Εθνικό Αρχαιολογικό Μουσείο | |
 Façade of the National Archaeological Museum, Athens | |
  Location within Athens | |
| Established | 1829 |
|---|---|
| Location | Patission Street,Athens,Greece |
| Coordinates | 37°59′21″N23°43′56″E / 37.98917°N 23.73222°E /37.98917; 23.73222 |
| Type | National museum |
| Public transit access |   Victoria station Omonia metro station Exarcheia – Archaiologiko Mouseio (2027) |
| Website | www |
TheNational Archaeological Museum (Greek:Εθνικό Αρχαιολογικό Μουσείο,romanized: Ethnikó Archaiologikó Mouseío) inAthens houses some of the most important artifacts from a variety of archaeological locations aroundGreece fromprehistory tolate antiquity. It is considered one of the greatest museums in the world and contains the richest collection of Greek Antiquity artifacts worldwide.[1] It is situated in theExarcheia area in central Athens between Epirus Street, Bouboulinas Street and Tositsas Street while its entrance is on thePatission Street, adjacent to the historical building of theNational Technical University of Athens.
The first national archaeological museum in Greece was established by the governor of Greece,Ioannis Kapodistrias, inAigina in 1829. Subsequently, the archaeological collection was relocated to a number of exhibition places until 1858, when an international architectural competition was announced for the location and the architectural design of the new museum.[2]
The current location was proposed and the construction of the museum's building began in 1866 and was completed in 1889, using funds from theGreek Government, theGreek Archaeological Society and the society ofMycenae. Major benefactors wereEleni Tositsa who donated the land for the building of the museum, and Demetrios and NikolaosVernardakis fromSaint Petersburg, who donated a large amount for the completion of the museum.
The initial name for the museum wasThe Central Museum. It was renamed to its current name in 1881 by thePrime Minister of Greece,Charilaos Trikoupis. In 1887, the archaeologistValerios Stais became the museum's curator.
DuringWorld War II, the museum was closed and the antiquities were sealed in special protective boxes and buried, in order to avoid their destruction and looting. In 1945, exhibits were again displayed under the direction ofChristos Karouzos andSemni Karouzou. The south wing of the museum houses theEpigraphical Museum with the richest collection of inscriptions in the world. The inscriptions museum expanded between 1953 and 1960, with the architectural designs ofPatroklos Karantinos.[3]
The museum has an imposingneo-classical design which was very popular in Europe at the time and is in accordance with theclassical style artifacts that it houses. The initial plan was conceived by the architectLudwig Lange and it was later modified byPanagis Kalkos who was the main architect,Armodios Vlachos andErnst Ziller. At the front of the museum there is a largeneo-classic design garden which is decorated with sculptures.[2]
The building has undergone many expansions. Most important were the construction of a new east wing in the early 20th century, based on the plans ofAnastasios Metaxas and the construction of a two-storeyed building, designed byGeorge Nomikos, during 1932–1939.[2] These expansions were necessary to accommodate the rapidly growing collection of artifacts. The most recent refurbishment of the museum took more than 1.5 years to complete, during which the museum remained completely closed. It reopened in July 2004, in time for theAthens Olympics and it included an aesthetic and technical upgrade of the building, installation of a modern air-conditioning system, reorganisation of the museum's collection and repair of the damage caused by the 1999earthquake. The Minoan frescoes rooms opened to the public in 2005.[4] In May 2008, the Culture Minister, Mihalis Liapis, inaugurated the much anticipated collection of Egyptian antiquities and the collection of Eleni and Antonis Stathatos.[5]
In 2020, there was renewed discussion regarding the need to further expand the museum to adjacent areas. A new plan was made for a subterranean expansion at the front of the museum.
In 2023, the Greek government approved plans for a 20,000 square metre underground extension to the museum. The extension is expected to be completed by 2028 and will also feature a rooftop garden.[6]
The museum's collections are organised in sections:[7]
| Collections | ||
|---|---|---|
| Section | Rooms | Sample inventories |
| Prehistoric Collection (Neolithic,Cycladic,Mycenaean) | 3–6 and 48[8] |
|
| Sculptures Collection | 7–34 |
|
| Vase and Minor Objects Collection (Including Stathatos and Vlastos-Serpieris collections) | 42[9] and 49–56[10] |
|
| Santorini Collection | 48 | |
| Metallurgy Collection | 36–39 |
|
| Egyptian andNear Eastern Antiquities Collection | 40–41 |
|
| Epigraphical Museum | 1, 9 & 11 |
|
The prehistoric collection displays objects from theNeolithic era (6800–3000 BC), Early and Mid-Bronze Age (3000–2000 BC and 2000 to 1700 BC respectively), objects classified asCycladic andMycenaean art.
There are ceramic finds from various important Neolithic sites, such asDimini andSesclo, and from middleHelladic ceramics fromBoeotia,Attica andPhthiotis. Some objects fromHeinrich Schliemann excavations inTroy are also on display.Key highlights of the collections include:
.jpg)
The Cycladic collection features the famous marble figurines from theAegean Islands ofDelos andKeros, including theLutist. These mysterious human representations, which resemble modern art and inspired many artists, such asHenry Moore,[11] came from the 3rd millennium BC old cemeteries of Aegean islands along with bronze tools and containers.
