Μουσείο Ακρόπολης
Athens’ Acropolis Museum is a custom-built showcase for artifacts from the Acropolis, complemented by modern exhibits about the site. The state-of-the-art 2009 building—housing the Parthenon sculptures still in Greek hands, the original Caryatids from the Erechtheion, and much more—is the boldest symbol yet of today’s Athens.
The museum also serves as a sort of 21st-century Trojan horse, intended to lure the famous “Elgin Marbles” (the Parthenon sculptures taken to London in the 1800s) away from the British Museum and back to Athens. For years the Greeks have asked for the marbles back, and for years the Brits have claimed that Greece can’t give them a suitable home. Even now, with this ultramodern facility ready and waiting, Britain is reluctant to give in, for fear of setting a precedent...and getting “me, too” notices from Italy, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, and all the other nations who’d like to reclaim the missing pieces of their cultural heritage.
With or without the Elgin Marbles, this new museum has trumped the National Archaeological Museum as the most exciting exhibit in town, and is definitely worth your time.
(See “Acropolis Overview” map, here.)
Cost: €5.
Hours: Tue-Sun 8:00-20:00, Fri until 22:00, closed Mon, last entry 30 minutes before closing.
Getting There: It’s the giant, can’t-miss-it modern building facing the south side of the Acropolis from across the broad Dionysiou Areopagitou pedestrian drag. The museum is next to the Akropoli Metro stop (line 2/red) on Makrigianni, a street lined with restaurants.
Information: Museum guards (with red badges) can answer questions, and a 13-minute video plays continuously in the atrium (level 3). Tel. 210-900-0900, www.theacropolismuseum.gr.
Baggage Check: There’s a free bag check at the counter near the turnstiles at the base of the ramp (required for big bags). If you’re dining at the museum’s restaurant after your visit, note that the bag check closes when the museum does.
Length of This Tour: Allow 1.5 hours.
Photography: No photos are allowed on the ground floor (level 0) or of level 1’s Archaic statues. It’s OK to take photos of the scale models and Parthenon sculptures (no flash) in the rest of the museum.
Services: A café and gift shop are on the ground floor; level 2 has a pricey but well-regarded restaurant, a bookstore, and great views. Wheelchairs and strollers are available.
Starring: Marble masterpieces from one of the most influential archaeological sites in human history.
Nearby Eateries: For restaurants near the Acropolis Museum, see here.
(See “Acropolis Museum—Level 1” map, here.)
Even as it echoes the ancient history all around it, the Acropolis Museum’s striking, glassy building—designed by Swiss-born, New York-based architect Bernard Tschumi—gives a postmodern jolt to Athens’ otherwise staid, mid-century-concrete cityscape. Its two lower levels are aligned with the foundations of ancient ruins discovered beneath the building (which are exposed and still being excavated). The top floor sits askew, imitating the orientation of the Parthenon. A long terrace extends over the main entry, with café tables stretching toward panoramic views of the Acropolis. The museum’s glass walls maximize the natural light inside the building and also “disappear,” focusing attention on the statuary and views of the Acropolis itself.
Visitors enter into a grand lobby. The ground floor (level 0) has the ticket office, WCs, museum shop, and temporary exhibits. To proceed chronologically through the exhibits, you’d start with the Archaic collection on level 1, then go upstairs (to the top floor—level 3) for the Parthenon section, then back down to level 1 for Hellenistic and Roman sculpture. But for this tour, we’ll do the small Hellenistic and Roman section as an out-of-chronological-sequence side-trip from the Archaic and Classical sections, and let the top-floor Parthenon sculptures be our finale.
• Near the ticket desk, start by getting a good look at the models that show the Acropolis as it looked from 1200 B.C. to 1500 A.D. Then, after going through the turnstiles, head up the long, glass...
Pause to look through the glass floor at the ancient ruins being excavated beneath the museum. The major buildings of ancient Athens were at the Acropolis and Agora—this was a neighborhood of everyday houses and shops. Appropriately, the ramp is lined with artifacts that were found in the sanctuaries and houses on the slopes leading up to the Parthenon. Many of these artifacts, dating from the fourth millennium B.C. to the fifth century A.D., owe their well-preserved state to having been buried with their owners.
Among the ramp’s highlights is case #5, which takes you step-by-step through marriage rituals in ancient Athens. Freestanding cases mid-ramp give insight into the similarities between ancient Greek pagan worship rituals and later Christian styles. One has Christian-looking votives thanking the gods for prayers answered. On the right, just below the stairs, is an offering box (like you see in churches today); this one stood at the Sanctuary of Aphrodite. To assure a good marriage, you’d have been wise to pop in a silver drachma.
• Climb the stairs at the top of the ramp toward a collection of statues.
