The National Archaeological Museum of Athens is the largest archaeological museum and one of the most important of all archaeological museums in Greece and exhibits some of the finest archaeological collections in the country. The museum actually narrates the Greek history from the prehistoric till the modern times.
Collections
The Prehistoric Collection, which includes works of the great civilizations that developed in the Aegean from the sixth millennium BC to 1050 BC (Neolithic, Cycladic, Mycenaean), and finds from the prehistoric settlement at Thera.
The Sculptures Collection, which shows the development of ancient Greek sculpture from the seventh to the fifth centuries BC with unique masterpieces.
The Vase and Minor Objects Collection, which contains representative works of ancient Greek pottery from the eleventh century BC to the Roman period and includes the Stathatos Collection, a corpus of minor objects of all periods.
The Metallurgy Collection, with many fundamental statues, figurines and minor objects.
The Egyptian and Near Eastern Antiquities Collection, with works dating from the pre-dynastic period (5000 BC) to the Roman conquest.
It also organizes temporary exhibitions.
Opening hours: Monday: 13:30 - 20:00 Tuesday - Sunday: 08:30-15:00
Closed on: 25 - 26 December, 1 January, 25 March, Orthodox Easter Sunday & 1 May
Address
44 Patission Street, Athens 10682
Tel: +30 210 8217724
http://www.namuseum.gr/wellcome-en.html
Acropolis Museum
The Acropolis Museum opened in July 2009 and it includes findings from the Rock of the Acropolis. This impressive building is entirely supported on an archaeological site and through glass you can "walk on" the ruins underneath you. The exhibits are such organized that visitors go on each floor according to the chronological order of the exhibits. On the top floor, there is the representation of the Parthenon Frieze, the most important exhibit of the museum. From the yard, you can enjoy the view of the Acropolis and the picturesque quarter of Makriyanni.
Galleries
The Gallery of the Slopes of the Acropolis
The Archaic Gallery
The Parthenon Gallery
Opening hours
Tuesday to Sunday: 8.00 a.m. to 8.00 p.m.
The Museum is open every Friday until 10 p.m. Monday: Closed.
Closed on: 1 January, 25 March, Easter Sunday, 1 May, 25 December and 26 December.
Address
The Acropolis Museum is located in the historical area of Makriyianni, southeast of the Rock of the Acropolis, on Dionysiou Areopagitou Street, Athens. It is only 300 meters from the Acropolis and approximately 2 kilometers from Syntagma, Athens main city square. The Museum entrance is located at the beginning of the pedestrian walkway of Dionysiou Areopagitou Street. The Acropolis station of the Metro is on the east side of the Museum.
Tour Buses
A bus drop off point for groups is available at Hatzichristou Street and the entrance is at Mitseon Street.
http://www.theacropolismuseum.gr/?pname=Home&la=2
Byzantine and Christian Museum
The Byzantine and Christian Museum of Athens is one of the most important public institutions in Greece, established in the early 20th century (1914) in order to collect, study, preserve and exhibit the Byzantine and Post-Byzantine cultural heritage in the Hellenic territory.
Collection
The museum collection contains an important number (approximately 30,000) of works of art such as icons, sculptures, ceramics, ecclesiastical textiles, paintings, jewelries and architectural elements (wall paintings and mosaics).
The permanent exhibition is divided in two main parts:
The first is devoted to Byzantium (4th -15th c. AD) and contains 1200 artifacts and the second entitled “From Byzantium to the modern era” presents 1500 artworks dating from the 15th to 20th century.
Opening hours
May-October: Tuesday-Sunday: 08.00-20.00 Monday: 13:30-20:00
November - April: Tuesday-Sunday: 08.00 -15.00
Closed on: Monday (November-April), 1st January, 25th March, Good Friday (open: 12.00-17.00), Easter, 1st May,
25th-26th December
Address
22 Vas. Sofias Ave., 106 75 Athens
Tel: +30 213 213 9572
http://www.byzantinemuseum.gr/en/
Benaki Museum
The Benaki Museum ranks among the major institutions that have enriched the material assets of the Greek state. It is also the oldest museum in Greece operating as a Foundation under Private Law. Through its extensive collections that cover several different cultural fields and its more general range of activities serving more than one social need, the Benaki Museum is perhaps the sole instance of a complex structure within the broader network of museum foundations in Greece.
This group of collections comprises many distinct categories totaling more than 40,000 items, illustrating the character of the Greek world through a spectacular historical panorama:
from antiquity and the age of Roman domination to the medieval Byzantine period;
from the fall of Constantinople (1453) and the centuries of Frankish and Ottoman occupation to the outbreak of the struggle for independence in 1821;
and from the formation of the modern state of Greece (1830) down to 1922, the year in which the Asia Minor disaster took place.
Opening Hours
Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday: 9:00 - 17:00
Thursday: 9:00 - 24:00
Sunday: 9:00 - 15:00
Closed on Tuesday and the following holidays: March 25th, May 1st, August 15th, October 28th, Christmas Day and Boxing Day, New Year's Day, Epiphany, Easter Day, Easter Monday, Clean Monday, Holy Spirit Day.
Address
1 Koumbari St. & Vas. Sofias Ave.
Tel.: +30 210 367 10 00
http://www.benaki.gr/index.asp?lang=en
National Historical Museum
The National Historical Museum belongs to The Historical and Ethnological Society of Greece (HESG), which was founded in 1882 for the purpose of collecting, saving and presenting relics and documentary evidence relating to modern Greek history. It is the oldest museum of its kind and it includes rich collections, which highlight the most representative phases of Neo-Hellenism, from the fall of Constantinople (15th Century) on. The National Historical Museum is also a research centre for Modern Greek History.
Opening Hours: Tuesday-Sunday: 09.00-14.00
Address
13 Stadiou Str., 10561, Athens
Tel.: +30 210 3226370
Email: [email protected]
www.nhmuseum.gr
Museum of the Ancient Agora
Collections of the museum
Finds from the wells, deposits, burials, workshops and sanctuaries, (4th millennium B.C. - 7th century B.C.)
Clay, bronze, bone, ivory, and glass objects (6th century B.C. - 3rd century A.D.)
Sculpture (6th century B.C. - 3rd century A.D.)
Coins (6th century B.C. - A.D. 1831)
Pottery (6th century B.C. - 6th century A.D.)
Inscriptions (5th century B.C. - 2nd century A.D.)
Items included in public life (5th - 2nd century B.C.)
Clay lamps (7th century B.C.- 11th century A.D.)
Objects found in a deep well (10th - 1st century B.C.)
Pottery of the Byzantine period and the Turkish occupation (10th-12th and 17th centuries B.C.)
Amphoras (6th century B.C. - Byzantine times)
Sculptures from the peristyle of the stoa (5th century B.C. - 3rd century A.D.)
Sculpture and architectural parts of the Upper Stoa.
Opening Hours
Sundays in the period between 1 November and 31 March
The first Sunday of every month, except for July, August and September (when the first Sunday is holiday, then the second is the free admission day.) 27 September, International Tourism Day
Free admission for University students from Greece and the E.U.
Summer: Daily 08.00-20.00 Monday: 11.00-20.00
Address
24 Adrianou St.25, 10555 Athens
Tel: +30 210 3210185, +30 210 3214825, +30 210 3210180
Vorres Museum
The exhibits which are displayed in the "Pyrghi" are mainly Greek folk objects of everyday use, rare pieces of furniture, hand-made rugs of various types, troughs, large jars, millstones, stone well rims, a large pottery collection, interesting oil paintings and engravings which depict historic events of modern Greece, as well as various important ancient finds. Among the traditional exhibits there are also some more rare samples of furniture crafted in Italy, France and Spain, in the 18th and 19th centuries and which belonged to the Vorres family. This type of furniture is compatible with the Greek decorative tradition, since Greek sea captains of the time used to bring home with them - in particular to the fine homes on the islands - good pieces of furniture acquired during their travels to other European countries.
The Vorres Museum consists of a complex of buildings, gardens and courtyards, covering an area of approximately 80 acres. Its collections, which number over 6,000 items, span a period of 4,000 years of Greek history and art.
The Museum has been donated, of a cultural and artistic foundation to the Greek state by the Vorres family. The Museum is divided into two main sections.
The first section is a museum of Modern Greek art, which presents important works of art and sculpture created by Greek artists of the second half of the 20th century. A general survey of the works clearly shows the significant influence of classical, Byzantine and folk tradition.
The second section is called the "Pyrghi" (or tower) and is composed of a complex of two traditional rural houses, the remains of a stable and an old wine-press dating from the end of the period of Ottoman rule, in the early 19th century.
Address
1 Parodos Diad. Konstantinou, 19002, Paiania, Athens
Tel: +30 210 6642520
Pavlos and Alexandra Kanellopoulou Museum
The Pavlos and Alexandra Canellopoulos Museum was established in 1976 following the donation to the Greek state of the collection of this name. It was originally housed in the listed neoclassical mansion of the Michaleas family in Plaka; it reopened in 2010 with the addition of a new wing built with a donation of the late Alexandra Canellopoulou. The Museum contains objects dating from the Prehistoric to the Modern era, highlighting the diachronic continuity of Greek art.
Opening Hours: Tue, Sun 8.30-15 Free Entrance
Winter: From the 1st of November until the 31 of March: 8:30-15:00
Closed every Monday
Address
12 Theorias & Panos St., 10555, Athens
Telephone: +30 210 3212313, +30 210 3251509, +30 210 3318873
Fax: +30 2109239023
Email: [email protected]
The visit to the Museum starts from the vestibule of the new wing, where there are two display cases containing figurines, vessels, tools and weapons from Egypt and Mesopotamia as well as Cyprus. To the left, on the landing of the ascending staircase, three marble funerary lekythoi are displayed.
Gallery 1
In this gallery, which is the largest in the new wing, the main body of the collection of Prehistoric and Classical antiquities is on display. The exhibit begins with objects from the Neolithic age and continues with the cultures that flourished in the Aegean during the Bronze Age, i.e. during the third-second millennia B.C. There is a representative and varied display of Cycladic marble figurines and utensils, Minoan terracotta and bronze figurines, stone and clay utensils, Mycenaean pottery and terracotta figurines, as well as bronze weapons and tools. Geometric art (10th-8th c. B.C.) is represented by decorative pottery and by terracotta and bronze figurines of horses and riders characteristic of this period.