_(30146370354).jpg)
Mycenean civilization is represented by stone, bronze and ceramic pots, figurines, ivory, glass and faience objects, goldenseals and rings from the vaulted tombs in Mycenae and other locations in the Peloponnese (Tiryns andDendra inArgolis,Pylos inMessinia andVaphio inLakonia). Of great interest are the two golden cups from Vafeio showing a scene of the capture of a bull.
Mycenean collection includes also the magnificent 19th-century finds ofHeinrich Schliemann inMycenae from theGrave Circle A and the earlierGrave Circle B. Most notable are the golden funerary masks which covered the faces of deceased Mycenean nobles. Among them, the most famous is the one that was named erroneously as themask of Agamemnon. There are also finds from the citadel ofMycenae including relief stelae, golden containers, glass, alabaster and amber tools and jewels. Other features include an ivory carving of two goddesses with a child, a painted limestone head of a goddess and the famous warrior's vase dating from the 12th century.
TheEgyptian collection dates back to the last twenty years of the 19th century. Notable is the donation of the Egyptian government which in 1893 offered nine mummies of the era of thePharaohs fromBab el-Gasus. However, the Egyptian collection is mainly by two donors,Ioannis Dimitriou (in 1880) and of Alexandros Rostovic (in 1904). In total, the collection includes more than 6000 artefacts, 1100 of which are available presently for the public. The collection is considered to be one of the best collections ofEgyptian art in the world.
The exhibition features rare statues, tools, jewels, mummies, a wooden body tag for a mummy, a bronze statue of a princess, intact bird eggs and a 3000-year-old loaf of bread with a bite-sized chunk missing. The exhibition centrepiece is a bronze statue of the princess-priestessTakushit, dating to around 670 BC. Standing 70 cm high and wearing a gown covered in hieroglyphs, the statue was found south ofAlexandria in 1880.[12]
The Stathatos collection is named for the donors and major Greek benefactors Antonis and Eleni Stathatos. The collection features about 1000 objects, mainly jewels as well as metal objects, vases, and pottery from the MiddleBronze Age to post-Byzantine era. Features of special note are theHellenistic period golden jewels fromKarpenissi andThessaly.
Some of the ancient artists whose work is presented in the museum areMyron,Scopas,Euthymides,Lydos,Agoracritus,Agasias,Pan Painter,Wedding Painter,Meleager Painter,Cimon of Cleonae,Nessos Painter,Damophon,Aison,Analatos Painter,Polygnotos, andHermonax.
Collections includesculpture work,Loutrophoros,amphora,Hydria,Skyphos,Krater,Pelike, andlekythos vessels,stele,frescoes, jewellery, weapons, tools, coins, toys and other ancient items.
Artifacts derive from archaeological excavations inSantorini,Mycenae,Tiryns,Dodona,Vaphio,Rhamnous,Lycosura,Aegean islands,Delos, theTemple of Aphaea inAegina, theSanctuary of Artemis Orthia inSparta,Pylos,Thebes, Athens,Vari Cave, theAntikythera wreck and from various other places inGreece.[2]
The museum houses the archaic terracota statuettedaidala that inspired the designers of the 2004Athens Olympics mascots,Athena and Phevos.
 | This section needs to beupdated. The reason given is:Information dates from 2007. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(November 2025) |
Two of the newest exhibits of the museum include a 4th-century BC golden funerary wreath and a 6th-century BC marble statue of a woman, which were returned as stolen artifacts to Greece in 2007 by theJ. Paul Getty Museum inLos Angeles, after a 10-year-long legal dispute between theGetty Center and theGreek Government.[13]One year earlier, the foundation agreed to return a 4th-century BCtombstone from near GreekThebes and a 6th-century BC votive relief from the island ofThassos.[14]
The museum houses a 118-year-old library of archeology with rare ancient art, science and philosophy books and publications. The library has some 20,000 volumes, including rare editions dating to the 17th century.[15] The bibliography covers archaeology, history, arts,ancient Greek religion andancient Greek philosophy, as well as Ancient Greek and Latin literature. Of particular value are the diaries of various excavations including those ofHeinrich Schliemann. The collection of archaeology books is the richest of its kind inGreece. The Library has been recently renovated with funds from theAlexander S. Onassis Foundation. Its renovation was completed on 26 May 2008 and is now named afterAlexander Onassis.[16]
The museum is accessible by theAthens Metro. The nearest station is Victoria Station (Line 1) and it is within a 5-minute walk from the museum. The museum houses a gift shop with artifact replicas and a café in the sculpture garden. The museum is fully wheelchair accessible. There are also facilities and guides for hearing-impaired visitors. It is next to the old building of the National Technical University and is served by bus, trolleybus and metro. It is not served by Proastiakos or the Athens Tram.
.JPG)
_(3470740119).jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
1418-8th_century_boustrophedo-1.JPG)
48-Sacred_law-3.JPG)
218-219-Halai_honorific_decree-2.JPG)
