National Archaeological Museum, Athens facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
National Archaeological Museum

Façade of the National Archaeological Museum, Athens
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Established	1829
Location	Patission Street, Athens, Greece
Type	National museum
Public transit access	Victoria station Omonoia station Exarcheia – Archaiologiko Mouseio (2027)

The National Archaeological Museum (Greek: Εθνικό Αρχαιολογικό Μουσείο, romanized: Ethnikó Archaiologikó Mouseío) in Athens, Greece, is one of the most important museums in the world. It holds an amazing collection of ancient treasures. These artifacts come from different archaeological sites all over Greece. They cover a huge period, from prehistory (a very long time ago) to late antiquity (the end of the Roman Empire).

This museum has the largest collection of ancient Greek artifacts anywhere. You can find it in central Athens, on Patission Street. It is right next to the historic Athens Polytechnic university.

Museum History

The Museum in 1893

The very first national archaeological museum in Greece started in 1829. It was founded by Ioannis Kapodistrias, who was the governor of Greece at the time. The collection moved around to different places.

In 1858, a competition was held to design a new, main museum. The current location was chosen. Building the museum began in 1866 and finished in 1889. Money for the building came from the Greek Government, the Greek Archaeological Society, and other groups. Important people like Eleni Tositsa donated the land. Demetrios and Nikolaos Vernardakis gave a lot of money to help finish the museum.

The museum was first called The Central Museum. In 1881, Charilaos Trikoupis, who was the Prime Minister, changed its name to the National Archaeological Museum. In 1887, a famous archaeologist named Valerios Stais became the museum's curator. This means he was in charge of the collections.

During World War II, the museum closed. The ancient objects were carefully hidden and buried. This was done to protect them from being destroyed or stolen. In 1945, the exhibits were put back on display.

The south part of the museum has the Epigraphic Museum. This museum has the world's largest collection of ancient inscriptions. Inscriptions are writings carved into stone or other materials. This part of the museum grew bigger between 1953 and 1960.

In 2023, the Greek government approved plans for a new underground part of the museum. This new section will be very large, about 20,000 square meters. It is expected to be ready by 2028. It will even have a garden on its roof!

The Museum Building

The museum building looks very grand. It has a neo-classical design. This style was very popular in Europe a long time ago. It fits well with the ancient Greek art inside.

The first idea for the building came from architect Ludwig Lange. Later, Panagis Kalkos became the main architect. He worked with Armodios Vlachos and Ernst Ziller to finish the design. In front of the museum, there is a beautiful garden. It is decorated with many ancient sculptures.

Museum Expansions and Renovations

The museum building has been made larger many times. In the early 1900s, a new east wing was added. This was based on plans by Anastasios Metaxas. Another two-story building was added between 1932 and 1939. These expansions were needed because the museum kept getting more and more ancient objects.

The museum was recently updated. This big renovation took over 1.5 years. During this time, the museum was completely closed. It reopened in July 2004, just in time for the Athens Olympics. The renovation made the building look better and work better. It also added a modern air-conditioning system. The museum's collections were reorganized. Damage from a 1999 earthquake was also fixed.

In 2005, rooms with ancient Minoan frescoes opened to the public. Frescoes are paintings made on wet plaster. In 2008, new collections of Egyptian antiquities and the Eleni and Antonis Stathatos collection were opened.

There have been new discussions about making the museum even bigger. In 2023, the Greek government approved plans for a large underground extension. This new part is expected to be finished by 2028. It will also have a rooftop garden.

Museum Collections

The museum's collections are organized into different sections. Each section shows objects from a specific time or place.

Prehistoric Collection

This collection shows objects from the Neolithic era (6800–3000 BC). It also includes items from the Early and Mid-Bronze Age (3000–1700 BC). You can see objects from Cycladic and Mycenaean art.

Neolithic and Early/Mid-Bronze Age

Here you will find pottery from important Neolithic sites like Dimini and Sesclo. There are also ceramics from the Middle Helladic period. Some objects found by Heinrich Schliemann during his excavations in Troy are also displayed.

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  Gold treasure from Polichni

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  Clay vase with colorful decoration

Cycladic Art Collection

The Cycladic collection features famous marble figurines. These come from the Aegean islands of Delos and Keros. One famous piece is the Lutist, a figure playing a stringed instrument. These mysterious human figures look a bit like modern art. They inspired many artists, including Henry Moore. They were found in old cemeteries on the Aegean islands. They date back to about 3000 BC. Bronze tools and containers were also found with them.