There are also many objects dating to the Archaic age (7th-6th c. B.C.) from what were then the most important centers of the Ancient Greek world, in testament to its wealth and power. Characteristically we may note Cretan storage jars (pithoi) with relief decoration, Corinthian pottery, Boeotian and Attic vases, protomes, and figurines. There is a large and impressive collection of Attic black- and red-figure vases dating to the 6th, 5th, and 4th centuries B.C., with scenes from daily life and the realm of myth. There is also a particularly impressive group of white-ground lekythoi, which were funerary vases, with polychrome decoration on a white background. The series of 4th century B.C. terracotta figurines displays a great variety, depicting predominantly female figures known as “Tanagra figurines”. These are followed by objects from Apulia, Egypt and Messapia on the Adriatic Sea, while another section of exhibits includes Roman terracotta lamps and figurines.
There is a rare bronze ship’s ram in the shape of a marin mammal’s snout, and an important group of Classical bronze vases. In the center of the gallery, its most impressive exhibits are displayed in individual cases. From these, we may single out two Nikosthenic amphorae with erotic scenes and a scene of Maenads and Satyrs, a red-figure crater by the Dinos Painter with a depiction of Meleager departing to participate in the hunt for the Calydonian boar, an inscribed bronze lebes, a prize from games held in honor of those who had fallen in battle (probably at Marathon), and a black-figure hydria depicting women in front of a fountain. The most noteworthy marble sculptures in this gallery include a colossal female head, probably of a goddess, and a head of Alexander dating to the Roman period.
Gallery 2
The thematically-arranged exhibits in this gallery complete the collection of Prehistoric and Classical antiquities. They include sections on bronze weapons and helmets, bronze figurines, coins, weights and measures, and minor objects from daily life, as well as an impressive group of largely funerary jewelry dating to various periods made of gold, silver, bronze and semi-precious stones. Most of the marble objects in the Museum are also displayed here. These date from the Archaic to the Late Roman period. Marble displays include statues, funerary reliefs, and Roman portraits; a funerary lion, a group of Eros and Psyche, a decorated Roman cinerary urn and a portrait of the Emperor Trajan may be singled out.
Old Building
1st Floor
The exhibition begins with the funerary portraits from Fayum, the famed Egyptian portraits of the dead painted on a thin panel of wood, and Coptic textiles from the Early Christian and Byzantine periods. These are followed by bronze and silver ecclesiastical utensils, bronze lamps, chandeliers, bronze crosses, reliquaries, pectoral cross-reliquaries (enkolpia), procession crosses, small bronze, gilt and stone relief icons, pottery, jewelry, seal stones, Byzantine lead bulls, and Byzantine and Venetian coins. The section on Byzantine icons is particularly important. The 14th century icon of the Last Judgment of the so-called “Macedonian” School and the early 15th century icon of the Dormition of the Virgin, which presages the work of the famous Cretan School, are undoubtedly impressive. The Cretan School is represented by a significant number of 15th and 16th century icons, many of them signed. Specifically, we may mention the icon of the Deesis (Supplication), a work by Angelos, the most important painter of the 15th century, the Entry into Jerusalem, the Virgin Mary “Madre della Consolazione”, a work by Nikolaos Tzafouris, the Humiliation of Christ, and Christ with the Woman from Samaria, possibly also works by the same painter and all dating to the late 15th century. From among the remaining icons, we may note the late 14th century Miracle in Chonae, and the 15th century Tree of Jesse. The only two fragments of frescos in the Museum date to the last quarter of the 15th century. They depict heads from the scene of the Vision of Saint Peter of Alexandria, which once decorated the now-demolished church of Saint Spyridon in Kastoria. Synodical letters written by Patriarchs are on display along the staircase leading to the ground floor.
Ground Floor
Here there are exhibits of the Post-Byzantine and modern periods, and of 16th and 17th century icons. There are priests’ vestments and ecclesiastical utensils, triptychs, gilt chalices (Communion cups) –the most important of which is that of the prelate Theoleptos from Naxos, a signed work dating to 1583– boards from the bindings of Gospel books, wood-carved blessing crosses, and clay and wooden stamps. Jewelry of gold, silver, bronze and semi-precious stones coming from various workshops is also presented, as well as silver and gilt folk art clothing accessories from the 18th-19th centuries. Among the icons may be mentioned the Virgin of the Passion with scenes from her life and saints (early 16th c.), the All Saints (late 16th c.), the Martyrdom of Saint Paraskevi by Michael Damaskenos (16th c.), Saint John the Baptist by Emmanuel Lampardos (late 16th-17th c.), Saint Anthony and scenes from his life by Georgios Gavallas (17th c.), and the Entombment of Christ, a work by Emmanuel Tzanes (1679).
Basement
The basement exhibition presents religious and secular objects and icons dating from the 17th to the 19th century. The chief exhibits include metalwork like small relief icons, pendants and offerings (tamata), crosses from Ethiopia, minor objects of Russian art, weapons, pendants and stamps and metalwork objects of folk art dating to the modern period. There are also pottery and embroidery, ornaments from Greek folk costumes, and wooden folk art chests. There is an important section on manuscripts and rare editions. Noteworthy among the icons in this gallery are that of the Saints Theodore on horseback, a work by Nikolaos Kallergis (1700), Jacob’s Dream (early 18th c.), the Raising of Lazarus by Ioakeim Lampardos (early 18th c.), a two-zone icon, portraying the Virgin Mary and the equestrian saints George and Demetrios by Demetrios Livas (1674), as well as Saint James the Adelphotheos (Brother of the Lord) and Saint Nicholas with scenes from their life, by Stylianos Romanos (late 17th-early 18th c.). Finally, there is a noteworthy group of 18th and 19th century Russian icons.
¨Ilias Lalaounis¨ Jewelry Museum
The Ilias Lalaounis Jewelry Museum (ILJM) is a centre for international jewelry studies. On permanent display are the creations by Ilias Lalaounis, an Athenian jeweller and goldsmith, elected member to the French Academie des Beaux-Arts. The Museum organises temporary exhibitions on various aspects of modern or antique jewelry and runs a series of educational and cultural activities.
The ILJM operates as a non-profit cultural institution; following the combined approval of the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Finance the Museum is a registered charity. The ILJM opened to the public in December 1994. It is housed in the old Ilias Lalaounis workshop on the south slope of the Acropolis. The building, a beautiful 1930s house, was renovated by Vassilis Gregoriadis on plans prepared by Bernard Zehrfuss.
The permanent exhibition displays 3000 pieces of jewelry and micro-sculpture from 45 collections designed by Lalaounis in the period 1940-1992. They include jewelry inspired by prehistoric art, Bronze Age Greece, Greek jewelry from the Classical and the Hellenistic periods, Byzantium, the art of Persia, the Ottoman Empire and the Far East, as well as creations marking developments in technology and science, from breakthroughs in biology to space travel.
The exhibition is documented by trilingual labels in Greek, English, and French. Guided tours are also given in German and Italian. A variety of videos in Greek, English, and French are available for show at all times in a specially provided Projection Room. Actual jewelry craftsmen may be seen at work in the Museum's Model Workshop. There is a Cafe and restaurant on the ground floor, and a roof garden with a view to the South side of the Parthenon. Souvenirs, books, and jewelry can be found at the Museum Shop.
Opening Hours: Tue, Thu-Sat 09-15 Wed 09-21 Sun 11-16
Free Entrance every Wed 15-21
Address
Kallisperi 12, Acropolis
Tel.: +30 210 9221044
http://www.lalaounis-jewelrymuseum.gr/en/
Vouros-Eutaxias Museum
The Museum presents the modern history of Athens, since it became the capital of the newly founded Hellenic State in 1834 under the first royal couple, Otto and Amalia. Your tour will also include many other faces of Athenian history, culture and life. Several other collections and a series of typical late 19th century- early 20th century sitting and living rooms of the Athenian aristocracy complete the different aspects of our city offered by the Museum.
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri 09-16 Sat-Sun 10-15 Tue closed
Address
5-7 Paparigopoulou St., 105 61 Athens
Tel: +30 210 3246164, +30 210 3231397
Fax: +30 210 3220765
e-mail: [email protected]
http://www.athenscitymuseum.gr/index_en.html
Jewish Museum
The Museum was founded in 1977 to collect, preserve, research and exhibit the material evidence of 2,300 years of Jewish life in Greece. As a historical and ethnographical museum its main interest is to provide a vivid picture of Jewish life and culture as it was during those centuries. The collection contains more than ten thousand artifacts (some of which are unique), photographs, documents and archives, as well as the history of the Greek Jews.
The Jewish Museum of Greece was founded in 1977 in order to collect, conserve, research and exhibit the material evidence of 2,300 years of Jewish life in Greece. As a historical and ethnographic museum, its main interest is to provide a vivid picture of Jewish life and culture as it was during those centuries.
The new building of the Museum houses its rich collection and infrastructure for the organizational needs and the visitor services it provides in a total area of 800 sq.m. The entire floor space of the museum has been organized in areas for permanent exhibition of the Museum's collection with thematic modular exhibits, for periodic exhibitions, a contemporary art gallery, a video room. It also includes an area for educational programs, a research library, a photographic archive and laboratory, a conservation laboratory and a gift shop.
The permanent exhibition illustrates subject areas such as the synagogue and religious artifacts, the Jewish holidays, traditional costumes, the Holocaust, the cycle of life and the history of Greek Jews. Particular attention is paid to the Museum's educational role, especially with regard to intercultural education, programs for children & young people.
The Museum also organizes periodic exhibitions and events with subjects related to contemporary art, literature, poetry and music, in general every form of human expression, with a view to covering cultural and artistic matters. In addition to presenting a vivid picture of the past, the Museum aims to explore the timeless, multi-faceted nature of Greek Jewry. As a centre for exploration, familiarization and positive dialogue between memory and history, between individual and collective identity, it aspires to be an active cultural hive, strengthening the community spirit and the feeling of continuity.
Address
39 Nikis St., 10 558 Athens
Tel.: +30 210 32 25 582
Fax: +30 210 32 31 577
E-mail: [email protected]
http://www.jewishmuseum.gr/en/index.html
Museum of the Shadow Theatre "Spathareio"
The Museum was founded in 1965 by Eugeneio Spatharis and includes collections of Spathari's father, Greek and foreign, from 1947. There are also books, Greek and other languages, devoted to Shadow-Theatre, Judy puppets and marionetes, as well as posters, publications in newspapers and magazines.
The purpose of the Museum is to teach young people of this traditional art of the Shadow Theatre.
