About National Archaeological Museum in Athens City

Overview

The National Archaeological Museum of Athens is the largest archaeological museum in Greece and one of the world's most important museums devoted to ancient Greek art.

Its collections include more than 11,000 exhibits, offering an extraordinary panorama of Greek civilization from prehistoric times to Late Antiquity.

Although the museum was originally created to protect and display archaeological finds discovered in and around Athens, its collections gradually expanded to include important discoveries from archaeological sites throughout Greece.

The National Archaeological Museum at a Glance

The National Archaeological Museum of Athens preserves some of the most famous works of ancient Greek art and archaeology.

Its galleries cover thousands of years of history and include prehistoric treasures, monumental sculpture, pottery, bronze masterpieces, jewelry, everyday objects, and Egyptian antiquities.

With approximately 8,000 square meters of exhibition space, the museum allows visitors to follow the development of Greek civilization from the Neolithic period through the Cycladic and Mycenaean civilizations, Classical Greece, the Hellenistic world, and the Roman period.

History of the Museum

The origins of Greece's national archaeological collections date back to 1829, shortly after the creation of the modern Greek state.

The country's first archaeological museum was established on Aegina Island, which at the time served as the seat of the government under Ioannis Kapodistrias.

After Athens became the capital of Greece in 1834, archaeological collections were gradually transferred to the new capital and temporarily housed in several different buildings.

As excavations throughout Greece produced an increasing number of important finds, the need for a permanent national archaeological museum became clear.

The Museum Building

Construction of the present museum building in Athens began in 1866 on land donated by Eleni Tositsa.

The original architectural design was prepared by Ludwig Lange and adapted during construction by the Greek architect Panagis Kalkos.

The final appearance of the impressive neoclassical façade was shaped by the architect Ernst Ziller, who also supervised later phases of the work.

The museum was completed gradually during the 19th century, while additional wings and exhibition spaces were added during the 20th century.

In 1893, a Royal Decree formally organized the institution as the National Archaeological Museum, establishing its role in the study, preservation, and presentation of Greece's archaeological heritage.

Protecting the Collection During World War II

One of the most remarkable chapters in the museum's history occurred during the Second World War.

Following Greece's entry into the war in 1940, museum archaeologists and staff began an extraordinary operation to protect the collections from destruction, bombing, and looting.

Large sculptures and other antiquities were carefully packed and hidden in protected areas, including underground spaces within the museum and other secure locations.

After the war, the museum gradually reopened, and a major project began to reorganize and redisplay its collections.

The post-war presentation developed over many years and was substantially completed by 1964, helping establish the museum's modern identity.

The Prehistoric Collection

The Prehistoric Collection presents the major civilizations that developed in the Aegean world from approximately the 6th millennium BC to around 1050 BC.

The galleries include objects from the Neolithic period and outstanding works from the Cycladic civilization and Mycenaean Greece.

Among the most famous exhibits are treasures discovered in the royal graves of Mycenae, including gold jewelry, weapons, vessels, and ceremonial objects.

The collection also contains important finds from the prehistoric settlement of Akrotiri on Thera (Santorini), including remarkable wall paintings that provide a vivid image of life in the prehistoric Aegean.

The Mycenaean Collection

One of the highlights of the museum is its extraordinary collection of objects from Mycenaean Greece.

Many were discovered during excavations at Mycenae, including material associated with the excavations of Heinrich Schliemann during the 19th century.

The most famous object is the gold funerary mask traditionally known as the Mask of Agamemnon.

Although the mask predates the period traditionally associated with the legendary Trojan War king, it remains one of the most recognizable archaeological objects from prehistoric Greece.

The galleries also contain gold cups, jewelry, weapons, seals, pottery, and other objects that illustrate the wealth and artistic achievements of Mycenaean society.

The Cycladic Collection

The museum also preserves important works from the Cycladic civilization, which flourished on the islands of the Aegean during the Early Bronze Age.

The collection is particularly known for its elegant marble figurines, distinguished by their simplified geometric forms and smooth surfaces.

These ancient sculptures have become some of the most recognizable works of prehistoric Aegean art and later influenced numerous modern artists.

The Sculpture Collection

The Sculpture Collection traces the development of ancient Greek sculpture from the 7th century BC through the Roman period and into Late Antiquity.

Visitors can follow the transformation of Greek sculpture from the formal Archaic kouroi and korai to the naturalism and idealized human forms of the Classical period.

The galleries also present Hellenistic and Roman sculpture, demonstrating how Greek artistic traditions continued to develop and influence the wider Mediterranean world.