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  Harpist figurine from Keros

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  Cycladic "frying pan" from Syros

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  Flying-fish wall painting fragment from Phylakopi Melos

Mycenaean Art Collection

The Mycenaean civilization is shown through many objects. These include stone, bronze, and ceramic pots. You can also see figurines, ivory, glass, and faience objects. There are golden seals and rings. These come from vaulted tombs in Mycenae and other places in the Peloponnese. Two golden cups from Vafeio are very interesting. They show a scene of catching a bull.

Heinrich Schliemann Finds

The Mycenaean collection also includes amazing finds by Heinrich Schliemann. He discovered these in Mycenae in the 1800s. They came from Grave Circle A and Grave Circle B. The most famous are the golden funeral masks. These masks covered the faces of important Mycenaean nobles. The most well-known is the one mistakenly called the mask of Agamemnon.

You can also see finds from the citadel of Mycenae. These include carved stone slabs (stelae), golden containers, and tools made of glass, alabaster, and amber. There are also beautiful jewels. Other highlights include an ivory carving of two goddesses with a child. There is also a painted limestone head of a goddess. The famous warrior's vase, from the 12th century BC, is also here.

Egyptian Art Collection

The Egyptian collection started in the late 1800s. In 1893, the Egyptian government donated nine mummies. These mummies were from the time of the Pharaohs. Most of the Egyptian collection came from two donors: Ioannis Dimitriou (in 1880) and Alexandros Rostovic (in 1904).

In total, the collection has over 6,000 artifacts. About 1,100 of these are currently on display. This collection is considered one of the best collections of Egyptian art in the world.

The exhibition features rare statues, tools, and jewels. You can see mummies and a wooden tag for a mummy. There is a stunning bronze statue of a princess. You can even see intact bird eggs and a 3,000-year-old loaf of bread with a bite missing! The most important piece is a bronze statue of the princess-priestess Takushit. It dates to around 670 BC. The statue is 70 cm tall. It wears a gown covered in hieroglyphs (ancient Egyptian writing). It was found south of Alexandria in 1880.

Stathatos Collection

The Stathatos collection is named after its generous donors, Antonis and Eleni Stathatos. This collection has about 1,000 objects. Most of them are jewels. There are also metal objects, vases, and pottery. These items range from the Middle Bronze Age to the time after the Byzantine era. The golden jewels from the Hellenistic period found in Karpenissi and Thessaly are especially notable.

Artists and Artifacts

The museum displays works by many ancient artists. Some of these include Myron, Scopas, and Euthymides.

The collections include many types of objects:

• Sculptures: Carved figures and statues.
• Vessels: Different types of ancient pots like Loutrophoros, amphora, Hydria, Skyphos, Krater, Pelike, and lekythos.
• Stelae: Upright stone slabs, often carved with images or text.
• Frescoes: Wall paintings.
• Jewelry, weapons, tools, coins, toys, and other ancient items.

These artifacts come from many archaeological digs. Some important places include Santorini, Mycenae, Tiryns, Dodona, Vaphio, Rhamnous, Lycosura, and the Aegean islands. Finds from the Antikythera wreck are also here.

The museum also has the ancient terracotta statuette called daidala. This statuette inspired the designers of the Athens 2004 Olympics mascots, Athena and Phevos.

New Exhibits

Two of the newest exhibits in the museum are very special. One is a golden funeral wreath from the 4th century BC. The other is a marble statue of a woman from the 6th century BC. These were returned to Greece in 2007. They had been stolen and were at the Getty Museum in California. This happened after a 10-year legal fight between the Getty Center and the Greek Government.

One year before that, the Los Angeles foundation agreed to return other items. These included a 4th-century BC tombstone from near Thebes. They also returned a 6th-century BC relief from the island of Thassos.

Museum Highlights

Library of Archaeology

The museum has a very old library focused on archaeology. It holds about 20,000 books. Some of these are rare editions from the 17th century. The library covers archaeology, history, art, ancient religions, and ancient Greek philosophy. It also has ancient Greek and Latin literature. The diaries from Heinrich Schliemann's excavations are especially valuable. This collection of archaeology books is the best of its kind in Greece. The library was recently updated. It is now named after Alexander Onassis.

Museum Activities

Athens, National Archaeological Museum, hall.

The museum does many things besides showing exhibits:

• It has laboratories to help preserve ancient objects.
• It has a photo archive and chemistry labs.
• It organizes special exhibitions both at the museum and in other countries.
• It hosts many lectures about archaeology each year in its lecture hall.

How to Visit the Museum

You can easily reach the museum by the Athens metro. The closest station is Victoria Station (Line 1). It is only a 5-minute walk from the museum.

The museum has a gift shop where you can buy replicas of artifacts. There is also a café in the sculpture garden. The museum is fully accessible for wheelchairs. It also has facilities and guides for visitors who are hearing-impaired.

See also