Some of the most important exhibits of the Museum are:
The classical figure of Karagkiozi. Designer Eugeneio Spatharis. The first color figure, was built in 1920
Black-and-white figures of traditional shadow theatre (1900-1930)
Color figures of various types
a) Odyssey, Perseus and Andromeda, b), c) Hercules, d) Ikaros and Daedalus, e) Theseus and the Minotaur
Address
Vas. Sofias & Ralli, Kastalias Square, 15 125 Marousi, Athens
Phone: + 30 210 6127245
Fax: + 30 210 6127206
Laboratory and Shadow Theatre Museum Charidimos
The collection of family Charidimos
Opening Hours: Mon-Sat 10-20 Sun 10-14
Free Entrance
Address
Cultural Center of Athens "Melina"
Iraklidon 66 & Thessaloniki’s, Thisio
Tel.: +30 210 3452150
Cartoon Museum
The main part of the Museum is constituted by the Permanent Exhibition of Cartoons, mainly carricatures, comic strips and other kinds of sketches by Greek and foreign cartoonists. There is also a library and archives.
Some of the most important exhibits of the museum are:
Comic strips by G. Grammatopoulos: "Proteus and Andromeda", on a script by B. Rotas, from the series "Illustrated Classics" published by Atlantis
Caricatures of cartoonists of the early years of the 20th century, from the satyrical review "Satanas",
Cover of the periodical "Phanos" by Phokion Dimitriades.
Opening Hours: Winter From 1st of November until 31st of March 8.30 – 15.00
Address
22 Liossion Str., 10 438 Athens
Tel +30 210 5241492, +30 210 5242140
Fax +30 210 5246943
Phaethon Technological Museum, Classic Car
The Phaethon Technological Museum was founded in 2004 and is managed by a four member Administrative Council. The Museum’s newly built facilities are situated on the 32nd km of the Athens – Lamia National Road towards Markopoulo, just half an hour’s drive from the centre of Athens, in a modern 7500 sq. building in a 100 acre estate. The visitors are provided with comfortable car parking, a bar, a projection hall and a boutique.
Collections:
Classic Car Museum.
Watch Museum.
Museum of Physics, Electronics and Telecommunications.
Speedway combined with a Thematic Park for Traffic Education.
Outdoor exhibition section with Defense Material.
The Museum is equipped with a multi‐language automated tour guide system. Conducted tours can be arranged for groups of 20 or more.
Opening Hours: Monday to Sunday between 09:00 and 15.00.
Address
36o km Markopoulo - Oropos
Tel: +30 22950 39261
Email: [email protected]
http://www.phaetonmuseum.gr/
Greek Car Museum
A journey through the history of the automotive vehicle models in the impressive collection Charagionis. You will see among others the Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing of Paul Newman, the 1959 Chrysler Imperial Construction's of Robert Plant, the 1979 Cadillac Seville Gucci with living room designed by the Italian fashion house
Opening Hours: Tue, Sat 12-21 Sun 11-18
Address
3rd Septembriou & Ioulianou
Tel.: +30 210 8816187
Railway Museum
The history of Greek railways through old locomotives, wagons, etc.
Opening Hours: Tue-Sun 09-13 Wed 17-20
Free Entrance
Address
Siokou 4 (Liosion 301)
Tel.: +30 210 5126295
Philatelic Museum
The Museum has been in operation since 1978. The hall on the first floor is intended for lectures, film projections and exhibitions. In the same space are also housed a library with specialized books and magazines related to the history of the postal services and of philately.
The other two rooms are in the basement of the building and constitute the main exhibition area. Here are displayed postboxes, safes, postal stamping machines, bags and horns used by the postmen and other articles of the Postal, Telegraph and Telephone Services. Also exhibited are a wide range of items related to stamps and the process of their printing. The Museum has a special date stamping machine with the representantion of the head of Hermes.
Opening Hours: Winter: From 1st November until 31st March, 0830 – 1500
Address
Philatelic Museum
5 Square Stadiou, 11635 Athens
Tel: +30 210 7519042, +30 210 7519066
Epigraphical Museum
The Epigraphical Museum is unique in Greece and the largest of its kind in the world.
It safeguards 13.536 inscriptions, mostly on stone, which cover the period from early historical times to the Late Roman period. The museum is housed in the south wing ground floor of the National Archaeological Museum.
It comprises an internal and external courtyard (atrium), a lobby, eleven rooms, a large hypostyle Pi-shaped corridor, a gallery, offices, a laboratory for the conservation of inscribed stone monuments and lavatories. Only the courtyards, lobby and four rooms are open to the public; the others are accessible only to researchers and staff.
The purpose of the museum, which is a Special Regional Service of the Ministry of Culture, is to safeguard, protect, conserve, display and promote the epigraphical collections that it contains. The museum also aims to comprise photographic and impression archives and a specialised epigraphy library. Moreover, a digital catalogue of the inscriptions is currently under construction, so that the collection can be accessible digitally to future visitors.
Opening Hours: From the 1st of November until 31st of March: 8:30-15:00, Tue-Sun 0830-1500, Monday: closed
1, 6 January, Shrove Monday, 25 March, Easter Days, 1 May, Holy Spirit Day, 15 August, 28 October, 25, 26 December: closed
Address
Epigraphical Museum
1 Tositsa St,
10682 Athens
Tel.: +30 210 8217637, +30 210 8232950
Fax: +30 210 8225733
E-Mail: [email protected]
http://www.yppo.gr/1/e1540.jsp?obj_id=101
Athens University Museum
The Athens University Museum is sited in the heart of Athens city, in Plaka area, on the northern side of Acropolis. The Museum is located in the historical building of "Cleanthis Residence", also known as "The Old University" where the first University of the Greek Independent State operated during the period of 1837 to 1841.
The Museum’s building belongs to the pre-Othonian period of Athens. The first reference of the building is found in an oil-painting canvas of the painter J.Currey dated in 1674. The painting illustrates the visit of the Ambassador of France in Constantinople, Olier de Nointel, in Athens. At the present time, the painting can be found in the Museum of the City of Athens and is considered an important testimony of Acropolis’s monuments before their destruction from Morozini in 1687. In 1831 Stamatios Cleanthis, architect and urban-planner, bought the building from its Othonian owner, Zante Chanoum, and after restoring it, he began using the building as a residence and probably as an office. In April 22nd 1837 the Royal Edict of King Othona for the constitution of the University of Athens was published in the newspaper of the Greek Government. "Cleanthe’s Residence" was considered a significant option to house the first University of the Independed Greek state, as, at that period of time, it was one of the six larger buildings in Athens. On the 3rd of May 1837 the operation of the University was inaugurated which included the Schools of Theology, Law, Medicine and Philosophy. The University began its full function with fifty-two students, twenty-seven professors, which came mainly from French and German Universities, and six Bavarians. Seventy-five registered audiences, mostly public servants, attended the lectures, among of which was Theodore Kolokotronis, an important personality of the Greek Revolution.
From 1861, when Cleanthis sold his house to a private owner, until 1967, the Museum’s building passed into various owners and utilities. The proclamation of "Cleanthis Residence" as a "historical and listed building" was on 17th December 1945 from the Minister of Education Georgios Athanasiadis-Novas. On April 7th 1967 the building was granted, under presidential order, to the University of Athens, after several years of captations, with the term “to be used explicitly as a University Museum". It took another twenty years for the building to be inaugurated as a Museum with the exhibition of "Souvenirs of the University of Athens".
The prime exhibit of the Museum is the building itself. The Museums collections include hand-written books, old and rare editions, portraits of University’s professors, manuscripts, letters, diplomas, old scientific instruments of Medicine, Physics, Chemistry and Pharmacology, medallions and various souvenirs of the University. Of outmost importance is the exhibition of theUniversity’s flag, a work by Nikolaos Gyzis, made in Munich for the occasion of the 50 years since the foundation of the University in 1887.
The diversity of the collections and the unique view from the windows make the visit at the Museum a magical adventure in the world of science, art and history.
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri 9.30-14.30, Mon-Wed 18-21, First Sun every month 11 - 16
Free Entrance
Address
Tholou 5, Plaka
Tel.: +30 210 3689502-4
Fax: +30 210 368 9501
E-mail: [email protected]
http://www.history-museum.uoa.gr/index.php?langId=2
Marika Kotopouli Museum
The Museum was inaugurated on May, 1990 and constitutes a functional museum of modern art, able to house important exhibitions. The building, erected in 1926, was the holiday home of the great actress of the Greek Theatre, Marika Kotopouli. During the German occupation, the house was requisitioned by the Germans. Later it housed the Police Station of the area. Finally, with the support of the Association of Greek Actors, the Municipality, undertook to restore the house, which was classified as a listed building, and to show off its distinctive architecture and its beautiful interiors, where cultural activities of a high calibre are held today.
This Museum does not exhibit objects related to Kotopouli. The building itself is of value as a museum; for the time being it welcomes temporary exhibitions, while it offers a permanent home to the artistic collection of Constantine Ioannides.
Opening Hours: Winter: From the 1st of November until the 31 of March: 08:30-15:00
Address
14 Panagouli St, Zografou
15 773 Athens
Tel: +30 210 7775950
National Gallery - Alexandros Soutzos
The National Art Gallery and Alexandros Soutzos Museum, the most important institution in Greece devoted to the subject of the history of Greek and Western European Art, has been in operation, in its present form, since 1976.
Opening Hours
Monday & Wednesday: 9.00-15.00 & 18.00 - 21.00, Tuesday: closed, Thursday - Saturday: 09.00-15.00, Sunday: 10.00-14.00
Address
1 Michalakopoulou Str., 11528, Athens
Tel: +30 210 7235857, +30 210 7232039, +30 210 7216560
http://www.nationalgallery.gr/site/content.php?sel=1
Macedonian Modern Art Museum - Alexandros Milonas
The mueum shows Features from all periods of the work of Alex Mylonas at least once every year to have the public to see different projects at each visit.
Opening Hours: Wed, Fri, Sat 11-19 Thu 13-21 Sun 11-16
Free entrance for young people under 18 years old and student’s of higher school of Fine Arts.
Address
Square Ag. Asomaton 5, Thiseio
Tel.: +30 210 3215717
Laboratory of John Pappas
The atelier of the well-known artist it is open for the public so you can see the place who were working and the collection of paintings and sculptures of him
Opening Hours: Tue, Fr, Sun 10-14 Free Entrance.