Among the museum's celebrated works are monumental statues, grave reliefs, votive sculptures, portraits, and Roman copies of famous Greek originals.

The Artemision Bronze

One of the museum's best-known masterpieces is the monumental bronze statue known as the Artemision Bronze.

Discovered in the sea near Cape Artemision, the figure dates to the Classical period and represents a powerful male god in the act of throwing an object.

Scholars continue to debate whether the figure represents Zeus throwing a thunderbolt or Poseidon throwing a trident.

The sculpture is celebrated for its balance, movement, anatomical detail, and the dramatic extension of the figure's arms.

The Jockey of Artemision

Another exceptional bronze sculpture is the Jockey of Artemision, depicting a young rider on a galloping horse.

The work dates from the Hellenistic period and is remarkable for its intense movement and realistic portrayal of both horse and rider.

It was recovered in fragments from an ancient shipwreck and later reconstructed, becoming one of the museum's most striking exhibits.

The Vase and Minor Arts Collection

The Vase and Minor Arts Collection contains an extensive range of ancient Greek pottery and smaller objects covering many centuries of Greek history.

Visitors can see examples of Geometric, Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic, and Roman pottery, including black-figure and red-figure vases decorated with scenes from mythology, religion, athletics, warfare, and everyday life.

The collection also contains terracotta figurines, jewelry, glass objects, carved gems, and numerous smaller artifacts that offer valuable information about life in the ancient Greek world.

The Metalwork Collection

The Metalwork Collection contains some of the museum's most remarkable bronze objects.

Its exhibits include monumental bronze statues, figurines, vessels, weapons, tools, mirrors, and objects used in religious ceremonies and everyday life.

Bronze statues are particularly valuable because relatively few large-scale Greek bronzes survived antiquity, as many were melted down and reused in later periods.

The Antikythera Mechanism

One of the most extraordinary objects in the entire museum is the Antikythera Mechanism.

Discovered in an ancient shipwreck near the island of Antikythera, the device dates from approximately the 2nd to 1st century BC.

Its complex system of bronze gears was used to calculate and display astronomical information, including cycles connected with the movements of celestial bodies and the calendar.

Often described as the world's earliest known complex geared calculating device, the Antikythera Mechanism demonstrates the remarkable level of scientific and technological knowledge achieved in the ancient Greek world.

The Egyptian Antiquities Collection

The museum also houses an important Egyptian Antiquities Collection, presenting objects from different periods of ancient Egyptian civilization.

The collection includes statues, figurines, funerary objects, coffins, jewelry, and other artifacts illustrating Egyptian religion, beliefs about the afterlife, and everyday life.

It offers visitors the opportunity to compare the cultural development of ancient Egypt with that of Greece and the wider eastern Mediterranean.

Masterpieces You Should Not Miss

With thousands of objects on display, a complete visit can take several hours. Some of the museum's most famous highlights include:

The Mask of Agamemnon and the gold treasures from Mycenae
The Antikythera Mechanism
The Artemision Bronze, traditionally identified as Zeus or Poseidon
The Jockey of Artemision
Mycenaean gold jewelry, weapons, and ceremonial objects
Prehistoric wall paintings from Thera (Santorini)
Early Cycladic marble figurines
Important Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic, and Roman sculptures
Ancient Greek pottery and decorated vases

The Museum as a Research Center

The National Archaeological Museum of Athens is much more than an exhibition space.

It is also an important center for archaeological research, conservation, documentation, and the study of ancient Greek culture.

The museum maintains conservation laboratories specializing in materials including metal, pottery, stone, and organic objects.

It also possesses an important archaeological library and photographic archive, supporting the work of researchers and scholars from Greece and abroad.

In addition to its permanent collections, the museum organizes temporary exhibitions, educational programs, lectures, and cultural activities and lends archaeological objects to exhibitions in Greece and internationally.

Visit the National Archaeological Museum of Athens

The National Archaeological Museum of Athens is an essential destination for anyone interested in ancient Greek history, archaeology, art, mythology, and culture.

While the archaeological sites of Athens allow visitors to experience ancient monuments in their original surroundings, the museum brings together masterpieces discovered throughout Greece in a single extraordinary collection.

From the gold treasures of Mycenae and the marble figures of the Cyclades to Classical bronze statues and the extraordinary Antikythera Mechanism, the museum offers one of the most complete journeys through the ancient Greek world.

For visitors exploring Athens, it is one of the city's most important museums and one of the great archaeological collections of the world.