Mašera” Piran, Slovenia, within the framework of our museum’s broader policy of international outreach and its ongoing efforts to promote maritime heritage and history. In recent years, we have developed strong partnerships and collaborations with numerous museums abroad, including through our active participation in the Association of Mediterranean Maritime Museums (AMMM).
Among those attending the opening ceremony and delivering welcoming remarks were Ms. Jasna Goličič Bakovnik, Deputy Head of Mission of the Embassy of Slovenia in Greece, representing the Ambassador of Slovenia to Greece, Ms. Tamara Weingerl Požar; Mr. Emmanuel Fragkakis, Regional Councillor of the Region of Crete; and Mr. Ioannis Giannakakis, Deputy Mayor for Culture of the Municipality of Chania. On behalf of the Maritime Museum of Crete, welcoming remarks were delivered by its Chairman, Commodore (E) Emmanuel Petrakis, HN (Ret.), while greetings on behalf of the Maritime Museum of Piran were delivered by museum advisor and exhibition curator Ms. Duška Žitko and former museum director Dr. Franco Juri.
The exhibition will remain open to the public at the Moro Dockyard (Neorio Moro) – Permanent Exhibition of Ancient and Traditional Shipbuilding of the Maritime Museum of Crete until 25 October 2026.
The exhibition “SLOVENIAN SHIPS – Six Vessels of Splošna plovba” marks the culmination of a twelve-year inter-institutional project. Inspired by the remarkable series of postage stamps issued by the Slovenian Post and dedicated to Slovenian ships, the initiative was conceived and successfully implemented by the Maritime Museum of Piran.
Through this project, the museum once again reaffirmed its institutional role in the research and preservation of maritime heritage, public awareness-raising, and the promotion of Slovenia as a country with a long-standing maritime tradition. By selecting six vessels of particular significance to the shipping company Splošna plovba, the project team sought to highlight one of the most remarkable success stories of the post-war era: the development of Slovenia’s only internationally active shipping company, which succeeded in establishing itself within the highly competitive global maritime industry while proudly bearing the image of Slovenia’s highest peak, Mount Triglav, on the funnels of its vessels.
From the company’s fleet of 86 ocean-going ships, the selection of the six most representative vessels—MARTIN KRPAN, ROG (I), PIRAN (I), MARIBOR (I), LJUBLJANA (III), and PORTOROŽ (IV)—for the postage stamp series proved to be a particularly challenging task from a scholarly and curatorial perspective.