Address
Anakreontos 38, Zografou
Tel.: +30 210 7773946
Institute of Fine Arts & Music ”V. & M. THEOCHARAKIS”
Exhibitions, concerts, seminars, lectures and other activities
Opening Hours: Mon, Tue, Wed, Sat, Sun 10-18 Thu, Fri 10-21
Address
Vas. Sofias 9 & Merlin
Tel.: +30 210 3611206
Art Collection of the National Bank
The art collection of the National Bank began to formed from the time the bank itself was founded in 1841. This collection is considered to be of a museological nature, since it includes approximately 1,300 original works by leading 19th and 20th century artists in the fields of painting, sculpture and engraving.
The core of the collection consists of works by the finest of the Munich School, Nikiphoros Lytras, K. Volonakis, N. Ghyzis and others, as well as works of leading sculptors such as I. Kossos, the Fytalas brothers and of their immediate followers M. Tombros, Th. Apartis and others.
This important collection was enriched by works by the precursors of the generation of the 30's, such as Costas Parthenis, K. Maleas and others, by representatives of that generation: A. Asteriadis, N. Hadjikyriakos-Ghikas, Sp. Papaloukas, Yiannis Tsarouchis, Spyros Vassiliou, N. Nikolaou, G. Moralis, N. Engonopoulos, G. Zongolopoulos, Memos Makris, Y. Pappas and those who immediately followed them. There are also works by artists belonging to the generation between the two World Wars and the wartime generation.
Opening Hours: From the 1st of November until the 31 of March: 8:30-15:00
Address
86 Aiolou Str., 10232, Athens
Tel: +30 210 3341822, +30 210 3341833
National Museum of Contemporary Art
The National Museum of Contemporary Art began its operation in 2000. Its foundation came to cover a huge gap that the decades long absence of an analogous institution for contemporary international art had created in Athens.
Our decision to start immediately with exhibitions and namely of mostly critical and experimental character, even without premises or collections, was dictated by exactly this need. Exhibitions of contemporary art were taking and still take place in Athens. But the responsibility of the Museum, which equally sets in the centre of its activities both works of art and the public, is not to act circumstantially but based on a organized plan that is being realized from exhibition to exhibition and aims at awakening sensitivities and formulate critical thought and aesthetic criteria: there are no museums without audiences.
Still, there are no museums without collections. Until 2013, when the reconstruction of the former Fix brewery which will be the permanent premises of EMST will have been completed, a remarkable nucleus of works of art by Greek and international artists will have been developed, we compose collections of selective rather than encyclopaedic character, which promote advanced tendencies and critical explorations of the artistic present but also its historical depths which reach as far as the second half of the 20th century. Our goal, both by exhibitions and collections, is to offer all the Museum's visitors, which remains an unreservedly democratic institution, the "other" dimension which in our time cannot be conceived outside transcultural and ecumenical patterns.
Anna Kafetsi
Director of the National Museum of Contemporary Art
Opening Hours: Tuesday-Sunday 11 a.m.-7 p.m., Thursday 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
Free entrance
Address
Vassileos Georgiou Β 17 -19 & Rigillis Street
Tel: + 30 210 924 21 11-2
e-mail: [email protected]
http://www.emst.gr/EN/Pages/default.aspx
Cycladic Art Museum
The most comprehensive private collection of Cycladic art. Includes figurines, utilitarian and ritual objects. The second floor housed the collection N. Zintili with 710 Cypriot antiquities.
Opening Hours: Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat 10-17 Thu 10-20 Sun 11-17
Free entrance for children
Address
Neophitou Douka 4, Kolonaki
Tel.: +30 210 7228321-3
Athens Municipal Gallery
The Municipality of Athens began to put together its artist collection in 1923. The first work it bought was the sculpture by D. Philippotis, "The Fisherman", and it is interesting to note that half of the 2,355 works of art which the Gallery counts among its collection, were acquired during the period 1930-1940.
Opening Hours: Daily: 09.00 - 13.00 & 17.00 - 21.00, Sunday 09.00 - 13.00, Saturday Closed
Address
51 Piraeus Street, 10553 Athens
Tel: +30 210 3243022, +30 210 3243023
Fax: +30 210 3614358
Islamic Art Museum
Thirteen centuries (7th-19th a.c.) Artistic creation, with objects from the Ottoman Empire, the Middle East, Yemen and the Iberian
Opening Hours: Tue, Sun 09-15 Wed 09-21
Free entrance every Wedsday and for young people under 22 years.
Address
Asomaton 22 & Dipolou, Keramikos
Tel.: +30 210 3251311
Experience in Visual Arts
Permanent representative collection of engravings of the Dutch artist MC Escher and V. Vasarely.
Opening Hours: Fri 13-21 Sat & Sun 11-19
Free entrance for Children under 12 years
Address
Iraklidon 16, Thisio
Tel.: +30 210 3461981
Children Art Museum
The Museum of Greek Children΄s Art, is a nonprofit cultural Association, unique in its kind in Greece and one of the very few worldwide, was founded in 1994 by the Association of its Friends. The Museum exhibits paintings and artworks by children up to 14 years old from all over Greece, which are renewed on a regular basis.
Opening Hours: Tues-San 10-14 Sun 11-14
The Museum is closed on Mondays, official holidays and 1-31 August.
Free entrance for children
Address
Kodrou 9, Plaka
Tel.: +30 210 3312621, +30 210 3313734
http://www.childrensartmuseum.gr/english/news2005.asp
Emotions Museum of Childhood
It is a children’s museum which uses interactive exhibitions, play and fairy tales, in order to encourage children to discover their emotional world, to learn more about themselves and others. Moreover, it sensitises adults, parents and teachers on subjects which deal with the children’s emotional development and socialisation.
Opening Hours
For school groups
Monday to Friday: 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.
For visitors
Saturday and Sunday: 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Address
Karatza 7 & Tsami Karatasou, Filopapou, Athens
Tel.: +30 210 9218329
Museum of Greek Folk Art
Rich collections of folk embroideries, textiles, costumes, etc.
Annexes:
A collection of pottery B. Kyriazopoulou
Opening Hours 9 am-2.30 pm Closed Tues
Address Areos 1, Monastiraki Square
Pan Road Building 22, "People and tools. Aspects of labor in pre-industrial society "
Opening Hours Tue-Sun 9 am-2.30 pm
Bath of the Winds the only surviving steam of Athens
Opening Hours 9 am-2.30 pm except Tues
Address Kyrristou 8, Plaka
Free for students, and the first Sun of every month
Address
Kydathinaion 17, Plaka
Tel.: +30 210 3229031
Greek Folk Musical Instruments
Popular but also "forgotten" music instruments from the 18th century, from the collection of Phoebus Anoyanakis
Opening Hours: Tue, Sun 10-14 Wed 12-18
Free entrance
Address
Diogenous 1-3, Plaka
Tel.: +30 210 3250198, +30 210 3254119
Tactual Museum
For people with problems of seeing and not only
Opening Hours
Monday-Friday 09-18
Free entrance for handicapped individuals and their companions
Address
Doiranis 198, Kallithea, 176 73
Τel.: (+30210) 941 5222
Fax: (+30210) 941 5271
e-mail: [email protected]
http://www.tactualmuseum.gr/indexe.htm
Center Study of Modern Pottery
The Greek utilitarian pottery of modern times (early 19th - mid 20th century)
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri 10-15
Free Entrance for children and people over 65
Address
Melidoni 4-6, Keramikos
Tel.: +30 210 3318491-6
Santa Strati Museum (Political Exiles)
The modern Greek political history, focusing on exile, political persecution and violation of human rights through photographs, archival documents and objects
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri 10-13
Free Entrance
Address
Ag. Asomaton 31, Keramikos
Tel.: +30 210 3213488
Coins Museum
Collections of coins from ancient Greece to the present day
Opening Hours: Tue-Sun 8.30-15
Free entrance for students
Address
Panepistimiou 12
Tel.: +30 210 3643774
http://www.nma.gr/index_en.htm
War Museum
War relics from prehistoric times to 1945
Opening Hours: Tue-Sun 9.30-13.30
Free Entrance
Address
Vas. Sofias & Rizari 2, Kolonaki
Tel.: +30 210 7244464
Theatre Museum
Relics of the Greek theater of the 19th and 20th century
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri 10-15
Free Entrance
Address
Akadimias 50
Tel.: +30 210 3629430
Eleftherios Venizelos Museum
The Eleftherios Venizelos Museum it was founded in 1986 and houses a library, a collection of photographs and personal items of Eleftherios Venizelos.
Opening Hours: Tu. - Sat. 10-13, 18-20 Sun 10 -13
Free Entrance
Address
Park of Freedom
Tel.: +30 210 7224238
Eleftherios Venizelos Foundation
Opening Hours: Mo-Fr 9.30 - 13.30
Free Entrance
Address
Crhistou Lada 2
Tel: +30 210 3221254
Eleftherios Venizelos (full name Eleftherios Kyriakou Venizelos 23 August 1864 – 18 March 1936) was a charismatic leader in the early 20th century. Elected several times as Prime Minister of Greece and served from 1910 to 1920 and from 1928 to 1932. Venizelos had such profound influence on the internal and external affairs of Greece that he is credited with being "the maker of modern Greece" and he is still widely known as the "Ethnarch". His first entry into the international scene was with his significant role in the autonomy of the Cretan State and later in the union of Crete with Greece. Soon, he was invited to Greece to resolve the political deadlock and became the country's Prime Minister. Not only did he initiate constitutional and economic reforms that set the basis for the modernization of Greek society, but also reorganized both army and navy in preparation of future conflicts. Before the Balkan Wars of 1912–1913, Venizelos' catalytic role helped gain Greece entrance to the Balkan League, an alliance of the Balkan states against Ottoman Turkey. Through his diplomatic acumen, Greece doubled her area and population with the liberation of Macedonia, Epirus, and the rest of the Aegean islands.
In World War I (1914–1918), he brought Greece on the side of the Allies, further expanding the Greek borders. However, his pro-Allied foreign policy brought him in direct conflict with the monarchy, causing the National Schism. The Schism polarized the population between the royalists and Venizelists and the struggle for power between the two groups afflicted the political and social life of Greece for decades. Following the Allied victory, Venizelos secured new territorial gains, especially in Anatolia, coming close to realize the Megali Idea. Despite his achievements, Venizelos was defeated in the 1920 General Election, which contributed to the eventual Greek defeat in the Greek-Turkish War (1919-1922). Venizelos, in self-imposed exile, represented Greece in the negotiations that led to the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne, and the agreement of a mutual exchange of populations between Greece and Turkey. In his subsequent periods in office Venizelos succeeded in restoring normal relations with Greece's neighbors and expanded his constitutional and economical reforms.
http://www.arthellas.gr/arxaia.html
Collections
The Prehistoric Collection, which includes works of the great civilizations that developed in the Aegean from the sixth millennium BC to 1050 BC (Neolithic, Cycladic, Mycenaean), and finds from the prehistoric settlement at Thera.