Pediment of the HekatompedonThroughout the centuries, three temples of Athena have occupied the spot where the Parthenon stands today. The fragments assembled here, from 570 B.C., once adorned the Hekatompedon (“100 feet”), the first of those temples. The still-under-construction building was leveled by invading Persians in 480 B.C., paving the way for the Parthenon to be built. On the left, Hercules fights the sea monster Triton. In the center are the scant remains of two lions killing a bull. To the right, looking like The Three Stooges, is a three-bodied monster with a snake tail. Each figure holds an object in its hand, representing the elements of wind, water, and fire. Their expressions are more goofy than demonic. Traces of the original paint are still apparent.
• Turn right and enter a gallery flooded with daylight.
Kore and Kouros StatuesIn this column-lined gallery stand several kore (female) and kouros (male) statues. They sport the characteristic stiff poses, braided hair, generic faces, and mysterious smiles of the Archaic era (c. 700-480 B.C.). For more on Archaic statues, see here.
The men are generally naked, showing off buff and toned bodies. The bearded dudes are adults, and boys are beardless. The women are modestly clothed, but pull their robes to the side. Before the coming-of-Golden-Age realism and the “wet drapery” technique that enabled sculptors to portray the bodies beneath robes, this was a crude way to lend some motion and to show a little of their figures. The kore statues are almost always holding something: The Greeks believed women shouldn’t approach the gods without a gift of some kind. The equestrian statues represent the upper class, those wealthy elites who owned horses and liked to show them off.
• Halfway down the gallery, on the right against the interior wall, is the...
Pediment of the Archaios NaosThese sculptures once decorated the temple to Athena next to the Hekatompedon. The temple, damaged after the Persian Wars, was used until the new Parthenon was completed. In the center, Athena, dressed in an ankle-length cloak, strides forward, brandishing a snake as she attacks a giant, who sprawls backward onto his bum. The figures were part of a scene depicting the “Gods Versus Giants” battle atop the temple.
To the left, a flat case (#8) displays fragments with burn marks, traces of the fire set by the Persians. The pesky Persians invaded Greece several times over a 50-year period (c. 499-449 B.C.). On the plus side, the wars forced Greeks to band together, and Athens emerged as a dominant naval power. Athenians rebuilt the Acropolis as a symbol of rebirth, with the Parthenon as its centerpiece. In just a few short decades, Greek society—and art—evolved rapidly and remarkably.
• Continue down the gallery. Near the escalator, look for a well-preserved marble relief.
Pensive Athena ReliefThe goddess, dressed in a helmet and belted peplos, rests her forehead thoughtfully on her spear (460 B.C.). Although she was called “pensive,” some think she was actually meant to be mourning the deaths of her citizens in the Persian War.
Enjoying the statuary in this hall, you can trace the evolution of Greek art from the static Archaic period to the mastery of the body as a living thing, free and full of movement, that we see in the Golden Age. In the Classical style of fifth-century B.C. Greece, the spine moves with the hips realistically.
• Backtrack a tad, then veer left past a bank of elevators. Continue past an open gallery with some statuesque women (we’ll visit them in a minute). After the second bank of elevators, look for a series of four squarish marble slabs on your left.
Nike Adjusting Her Sandal ReliefThis relief (c. 410 B.C.) originally decorated the parapet of the Temple of Athena Nike (which stands near the entrance to the Acropolis). Nike figures had a better chance of survival through the ages than other statues because anti-pagan Christian vandals mistook the winged Nikes for angels. Nearby is a display containing more chunks of the Temple of Athena Nike. You’ll see toes gripping rocks, windblown robes, and realistically twisted bodies—exuberant, life-filled carvings signaling Athens’ emergence from the Persian War.
• Turn right and go up the long gallery for a...
Side-Trip to Hellenistic and Roman ArtBefore heading upstairs for the highlight of the collection, continue around on this floor to the small stretch of statues from the Hellenistic and Roman period. The head of Alexander the Great, on a square pillar in the center of the gallery, is a rare original, likely sculpted from life (336 B.C.). Alexander’s upper lip curls, and his thick hair sprouts from the center of his forehead—immediately identifying this remarkable man. When he died, in 323 B.C., this Macedonian had conquered the rest of Greece, and spread Greek culture throughout the Mediterranean world and as far east as India.
Farther back, visit the spooky “magic sphere” that resembles a dirty soccer ball covered with graffiti. It’s actually a marble sphere etched with mysterious symbols (Roman, second or third century A.D.).
• Now turn around, retracing your steps, and turn left at the bank of elevators. Around the corner, on their own, as if starring in their own revue on a beautifully lit stage, are the...
Caryatids from the ErechtheionHere stand five of the original six lady-columns that once supported the roof of the prestigious Erechtheion temple. (The six on the Acropolis today are copies; another original is in London’s British Museum.) Despite their graceful appearance, these sculptures were structurally functional. Each has a fluted column for a leg, a capital-like hat, and buttressing locks of hair in the back. The Caryatids were modeled on and named after the famously upright women of Karyai, near Sparta.
