Athens Museum of
Cycladic Art
The Athens Museum of Cycladic Art houses a remarkable collection of
Cycladic figurines and other items and is one of the best museums in Athens.
Athens Museum of Cycladic Art
Photo by C. Messier
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This first-class modern museum houses the remarkable private
collection of Nicholas and Dolly Goulandris. Nicholas Goulandris was a
shipowner and a patron of the arts and in the 1960s he and his wife started
collecting Greek antiques and art objects, and had a special interest in the unique
ancient art of the Cycladic islands. The museum was founded to house the
collection in 1986, with a new wing added in 1991.
Athens Museum of Cycladic Art: Highlights
The displays span many centuries of ancient Greek art –
vases, glassware and other items – but the central exhibits are the beautiful artefacts
from the Cycladic civilisation of 3000–2000 BC.
Cycladic Statues
Photo by Jean Housen
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The statues are especially memorable – the figures seem to
float in their display cabinets as subtle lighting brings out their shape and
texture. It will be a rare visitor who is not tempted to take home a copy from
the attractive museum shop.
Photo by Donna Dailey
The actual Cycladic items only take up one of the four
floors in the main building, and the rooms are quite small – just one main room
on each floor. The others are given over to a collection of Bronze Age items,
one from the Mycenean period and a remarkable collection of beautiful Cypriot
antiquities, the largest one in Greece.
Photo by Jean Housen
This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
Athens Museum of Cycladic Art: New Wing
On the corner of Irodotou and Vasilissis Sofias is the
entrance to the newer wing of the Cycladic Museum, joined to the main building
by a glass-covered walkway. This wing is as interesting for the building that
houses it as for its contents.
It was designed by and was the home of the German architect
Ernst Ziller, the man also responsible for the Olympic Stadium, the
Presidential Palace, and Heinrich Schliemann's house on Panepistimiou.
Our Pick of the Athens Guides
Some rooms of the museum display furniture and watercolours,
giving an impression of the mansion's appearance when Ziller lived in it during
the late 19th century. Other rooms contain an extension of the main Cycladic
collection. There is a shop downstairs, and space upstairs for temporary
exhibitions.
Cycladic Museum Shop
Photo by Jean Housen
This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
Some other Athens pages
The Athens War Museum is a fascinating look at Greek history through the lens of warfare from ancient battles to the Greek War of Independence and World War II.
The Athens Byzantine and Christian Museum is housed in a beautiful villa with an underground wing and lovely gardens too.
This beginner's guide to Greek architecture explains how to tell your Ionic from your Doric columns, and what to look for in temples and Byzantine churches.
This extract of Artistic Athens in the Lonely Planet book Culture Trails takes visitors on a journey through the artistic side of Athens..
Athens International Airport is east of Athens city centre with its own Metro train station, buses to Athens and Piraeus, taxis and car rental offices.
Ten Fun Things to Do in Athens include eating in the Central Market, watching the sun set over the Acropolis and seeing one of the world's oldest theatres.
Athens car rental options include almost all of the major international car hire firms such as Avis, Budget, Hertz, and Europcar.
Athens Food Tours are being introduced by new company The Greek Fork, and will include tours of the Central Market, and the best street food.
The best things to do in Athens, Greece, include top archaeological sites like the Acropolis and must-see attractions such as the National Archaeological Museum
Mount Lykabettos is the highest hill in Athens and provides some of the best views of the city, with a funicular cable car the easiest way to get to the top.
Greece Travel Secrets visits the Monastiraki Flea Market, followed by Sunday lunch at Sigalas on Monastiraki Square
The Greece Travel Secrets guide to the original Athens Olympic Stadium, built for the 1896 Olympic Games and open to the public for jogging and photography.
Athens walking tours and other experiences like cookery lessons, ceramics workshops, dining with a family, and street art are available from Alternative Athens
Athens in the rain isn’t something you’re likely to experience but here are suggestions for things to do in the rain in Athens including museums and shopping
This drive around Attica offers visitors high hills, beach resorts, small villages and classical sites like Marathon and the Temple of Poseidon at Cape Sounion.
Greece Travel Secrets gives its choice of the best hotels in Athens from budget and moderate options through to 5-star luxury choices.
The Greece Travel Secrets website looks at the Athens weather, the chance of rain, the climate in summer and winter and the best time to visit Athens.
There are lots of flights from Athens to Santorini as well as a ferry service from Piraeus, with flights to Santorini leaving from Athens International Airport.
The Athens Acropolis has the city's most iconic building, the Parthenon, along with other historic buildings and is where the Elgin Marbles were taken from.
This Athens dining guide doesn't list restaurants but gives practical advice on types of eating places, tipping, hotel breakfasts and picnics.
If visiting Athens it helps to know when major events and public holidays take place, as some shops and attractions may be closed, but to be there at times like Easter can make for a magical trip.
If you're wondering where to eat in Athens and Piraeus we have a few suggestions including some favorites around the Acropolis, Omonia Square, and Syntagma.
Greece Travel Secrets lists the ten best museums in Athens, with the top two being the National Archaeological Museum and the Acropolis Museum.
The best views in Athens include views from the Acropolis and of the Acropolis from the top of some of the city’s several hills and from hotels and restaurants.
The beach resorts of Athens are easily reached from the city and also close are Cape Sounion with the Temple of Poseidon, ancient Marathon and Rafina's port.
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