The Sculptures Collection, which shows the development of ancient Greek sculpture from the seventh to the fifth centuries BC with unique masterpieces.
The Vase and Minor Objects Collection, which contains representative works of ancient Greek pottery from the eleventh century BC to the Roman period and includes the Stathatos Collection, a corpus of minor objects of all periods.
The Metallurgy Collection, with many fundamental statues, figurines and minor objects.
The Egyptian and Near Eastern Antiquities Collection, with works dating from the pre-dynastic period (5000 BC) to the Roman conquest.
It also organizes temporary exhibitions.
Opening hours: Monday: 13:30 - 20:00 Tuesday - Sunday: 08:30-15:00
Closed on: 25 - 26 December, 1 January, 25 March, Orthodox Easter Sunday & 1 May
Address
44 Patission Street, Athens 10682
Tel: +30 210 8217724
http://www.namuseum.gr/wellcome-en.html
Acropolis Museum
The Acropolis Museum opened in July 2009 and it includes findings from the Rock of the Acropolis. This impressive building is entirely supported on an archaeological site and through glass you can "walk on" the ruins underneath you. The exhibits are such organized that visitors go on each floor according to the chronological order of the exhibits. On the top floor, there is the representation of the Parthenon Frieze, the most important exhibit of the museum. From the yard, you can enjoy the view of the Acropolis and the picturesque quarter of Makriyanni.
Galleries
The Gallery of the Slopes of the Acropolis
The Archaic Gallery
The Parthenon Gallery
Opening hours
Tuesday to Sunday: 8.00 a.m. to 8.00 p.m.
The Museum is open every Friday until 10 p.m. Monday: Closed.
Closed on: 1 January, 25 March, Easter Sunday, 1 May, 25 December and 26 December.
Address
The Acropolis Museum is located in the historical area of Makriyianni, southeast of the Rock of the Acropolis, on Dionysiou Areopagitou Street, Athens. It is only 300 meters from the Acropolis and approximately 2 kilometers from Syntagma, Athens main city square. The Museum entrance is located at the beginning of the pedestrian walkway of Dionysiou Areopagitou Street. The Acropolis station of the Metro is on the east side of the Museum.
Tour Buses
A bus drop off point for groups is available at Hatzichristou Street and the entrance is at Mitseon Street.
http://www.theacropolismuseum.gr/?pname=Home&la=2
Byzantine and Christian Museum
The Byzantine and Christian Museum of Athens is one of the most important public institutions in Greece, established in the early 20th century (1914) in order to collect, study, preserve and exhibit the Byzantine and Post-Byzantine cultural heritage in the Hellenic territory.
Collection
The museum collection contains an important number (approximately 30,000) of works of art such as icons, sculptures, ceramics, ecclesiastical textiles, paintings, jewelries and architectural elements (wall paintings and mosaics).
The permanent exhibition is divided in two main parts:
The first is devoted to Byzantium (4th -15th c. AD) and contains 1200 artifacts and the second entitled “From Byzantium to the modern era” presents 1500 artworks dating from the 15th to 20th century.
Opening hours
May-October: Tuesday-Sunday: 08.00-20.00 Monday: 13:30-20:00
November - April: Tuesday-Sunday: 08.00 -15.00
Closed on: Monday (November-April), 1st January, 25th March, Good Friday (open: 12.00-17.00), Easter, 1st May,
25th-26th December
Address
22 Vas. Sofias Ave., 106 75 Athens
Tel: +30 213 213 9572
http://www.byzantinemuseum.gr/en/
Benaki Museum
The Benaki Museum ranks among the major institutions that have enriched the material assets of the Greek state. It is also the oldest museum in Greece operating as a Foundation under Private Law. Through its extensive collections that cover several different cultural fields and its more general range of activities serving more than one social need, the Benaki Museum is perhaps the sole instance of a complex structure within the broader network of museum foundations in Greece.
This group of collections comprises many distinct categories totaling more than 40,000 items, illustrating the character of the Greek world through a spectacular historical panorama:
from antiquity and the age of Roman domination to the medieval Byzantine period;
from the fall of Constantinople (1453) and the centuries of Frankish and Ottoman occupation to the outbreak of the struggle for independence in 1821;
and from the formation of the modern state of Greece (1830) down to 1922, the year in which the Asia Minor disaster took place.
Opening Hours
Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday: 9:00 - 17:00
Thursday: 9:00 - 24:00
Sunday: 9:00 - 15:00
Closed on Tuesday and the following holidays: March 25th, May 1st, August 15th, October 28th, Christmas Day and Boxing Day, New Year's Day, Epiphany, Easter Day, Easter Monday, Clean Monday, Holy Spirit Day.
Address
1 Koumbari St. & Vas. Sofias Ave.
Tel.: +30 210 367 10 00
http://www.benaki.gr/index.asp?lang=en
National Historical Museum
The National Historical Museum belongs to The Historical and Ethnological Society of Greece (HESG), which was founded in 1882 for the purpose of collecting, saving and presenting relics and documentary evidence relating to modern Greek history. It is the oldest museum of its kind and it includes rich collections, which highlight the most representative phases of Neo-Hellenism, from the fall of Constantinople (15th Century) on. The National Historical Museum is also a research centre for Modern Greek History.
Opening Hours: Tuesday-Sunday: 09.00-14.00
Address
13 Stadiou Str., 10561, Athens
Tel.: +30 210 3226370
Email: [email protected]
www.nhmuseum.gr
Museum of the Ancient Agora
Collections of the museum
Finds from the wells, deposits, burials, workshops and sanctuaries, (4th millennium B.C. - 7th century B.C.)
Clay, bronze, bone, ivory, and glass objects (6th century B.C. - 3rd century A.D.)
Sculpture (6th century B.C. - 3rd century A.D.)
Coins (6th century B.C. - A.D. 1831)
Pottery (6th century B.C. - 6th century A.D.)
Inscriptions (5th century B.C. - 2nd century A.D.)
Items included in public life (5th - 2nd century B.C.)
Clay lamps (7th century B.C.- 11th century A.D.)
Objects found in a deep well (10th - 1st century B.C.)
Pottery of the Byzantine period and the Turkish occupation (10th-12th and 17th centuries B.C.)
Amphoras (6th century B.C. - Byzantine times)
Sculptures from the peristyle of the stoa (5th century B.C. - 3rd century A.D.)
Sculpture and architectural parts of the Upper Stoa.
Opening Hours
Sundays in the period between 1 November and 31 March
The first Sunday of every month, except for July, August and September (when the first Sunday is holiday, then the second is the free admission day.) 27 September, International Tourism Day
Free admission for University students from Greece and the E.U.
Summer: Daily 08.00-20.00 Monday: 11.00-20.00
Address
24 Adrianou St.25, 10555 Athens
Tel: +30 210 3210185, +30 210 3214825, +30 210 3210180
Vorres Museum
The exhibits which are displayed in the "Pyrghi" are mainly Greek folk objects of everyday use, rare pieces of furniture, hand-made rugs of various types, troughs, large jars, millstones, stone well rims, a large pottery collection, interesting oil paintings and engravings which depict historic events of modern Greece, as well as various important ancient finds. Among the traditional exhibits there are also some more rare samples of furniture crafted in Italy, France and Spain, in the 18th and 19th centuries and which belonged to the Vorres family. This type of furniture is compatible with the Greek decorative tradition, since Greek sea captains of the time used to bring home with them - in particular to the fine homes on the islands - good pieces of furniture acquired during their travels to other European countries.
The Vorres Museum consists of a complex of buildings, gardens and courtyards, covering an area of approximately 80 acres. Its collections, which number over 6,000 items, span a period of 4,000 years of Greek history and art.
The Museum has been donated, of a cultural and artistic foundation to the Greek state by the Vorres family. The Museum is divided into two main sections.
The first section is a museum of Modern Greek art, which presents important works of art and sculpture created by Greek artists of the second half of the 20th century. A general survey of the works clearly shows the significant influence of classical, Byzantine and folk tradition.
The second section is called the "Pyrghi" (or tower) and is composed of a complex of two traditional rural houses, the remains of a stable and an old wine-press dating from the end of the period of Ottoman rule, in the early 19th century.
Address
1 Parodos Diad. Konstantinou, 19002, Paiania, Athens
Tel: +30 210 6642520
Pavlos and Alexandra Kanellopoulou Museum
The Pavlos and Alexandra Canellopoulos Museum was established in 1976 following the donation to the Greek state of the collection of this name. It was originally housed in the listed neoclassical mansion of the Michaleas family in Plaka; it reopened in 2010 with the addition of a new wing built with a donation of the late Alexandra Canellopoulou. The Museum contains objects dating from the Prehistoric to the Modern era, highlighting the diachronic continuity of Greek art.
Opening Hours: Tue, Sun 8.30-15 Free Entrance
Winter: From the 1st of November until the 31 of March: 8:30-15:00
Closed every Monday
Address
12 Theorias & Panos St., 10555, Athens
Telephone: +30 210 3212313, +30 210 3251509, +30 210 3318873
Fax: +30 2109239023
Email: [email protected]
The visit to the Museum starts from the vestibule of the new wing, where there are two display cases containing figurines, vessels, tools and weapons from Egypt and Mesopotamia as well as Cyprus. To the left, on the landing of the ascending staircase, three marble funerary lekythoi are displayed.
Gallery 1
In this gallery, which is the largest in the new wing, the main body of the collection of Prehistoric and Classical antiquities is on display. The exhibit begins with objects from the Neolithic age and continues with the cultures that flourished in the Aegean during the Bronze Age, i.e. during the third-second millennia B.C. There is a representative and varied display of Cycladic marble figurines and utensils, Minoan terracotta and bronze figurines, stone and clay utensils, Mycenaean pottery and terracotta figurines, as well as bronze weapons and tools. Geometric art (10th-8th c. B.C.) is represented by decorative pottery and by terracotta and bronze figurines of horses and riders characteristic of this period.
