Queen Sofia will open a major new exhibition in Alicante tomorrow - 'The Body Beautiful in Ancient Greece'- which features treasures from the British Museum's rich Greek collection.

The exhibition, which will run until October 13th at the city's Archeological Museum (MARQ), brings together 125 sculptures, ceramic, terracotta, marble, bronzes, coins and writings from Ancient Greece, on loan from the London museum.

The exhibition also features 'Discobolus', the celebrated representation of a discus thrower, one of the highlights of the British Museum’s collection, which has only ever been on loan once before this tour.
 
'Discobolus' is an impressive marble statue, weighing some 700kg and standing 1.7m high and is just one of the carefully chosen treasures that 'illustrate the beauty of the human body in Classical Greece', according to the curator of the British

Museum's Greek and Roman collections, Lesley Fitton.

The museum has also organised a paralel exhibition called 'Huellas griegas en la Contestania Ibérica' depicting the impact of ancient Greek culture on the Alicante region.

This second exhibition comprises 40 pieces from the MARQ as well as from other provincial museums like Elda, Alcoy and Santa Pola and also runs from April 2nd to October 13th.