Time and the elements have ravaged these maidens. As recently as the 17th century (see the engravings), they had fragile arms holding ritual bowls for libations. Until the 1950s (before modern smog), their worn-down faces had crisp noses and mouths. In a half-century of Industrial Age pollution, they experienced more destruction than in the previous 2,000 years. But their future looks brighter now that they’ve been brought indoors out of the acidic air, cleaned up with a laser, and safely preserved for future generations. (For more on the Caryatids in their original location, see here.)
There’s a glass floor overhead, but you may not want to look up, out of respect for any visitors wearing dresses above you.
• From the Caryatid gallery, walk to the end of the building and ride the escalators up. Pause at level 2 to enjoy the view down over the Archaic statues we just visited (the second level has a restaurant and terrace with awesome Acropolis views). Then head for the top floor—it’s the reason you’re here.
• Before entering the actual Parthenon Gallery, sit in the atrium and enjoy the video on the Parthenon, which covers the temple’s 2,500-year history, including a not-so-subtle jab at how Lord Elgin got the marbles and made off with them to England. For more on Lord Elgin, see here.
Two models show how the west and east pediment statues (which are mostly fragments today) would have looked in their prime.
The east pediment (the model on the right) features Nike crowning newly born Athena with a wreath of olive branches. Zeus’ head is split open, allowing Athena, the goddess of wisdom, to rise from his brain fully grown and fully armed, inaugurating the Golden Age of Athens. The other gods at this Olympian banquet—naked men and clothed women—are astounded by the amazing event. At the far left, Helios’ four horses are doing their morning chore, dragging the sun out of the sea. And on the far right, Selene, the moon goddess, follows the horses back as she sets into the sea.
The west pediment model (on the left) shows Athena and Poseidon competing for Athens’ favor by giving gifts to the city. Poseidon spurts water (beneath him) and Athena presents an olive tree (behind). A big, heavenly audience looks on. Had Poseidon bested Athena, you’d be in Poseidonia today instead of Athens. Among the bystanders—tucked into the left corner of the pediment—are the mythical king of Athens and his daughters (Kekrops and Pandrosos). Passed over by Lord Elgin, their now headless and limbless statues are on display in the next room.
• Leave the atrium and enter the huge gallery.
In the center of the room stands the museum’s highlight—a life-size mock-up of the 525-foot frieze that once wrapped all the way around the outside of the Parthenon. The relief panels depict the Grand Panathenaia, the procession held every four years in which citizens climbed up to the Parthenon to celebrate the birth of the city. Circle the perimeter and watch the parade unfold.
Men on horseback, gods, chariots, musicians, priests, riders, officers, warriors, and sacrificial animals are all part of the grand parade, all heading in the same direction—uphill. Prance on. At the heart of the procession are maidens dressed in pleated robes. They shuffle along, carrying gifts for the gods, including incense burners, along with jugs of wine and bowls to pour out offerings. The procession culminates in the presentation of a new peplos to Athena, as the gods look on.
Notice the details—for example, the muscles and veins in the horses’ legs and the intricate folds in the cloaks and dresses. Some panels have holes drilled in them, where accessories such as gleaming bronze reins were fitted to heighten the festive look. Of course, all these panels were originally painted in realistic colors. As you move along, notice that, despite the bustle of figures posed every which way, the frieze has one unifying element—most of the people’s heads are at the same level, creating a single ribbon around the Parthenon.
Of the original marble frieze, the museum owns only 32 feet. These panels were already so acid-worn in 1801 that Lord Elgin didn’t bother taking them. Filling in the gaps in this jigsaw puzzle are white plaster replicas of panels still in London’s British Museum (marked BM), in Paris’ Louvre, and in Copenhagen. Blank spaces represent panels that are forever lost. Small 17th-century engravings show how the frieze looked before the 1687 explosion that devastated the Parthenon.
• Now stroll through the gallery and look out the windows. Take a moment to...
There’s the Parthenon itself, perched on the adjacent hilltop. Let the museum disappear around you, leaving you to enjoy the art and the temple it once decorated. The Parthenon is one of the most influential works humankind has ever created. For 2,500 years it’s inspired generations of architects, sculptors, painters, engineers, and visitors from around the globe. Here in the Acropolis Museum, you can experience the power of this cultural landmark. The people of Athens relish the Acropolis Museum. Local guides grow taller with every visit, knowing that Greece finally has a suitable place to preserve and share the best of its artistic heritage.
• On your way down, stop by the restaurant on level 2 for its exterior terrace and the awesome view of the Acropolis. You’re allowed to take photos here—and why not pay homage to Athena, too, while you’re at it?