There are also many objects dating to the Archaic age (7th-6th c. B.C.) from what were then the most important centers of the Ancient Greek world, in testament to its wealth and power. Characteristically we may note Cretan storage jars (pithoi) with relief decoration, Corinthian pottery, Boeotian and Attic vases, protomes, and figurines. There is a large and impressive collection of Attic black- and red-figure vases dating to the 6th, 5th, and 4th centuries B.C., with scenes from daily life and the realm of myth. There is also a particularly impressive group of white-ground lekythoi, which were funerary vases, with polychrome decoration on a white background. The series of 4th century B.C. terracotta figurines displays a great variety, depicting predominantly female figures known as “Tanagra figurines”. These are followed by objects from Apulia, Egypt and Messapia on the Adriatic Sea, while another section of exhibits includes Roman terracotta lamps and figurines.
There is a rare bronze ship’s ram in the shape of a marin mammal’s snout, and an important group of Classical bronze vases. In the center of the gallery, its most impressive exhibits are displayed in individual cases. From these, we may single out two Nikosthenic amphorae with erotic scenes and a scene of Maenads and Satyrs, a red-figure crater by the Dinos Painter with a depiction of Meleager departing to participate in the hunt for the Calydonian boar, an inscribed bronze lebes, a prize from games held in honor of those who had fallen in battle (probably at Marathon), and a black-figure hydria depicting women in front of a fountain. The most noteworthy marble sculptures in this gallery include a colossal female head, probably of a goddess, and a head of Alexander dating to the Roman period.
Gallery 2
The thematically-arranged exhibits in this gallery complete the collection of Prehistoric and Classical antiquities. They include sections on bronze weapons and helmets, bronze figurines, coins, weights and measures, and minor objects from daily life, as well as an impressive group of largely funerary jewelry dating to various periods made of gold, silver, bronze and semi-precious stones. Most of the marble objects in the Museum are also displayed here. These date from the Archaic to the Late Roman period. Marble displays include statues, funerary reliefs, and Roman portraits; a funerary lion, a group of Eros and Psyche, a decorated Roman cinerary urn and a portrait of the Emperor Trajan may be singled out.
Old Building
1st Floor
The exhibition begins with the funerary portraits from Fayum, the famed Egyptian portraits of the dead painted on a thin panel of wood, and Coptic textiles from the Early Christian and Byzantine periods. These are followed by bronze and silver ecclesiastical utensils, bronze lamps, chandeliers, bronze crosses, reliquaries, pectoral cross-reliquaries (enkolpia), procession crosses, small bronze, gilt and stone relief icons, pottery, jewelry, seal stones, Byzantine lead bulls, and Byzantine and Venetian coins. The section on Byzantine icons is particularly important. The 14th century icon of the Last Judgment of the so-called “Macedonian” School and the early 15th century icon of the Dormition of the Virgin, which presages the work of the famous Cretan School, are undoubtedly impressive. The Cretan School is represented by a significant number of 15th and 16th century icons, many of them signed. Specifically, we may mention the icon of the Deesis (Supplication), a work by Angelos, the most important painter of the 15th century, the Entry into Jerusalem, the Virgin Mary “Madre della Consolazione”, a work by Nikolaos Tzafouris, the Humiliation of Christ, and Christ with the Woman from Samaria, possibly also works by the same painter and all dating to the late 15th century. From among the remaining icons, we may note the late 14th century Miracle in Chonae, and the 15th century Tree of Jesse. The only two fragments of frescos in the Museum date to the last quarter of the 15th century. They depict heads from the scene of the Vision of Saint Peter of Alexandria, which once decorated the now-demolished church of Saint Spyridon in Kastoria. Synodical letters written by Patriarchs are on display along the staircase leading to the ground floor.
Ground Floor
Here there are exhibits of the Post-Byzantine and modern periods, and of 16th and 17th century icons. There are priests’ vestments and ecclesiastical utensils, triptychs, gilt chalices (Communion cups) –the most important of which is that of the prelate Theoleptos from Naxos, a signed work dating to 1583– boards from the bindings of Gospel books, wood-carved blessing crosses, and clay and wooden stamps. Jewelry of gold, silver, bronze and semi-precious stones coming from various workshops is also presented, as well as silver and gilt folk art clothing accessories from the 18th-19th centuries. Among the icons may be mentioned the Virgin of the Passion with scenes from her life and saints (early 16th c.), the All Saints (late 16th c.), the Martyrdom of Saint Paraskevi by Michael Damaskenos (16th c.), Saint John the Baptist by Emmanuel Lampardos (late 16th-17th c.), Saint Anthony and scenes from his life by Georgios Gavallas (17th c.), and the Entombment of Christ, a work by Emmanuel Tzanes (1679).
Basement
The basement exhibition presents religious and secular objects and icons dating from the 17th to the 19th century. The chief exhibits include metalwork like small relief icons, pendants and offerings (tamata), crosses from Ethiopia, minor objects of Russian art, weapons, pendants and stamps and metalwork objects of folk art dating to the modern period. There are also pottery and embroidery, ornaments from Greek folk costumes, and wooden folk art chests. There is an important section on manuscripts and rare editions. Noteworthy among the icons in this gallery are that of the Saints Theodore on horseback, a work by Nikolaos Kallergis (1700), Jacob’s Dream (early 18th c.), the Raising of Lazarus by Ioakeim Lampardos (early 18th c.), a two-zone icon, portraying the Virgin Mary and the equestrian saints George and Demetrios by Demetrios Livas (1674), as well as Saint James the Adelphotheos (Brother of the Lord) and Saint Nicholas with scenes from their life, by Stylianos Romanos (late 17th-early 18th c.). Finally, there is a noteworthy group of 18th and 19th century Russian icons.
¨Ilias Lalaounis¨ Jewelry Museum
The Ilias Lalaounis Jewelry Museum (ILJM) is a centre for international jewelry studies. On permanent display are the creations by Ilias Lalaounis, an Athenian jeweller and goldsmith, elected member to the French Academie des Beaux-Arts. The Museum organises temporary exhibitions on various aspects of modern or antique jewelry and runs a series of educational and cultural activities.
The ILJM operates as a non-profit cultural institution; following the combined approval of the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Finance the Museum is a registered charity. The ILJM opened to the public in December 1994. It is housed in the old Ilias Lalaounis workshop on the south slope of the Acropolis. The building, a beautiful 1930s house, was renovated by Vassilis Gregoriadis on plans prepared by Bernard Zehrfuss.
The permanent exhibition displays 3000 pieces of jewelry and micro-sculpture from 45 collections designed by Lalaounis in the period 1940-1992. They include jewelry inspired by prehistoric art, Bronze Age Greece, Greek jewelry from the Classical and the Hellenistic periods, Byzantium, the art of Persia, the Ottoman Empire and the Far East, as well as creations marking developments in technology and science, from breakthroughs in biology to space travel.
The exhibition is documented by trilingual labels in Greek, English, and French. Guided tours are also given in German and Italian. A variety of videos in Greek, English, and French are available for show at all times in a specially provided Projection Room. Actual jewelry craftsmen may be seen at work in the Museum's Model Workshop. There is a Cafe and restaurant on the ground floor, and a roof garden with a view to the South side of the Parthenon. Souvenirs, books, and jewelry can be found at the Museum Shop.
Opening Hours: Tue, Thu-Sat 09-15 Wed 09-21 Sun 11-16
Free Entrance every Wed 15-21
Address
Kallisperi 12, Acropolis
Tel.: +30 210 9221044
http://www.lalaounis-jewelrymuseum.gr/en/
Vouros-Eutaxias Museum
The Museum presents the modern history of Athens, since it became the capital of the newly founded Hellenic State in 1834 under the first royal couple, Otto and Amalia. Your tour will also include many other faces of Athenian history, culture and life. Several other collections and a series of typical late 19th century- early 20th century sitting and living rooms of the Athenian aristocracy complete the different aspects of our city offered by the Museum.
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri 09-16 Sat-Sun 10-15 Tue closed
Address
5-7 Paparigopoulou St., 105 61 Athens
Tel: +30 210 3246164, +30 210 3231397
Fax: +30 210 3220765
e-mail: [email protected]
http://www.athenscitymuseum.gr/index_en.html
Jewish Museum
The Museum was founded in 1977 to collect, preserve, research and exhibit the material evidence of 2,300 years of Jewish life in Greece. As a historical and ethnographical museum its main interest is to provide a vivid picture of Jewish life and culture as it was during those centuries. The collection contains more than ten thousand artifacts (some of which are unique), photographs, documents and archives, as well as the history of the Greek Jews.
The Jewish Museum of Greece was founded in 1977 in order to collect, conserve, research and exhibit the material evidence of 2,300 years of Jewish life in Greece. As a historical and ethnographic museum, its main interest is to provide a vivid picture of Jewish life and culture as it was during those centuries.
The new building of the Museum houses its rich collection and infrastructure for the organizational needs and the visitor services it provides in a total area of 800 sq.m. The entire floor space of the museum has been organized in areas for permanent exhibition of the Museum's collection with thematic modular exhibits, for periodic exhibitions, a contemporary art gallery, a video room. It also includes an area for educational programs, a research library, a photographic archive and laboratory, a conservation laboratory and a gift shop.
The permanent exhibition illustrates subject areas such as the synagogue and religious artifacts, the Jewish holidays, traditional costumes, the Holocaust, the cycle of life and the history of Greek Jews. Particular attention is paid to the Museum's educational role, especially with regard to intercultural education, programs for children & young people.
The Museum also organizes periodic exhibitions and events with subjects related to contemporary art, literature, poetry and music, in general every form of human expression, with a view to covering cultural and artistic matters. In addition to presenting a vivid picture of the past, the Museum aims to explore the timeless, multi-faceted nature of Greek Jewry. As a centre for exploration, familiarization and positive dialogue between memory and history, between individual and collective identity, it aspires to be an active cultural hive, strengthening the community spirit and the feeling of continuity.
Address
39 Nikis St., 10 558 Athens
Tel.: +30 210 32 25 582
Fax: +30 210 32 31 577
E-mail: [email protected]
http://www.jewishmuseum.gr/en/index.html
Museum of the Shadow Theatre "Spathareio"
The Museum was founded in 1965 by Eugeneio Spatharis and includes collections of Spathari's father, Greek and foreign, from 1947. There are also books, Greek and other languages, devoted to Shadow-Theatre, Judy puppets and marionetes, as well as posters, publications in newspapers and magazines.
The purpose of the Museum is to teach young people of this traditional art of the Shadow Theatre.
