A visual journey to the sea routes of the East using as a vehicle the “olkas”, the merchant ship of the Byzantines which transported goods and for centuries connected people, cities, ports and cultures. This time, the ship has in the holds unique images of history, such as engravings, postcards and photographs, for the first time presented in a way to highlight the history of each city-port and the cultural heritage of the region. Thessaloniki, Toroni, Kavala, Abdera, Thassos, Maronia, Anastassioupolis, Constantinople, Sozopolis, Varna, Anchialos, Costanza, Odessa, Sevastoupolis, Batumi, Baku and another eighteen ports are stations of this journey that starts from the northern Aegean and via Constantinople continues on to the Black Sea, to the coasts of Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Crimea and Georgia to come to Azerbaijan and the Caspian Sea, opening new routes to the East. Passing from port to port, the myth, the history and the present meet and the guests travel mentally, learn the history and are inspired for their own journey in Black Sea. The exhibition is carried out by the Centre of Culture of the Prefecture of Central Macedonia, the Centre for the Study and the Development of the Greek Culture of Black Sea and the European Centre for Byzantine and post-Byzantine Monuments, in the frame of the project “Olkas: From the Aegean to the Black Sea. Medieval ports-stations in the maritime routes of the East”. The goal of the project “Olkas”, co-financed by the European program «Joint Operational Programme BLACK SEA 2007-2013» and national resources, is the promotion of the medieval ports of the Black Sea as a modern tool for the development of cultural tourism in the region. Head and coordinator of the project is the European Centre for Byzantine and post-Byzantine Monuments. In the implementation participate seven organizations from six countries (Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, Georgia), which are responsible for the study, promotion and museum display of the medieval cultural heritage of each country.