Spectacular mournful, purple Venetian lanterns in Corfu Town

Corfu Easter

17 Apr 2025 / 13:08

CORFU. Dimitris and Miltos Poulimenos – Working with Bronze.

If the brass band helmets are one of the defining products of the workshop, its timeless, most iconic reference is this: the making of the “Venetian” lanterns that adorn the old town of Corfu.

And first of all, the Liston. Heavy (“over 15 kg each”) and imposing. Especially during Easter Week — that purple extravaganza, which… now that is truly an icon, a symbol of the Corfu Easter.

As Dimitris and Miltos Poulimenos note, the shape of the lanterns hasn’t always been what it is today: “The older ones, the ones we first found decades ago, didn’t have a hexagonal design. They were round. But round surfaces (glass) became hard to find. So they were replaced.”

The work here is also done by hand. Clearly more complex, due to the many different parts (“crafted piece by piece”), each from a different material: “The central 'basket' and the 'lid' are made of copper. The frame and surrounding structure are iron. And the decorative elements are aluminium. Of course, there are also the small, square wall lanterns, which the town is full of — those are ours too. In those, the 'basket' is copper, and the 'arm' is iron.”

As noted, in the past, only traditional, handmade lanterns were used outdoors —
“Up until I joined the army,” says Dimitris, “I must have made over 300 large and small lanterns for the Municipality. The Liston, the Theatre, the National Bank, Bosketo, the Fortress, Old Town Hall Square…”

In the meantime, however, the rise of cheaper, factory-made alternatives (the so-called “Corfu-type” lanterns) also left its mark — think of those large outdoor poles with square lanterns.

And the mournful lighting?

“Ah, that’s not our department. That’s the Municipality’s job…”
True enough. Technically, it’s a collaboration between the Department of Culture, Sports & Youth and the Everday Life Services.

"From paint to... gel filters!"

In 2022, the lighting team was headed by Savvas Sideropoulos, who explained the evolution of the method to EN magazine:

“The way the lanterns are ‘coloured’ has changed three times. In the old days, the purple hue was achieved by painting white lightbulbs. But that wasn’t ideal — they’d crack. So as soon as the opportunity arose, they were replaced by screw-in incandescent bulbs that were pre-painted purple. When those disappeared from the market — around a decade ago — we switched to the current method: wrapping the bulbs tightly with purple gel filters.”

And the inspiration behind it?
As recalled by Fotis Skourtis, Head of Culture, Sports & Youth and master of ceremonies for the Municipality: “The late electrician and collaborator, Giorgos Panaretos. He deserves the credit, don’t you think?”
Obviously.

The city’s mournful lighting is traditionally installed on Holy Monday and removed at dawn on Easter Saturday.

Published in EN–The Magazine, Issue 9 (April 2022)