Some of the most important exhibits of the Museum are:
The classical figure of Karagkiozi. Designer Eugeneio Spatharis. The first color figure, was built in 1920
Black-and-white figures of traditional shadow theatre (1900-1930)
Color figures of various types
a) Odyssey, Perseus and Andromeda, b), c) Hercules, d) Ikaros and Daedalus, e) Theseus and the Minotaur
Address
Vas. Sofias & Ralli, Kastalias Square, 15 125 Marousi, Athens
Phone: + 30 210 6127245
Fax: + 30 210 6127206
Laboratory and Shadow Theatre Museum Charidimos
The collection of family Charidimos
Opening Hours: Mon-Sat 10-20 Sun 10-14
Free Entrance
Address
Cultural Center of Athens "Melina"
Iraklidon 66 & Thessaloniki’s, Thisio
Tel.: +30 210 3452150
Cartoon Museum
The main part of the Museum is constituted by the Permanent Exhibition of Cartoons, mainly carricatures, comic strips and other kinds of sketches by Greek and foreign cartoonists. There is also a library and archives.
Some of the most important exhibits of the museum are:
Comic strips by G. Grammatopoulos: "Proteus and Andromeda", on a script by B. Rotas, from the series "Illustrated Classics" published by Atlantis
Caricatures of cartoonists of the early years of the 20th century, from the satyrical review "Satanas",
Cover of the periodical "Phanos" by Phokion Dimitriades.
Opening Hours: Winter From 1st of November until 31st of March 8.30 – 15.00
Address
22 Liossion Str., 10 438 Athens
Tel +30 210 5241492, +30 210 5242140
Fax +30 210 5246943
Phaethon Technological Museum, Classic Car
The Phaethon Technological Museum was founded in 2004 and is managed by a four member Administrative Council. The Museum’s newly built facilities are situated on the 32nd km of the Athens – Lamia National Road towards Markopoulo, just half an hour’s drive from the centre of Athens, in a modern 7500 sq. building in a 100 acre estate. The visitors are provided with comfortable car parking, a bar, a projection hall and a boutique.
Collections:
Classic Car Museum.
Watch Museum.
Museum of Physics, Electronics and Telecommunications.
Speedway combined with a Thematic Park for Traffic Education.
Outdoor exhibition section with Defense Material.
The Museum is equipped with a multi‐language automated tour guide system. Conducted tours can be arranged for groups of 20 or more.
Opening Hours: Monday to Sunday between 09:00 and 15.00.
Address
36o km Markopoulo - Oropos
Tel: +30 22950 39261
Email: [email protected]
http://www.phaetonmuseum.gr/
Greek Car Museum
A journey through the history of the automotive vehicle models in the impressive collection Charagionis. You will see among others the Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing of Paul Newman, the 1959 Chrysler Imperial Construction's of Robert Plant, the 1979 Cadillac Seville Gucci with living room designed by the Italian fashion house
Opening Hours: Tue, Sat 12-21 Sun 11-18
Address
3rd Septembriou & Ioulianou
Tel.: +30 210 8816187
Railway Museum
The history of Greek railways through old locomotives, wagons, etc.
Opening Hours: Tue-Sun 09-13 Wed 17-20
Free Entrance
Address
Siokou 4 (Liosion 301)
Tel.: +30 210 5126295
Philatelic Museum
The Museum has been in operation since 1978. The hall on the first floor is intended for lectures, film projections and exhibitions. In the same space are also housed a library with specialized books and magazines related to the history of the postal services and of philately.
The other two rooms are in the basement of the building and constitute the main exhibition area. Here are displayed postboxes, safes, postal stamping machines, bags and horns used by the postmen and other articles of the Postal, Telegraph and Telephone Services. Also exhibited are a wide range of items related to stamps and the process of their printing. The Museum has a special date stamping machine with the representantion of the head of Hermes.
Opening Hours: Winter: From 1st November until 31st March, 0830 – 1500
Address
Philatelic Museum
5 Square Stadiou, 11635 Athens
Tel: +30 210 7519042, +30 210 7519066
Epigraphical Museum
The Epigraphical Museum is unique in Greece and the largest of its kind in the world.
It safeguards 13.536 inscriptions, mostly on stone, which cover the period from early historical times to the Late Roman period. The museum is housed in the south wing ground floor of the National Archaeological Museum.
It comprises an internal and external courtyard (atrium), a lobby, eleven rooms, a large hypostyle Pi-shaped corridor, a gallery, offices, a laboratory for the conservation of inscribed stone monuments and lavatories. Only the courtyards, lobby and four rooms are open to the public; the others are accessible only to researchers and staff.
The purpose of the museum, which is a Special Regional Service of the Ministry of Culture, is to safeguard, protect, conserve, display and promote the epigraphical collections that it contains. The museum also aims to comprise photographic and impression archives and a specialised epigraphy library. Moreover, a digital catalogue of the inscriptions is currently under construction, so that the collection can be accessible digitally to future visitors.
Opening Hours: From the 1st of November until 31st of March: 8:30-15:00, Tue-Sun 0830-1500, Monday: closed
1, 6 January, Shrove Monday, 25 March, Easter Days, 1 May, Holy Spirit Day, 15 August, 28 October, 25, 26 December: closed
Address
Epigraphical Museum
1 Tositsa St,
10682 Athens
Tel.: +30 210 8217637, +30 210 8232950
Fax: +30 210 8225733
E-Mail: [email protected]
http://www.yppo.gr/1/e1540.jsp?obj_id=101
Athens University Museum
The Athens University Museum is sited in the heart of Athens city, in Plaka area, on the northern side of Acropolis. The Museum is located in the historical building of "Cleanthis Residence", also known as "The Old University" where the first University of the Greek Independent State operated during the period of 1837 to 1841.
The Museum’s building belongs to the pre-Othonian period of Athens. The first reference of the building is found in an oil-painting canvas of the painter J.Currey dated in 1674. The painting illustrates the visit of the Ambassador of France in Constantinople, Olier de Nointel, in Athens. At the present time, the painting can be found in the Museum of the City of Athens and is considered an important testimony of Acropolis’s monuments before their destruction from Morozini in 1687. In 1831 Stamatios Cleanthis, architect and urban-planner, bought the building from its Othonian owner, Zante Chanoum, and after restoring it, he began using the building as a residence and probably as an office. In April 22nd 1837 the Royal Edict of King Othona for the constitution of the University of Athens was published in the newspaper of the Greek Government. "Cleanthe’s Residence" was considered a significant option to house the first University of the Independed Greek state, as, at that period of time, it was one of the six larger buildings in Athens. On the 3rd of May 1837 the operation of the University was inaugurated which included the Schools of Theology, Law, Medicine and Philosophy. The University began its full function with fifty-two students, twenty-seven professors, which came mainly from French and German Universities, and six Bavarians. Seventy-five registered audiences, mostly public servants, attended the lectures, among of which was Theodore Kolokotronis, an important personality of the Greek Revolution.
From 1861, when Cleanthis sold his house to a private owner, until 1967, the Museum’s building passed into various owners and utilities. The proclamation of "Cleanthis Residence" as a "historical and listed building" was on 17th December 1945 from the Minister of Education Georgios Athanasiadis-Novas. On April 7th 1967 the building was granted, under presidential order, to the University of Athens, after several years of captations, with the term “to be used explicitly as a University Museum". It took another twenty years for the building to be inaugurated as a Museum with the exhibition of "Souvenirs of the University of Athens".
The prime exhibit of the Museum is the building itself. The Museums collections include hand-written books, old and rare editions, portraits of University’s professors, manuscripts, letters, diplomas, old scientific instruments of Medicine, Physics, Chemistry and Pharmacology, medallions and various souvenirs of the University. Of outmost importance is the exhibition of theUniversity’s flag, a work by Nikolaos Gyzis, made in Munich for the occasion of the 50 years since the foundation of the University in 1887.
The diversity of the collections and the unique view from the windows make the visit at the Museum a magical adventure in the world of science, art and history.
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri 9.30-14.30, Mon-Wed 18-21, First Sun every month 11 - 16
Free Entrance
Address
Tholou 5, Plaka
Tel.: +30 210 3689502-4
Fax: +30 210 368 9501
E-mail: [email protected]
http://www.history-museum.uoa.gr/index.php?langId=2
Marika Kotopouli Museum
The Museum was inaugurated on May, 1990 and constitutes a functional museum of modern art, able to house important exhibitions. The building, erected in 1926, was the holiday home of the great actress of the Greek Theatre, Marika Kotopouli. During the German occupation, the house was requisitioned by the Germans. Later it housed the Police Station of the area. Finally, with the support of the Association of Greek Actors, the Municipality, undertook to restore the house, which was classified as a listed building, and to show off its distinctive architecture and its beautiful interiors, where cultural activities of a high calibre are held today.
This Museum does not exhibit objects related to Kotopouli. The building itself is of value as a museum; for the time being it welcomes temporary exhibitions, while it offers a permanent home to the artistic collection of Constantine Ioannides.
Opening Hours: Winter: From the 1st of November until the 31 of March: 08:30-15:00
Address
14 Panagouli St, Zografou
15 773 Athens
Tel: +30 210 7775950
National Gallery - Alexandros Soutzos
The National Art Gallery and Alexandros Soutzos Museum, the most important institution in Greece devoted to the subject of the history of Greek and Western European Art, has been in operation, in its present form, since 1976.
Opening Hours
Monday & Wednesday: 9.00-15.00 & 18.00 - 21.00, Tuesday: closed, Thursday - Saturday: 09.00-15.00, Sunday: 10.00-14.00
Address
1 Michalakopoulou Str., 11528, Athens
Tel: +30 210 7235857, +30 210 7232039, +30 210 7216560
http://www.nationalgallery.gr/site/content.php?sel=1
Macedonian Modern Art Museum - Alexandros Milonas
The mueum shows Features from all periods of the work of Alex Mylonas at least once every year to have the public to see different projects at each visit.
Opening Hours: Wed, Fri, Sat 11-19 Thu 13-21 Sun 11-16
Free entrance for young people under 18 years old and student’s of higher school of Fine Arts.
Address
Square Ag. Asomaton 5, Thiseio
Tel.: +30 210 3215717
Laboratory of John Pappas
The atelier of the well-known artist it is open for the public so you can see the place who were working and the collection of paintings and sculptures of him
Opening Hours: Tue, Fr, Sun 10-14 Free Entrance.
Address
Anakreontos 38, Zografou
Tel.: +30 210 7773946
Institute of Fine Arts & Music ”V. & M. THEOCHARAKIS”
Exhibitions, concerts, seminars, lectures and other activities
Opening Hours: Mon, Tue, Wed, Sat, Sun 10-18 Thu, Fri 10-21
Address
Vas. Sofias 9 & Merlin
Tel.: +30 210 3611206
Art Collection of the National Bank
The art collection of the National Bank began to formed from the time the bank itself was founded in 1841. This collection is considered to be of a museological nature, since it includes approximately 1,300 original works by leading 19th and 20th century artists in the fields of painting, sculpture and engraving.
The core of the collection consists of works by the finest of the Munich School, Nikiphoros Lytras, K. Volonakis, N. Ghyzis and others, as well as works of leading sculptors such as I. Kossos, the Fytalas brothers and of their immediate followers M. Tombros, Th. Apartis and others.
This important collection was enriched by works by the precursors of the generation of the 30's, such as Costas Parthenis, K. Maleas and others, by representatives of that generation: A. Asteriadis, N. Hadjikyriakos-Ghikas, Sp. Papaloukas, Yiannis Tsarouchis, Spyros Vassiliou, N. Nikolaou, G. Moralis, N. Engonopoulos, G. Zongolopoulos, Memos Makris, Y. Pappas and those who immediately followed them. There are also works by artists belonging to the generation between the two World Wars and the wartime generation.
Opening Hours: From the 1st of November until the 31 of March: 8:30-15:00
Address
86 Aiolou Str., 10232, Athens
Tel: +30 210 3341822, +30 210 3341833
National Museum of Contemporary Art
The National Museum of Contemporary Art began its operation in 2000. Its foundation came to cover a huge gap that the decades long absence of an analogous institution for contemporary international art had created in Athens.
Our decision to start immediately with exhibitions and namely of mostly critical and experimental character, even without premises or collections, was dictated by exactly this need. Exhibitions of contemporary art were taking and still take place in Athens. But the responsibility of the Museum, which equally sets in the centre of its activities both works of art and the public, is not to act circumstantially but based on a organized plan that is being realized from exhibition to exhibition and aims at awakening sensitivities and formulate critical thought and aesthetic criteria: there are no museums without audiences.
Still, there are no museums without collections. Until 2013, when the reconstruction of the former Fix brewery which will be the permanent premises of EMST will have been completed, a remarkable nucleus of works of art by Greek and international artists will have been developed, we compose collections of selective rather than encyclopaedic character, which promote advanced tendencies and critical explorations of the artistic present but also its historical depths which reach as far as the second half of the 20th century. Our goal, both by exhibitions and collections, is to offer all the Museum's visitors, which remains an unreservedly democratic institution, the "other" dimension which in our time cannot be conceived outside transcultural and ecumenical patterns.
Anna Kafetsi
Director of the National Museum of Contemporary Art
Opening Hours: Tuesday-Sunday 11 a.m.-7 p.m., Thursday 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
Free entrance
Address
Vassileos Georgiou Β 17 -19 & Rigillis Street
Tel: + 30 210 924 21 11-2
e-mail: [email protected]
http://www.emst.gr/EN/Pages/default.aspx
Cycladic Art Museum
The most comprehensive private collection of Cycladic art. Includes figurines, utilitarian and ritual objects. The second floor housed the collection N. Zintili with 710 Cypriot antiquities.
Opening Hours: Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat 10-17 Thu 10-20 Sun 11-17
Free entrance for children
Address
Neophitou Douka 4, Kolonaki
Tel.: +30 210 7228321-3
Athens Municipal Gallery
The Municipality of Athens began to put together its artist collection in 1923. The first work it bought was the sculpture by D. Philippotis, "The Fisherman", and it is interesting to note that half of the 2,355 works of art which the Gallery counts among its collection, were acquired during the period 1930-1940.
Opening Hours: Daily: 09.00 - 13.00 & 17.00 - 21.00, Sunday 09.00 - 13.00, Saturday Closed
Address
51 Piraeus Street, 10553 Athens
Tel: +30 210 3243022, +30 210 3243023
Fax: +30 210 3614358
Islamic Art Museum
Thirteen centuries (7th-19th a.c.) Artistic creation, with objects from the Ottoman Empire, the Middle East, Yemen and the Iberian
Opening Hours: Tue, Sun 09-15 Wed 09-21
Free entrance every Wedsday and for young people under 22 years.
Address
Asomaton 22 & Dipolou, Keramikos
Tel.: +30 210 3251311
Experience in Visual Arts
Permanent representative collection of engravings of the Dutch artist MC Escher and V. Vasarely.
Opening Hours: Fri 13-21 Sat & Sun 11-19
Free entrance for Children under 12 years
Address
Iraklidon 16, Thisio
Tel.: +30 210 3461981
Children Art Museum
The Museum of Greek Children΄s Art, is a nonprofit cultural Association, unique in its kind in Greece and one of the very few worldwide, was founded in 1994 by the Association of its Friends. The Museum exhibits paintings and artworks by children up to 14 years old from all over Greece, which are renewed on a regular basis.
Opening Hours: Tues-San 10-14 Sun 11-14
The Museum is closed on Mondays, official holidays and 1-31 August.
Free entrance for children
Address
Kodrou 9, Plaka
Tel.: +30 210 3312621, +30 210 3313734
http://www.childrensartmuseum.gr/english/news2005.asp
Emotions Museum of Childhood
It is a children’s museum which uses interactive exhibitions, play and fairy tales, in order to encourage children to discover their emotional world, to learn more about themselves and others. Moreover, it sensitises adults, parents and teachers on subjects which deal with the children’s emotional development and socialisation.
Opening Hours
For school groups
Monday to Friday: 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.
For visitors
Saturday and Sunday: 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Address
Karatza 7 & Tsami Karatasou, Filopapou, Athens
Tel.: +30 210 9218329
Museum of Greek Folk Art
Rich collections of folk embroideries, textiles, costumes, etc.
Annexes:
A collection of pottery B. Kyriazopoulou
Opening Hours 9 am-2.30 pm Closed Tues
Address Areos 1, Monastiraki Square
Pan Road Building 22, "People and tools. Aspects of labor in pre-industrial society "
Opening Hours Tue-Sun 9 am-2.30 pm
Bath of the Winds the only surviving steam of Athens
Opening Hours 9 am-2.30 pm except Tues
Address Kyrristou 8, Plaka
Free for students, and the first Sun of every month
Address
Kydathinaion 17, Plaka
Tel.: +30 210 3229031
Greek Folk Musical Instruments
Popular but also "forgotten" music instruments from the 18th century, from the collection of Phoebus Anoyanakis
Opening Hours: Tue, Sun 10-14 Wed 12-18
Free entrance
Address
Diogenous 1-3, Plaka
Tel.: +30 210 3250198, +30 210 3254119
Tactual Museum
For people with problems of seeing and not only
Opening Hours
Monday-Friday 09-18
Free entrance for handicapped individuals and their companions
Address
Doiranis 198, Kallithea, 176 73
Τel.: (+30210) 941 5222
Fax: (+30210) 941 5271
e-mail: [email protected]
http://www.tactualmuseum.gr/indexe.htm
Center Study of Modern Pottery
The Greek utilitarian pottery of modern times (early 19th - mid 20th century)
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri 10-15
Free Entrance for children and people over 65
Address
Melidoni 4-6, Keramikos
Tel.: +30 210 3318491-6
Santa Strati Museum (Political Exiles)
The modern Greek political history, focusing on exile, political persecution and violation of human rights through photographs, archival documents and objects
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri 10-13
Free Entrance
Address
Ag. Asomaton 31, Keramikos
Tel.: +30 210 3213488
Coins Museum
Collections of coins from ancient Greece to the present day
Opening Hours: Tue-Sun 8.30-15
Free entrance for students
Address
Panepistimiou 12
Tel.: +30 210 3643774
http://www.nma.gr/index_en.htm
War Museum
War relics from prehistoric times to 1945
Opening Hours: Tue-Sun 9.30-13.30
Free Entrance
Address
Vas. Sofias & Rizari 2, Kolonaki
Tel.: +30 210 7244464
Theatre Museum
Relics of the Greek theater of the 19th and 20th century
Opening Hours: Mon-Fri 10-15
Free Entrance
Address
Akadimias 50
Tel.: +30 210 3629430
Eleftherios Venizelos Museum
The Eleftherios Venizelos Museum it was founded in 1986 and houses a library, a collection of photographs and personal items of Eleftherios Venizelos.
Opening Hours: Tu. - Sat. 10-13, 18-20 Sun 10 -13
Free Entrance
Address
Park of Freedom
Tel.: +30 210 7224238
Eleftherios Venizelos Foundation
Opening Hours: Mo-Fr 9.30 - 13.30
Free Entrance
Address
Crhistou Lada 2
Tel: +30 210 3221254
Eleftherios Venizelos (full name Eleftherios Kyriakou Venizelos 23 August 1864 – 18 March 1936) was a charismatic leader in the early 20th century. Elected several times as Prime Minister of Greece and served from 1910 to 1920 and from 1928 to 1932. Venizelos had such profound influence on the internal and external affairs of Greece that he is credited with being "the maker of modern Greece" and he is still widely known as the "Ethnarch". His first entry into the international scene was with his significant role in the autonomy of the Cretan State and later in the union of Crete with Greece. Soon, he was invited to Greece to resolve the political deadlock and became the country's Prime Minister. Not only did he initiate constitutional and economic reforms that set the basis for the modernization of Greek society, but also reorganized both army and navy in preparation of future conflicts. Before the Balkan Wars of 1912–1913, Venizelos' catalytic role helped gain Greece entrance to the Balkan League, an alliance of the Balkan states against Ottoman Turkey. Through his diplomatic acumen, Greece doubled her area and population with the liberation of Macedonia, Epirus, and the rest of the Aegean islands.
In World War I (1914–1918), he brought Greece on the side of the Allies, further expanding the Greek borders. However, his pro-Allied foreign policy brought him in direct conflict with the monarchy, causing the National Schism. The Schism polarized the population between the royalists and Venizelists and the struggle for power between the two groups afflicted the political and social life of Greece for decades. Following the Allied victory, Venizelos secured new territorial gains, especially in Anatolia, coming close to realize the Megali Idea. Despite his achievements, Venizelos was defeated in the 1920 General Election, which contributed to the eventual Greek defeat in the Greek-Turkish War (1919-1922). Venizelos, in self-imposed exile, represented Greece in the negotiations that led to the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne, and the agreement of a mutual exchange of populations between Greece and Turkey. In his subsequent periods in office Venizelos succeeded in restoring normal relations with Greece's neighbors and expanded his constitutional and economical reforms.
http://www.arthellas.gr/arxaia.html