International Archaeology Day: Discover the treasures of Athens’ museums

Happy International Archaeology Day! As archaeology lovers around the world celebrate the stories of our past on Saturday 17 October, Athens offers one of the richest collections of museums anywhere, from Cycladic figurines to the sculptures of the Parthenon.

International Archaeology Day falls on Saturday 17 October 2026. The Archaeological Institute of America (AIA) organises the celebration every year on the third Saturday of October, although events take place throughout the month. According to the AIA, it is a celebration of archaeology and its contributions to society, with archaeology fairs, guided site tours, simulated digs and talks by archaeologists for people of all ages.

Few cities tell that story better than Athens.

The National Archaeological Museum

Founded in 1829 in Aegina, Greece’s first capital, the National Archaeological Museum was the first museum established by the new Greek state. It moved to Athens when the capital was transferred in 1834. According to the museum, it is the largest in Greece and one of the most important in the world. More than 11,000 exhibits trace ancient Greek culture from prehistory to late antiquity.

The museum was in the news this week. On 13 October, Culture Minister Lina Mendoni received 22 ancient artefacts returned by Israel at a ceremony there, AP reported via Al Jazeera. The items are 15 Attic vases, six Corinthian vases and a bronze female statuette, dated between 700 BC and 320 BC. “It is the first time that Israel has returned antiquities to Greece,” Mendoni said.

The Acropolis Museum

The Acropolis Museum opened on 20 June 2009, about 300 metres southeast of the Parthenon, in a building designed by Bernard Tschumi with Michael Photiades. Its glass-walled Parthenon Gallery on the top floor matches the orientation and dimensions of the temple’s original cella. It displays the original marble sculptures alongside plaster copies of those held in the British Museum and other foreign museums. Until 31 October, visitors can also see Michael Rakowitz’s sculptural installation Lamassu of Nineveh in the museum’s outdoor garden, free of charge.

Cycladic, Byzantine and beyond

The Museum of Cycladic Art opened in 1986 to house the collection of Nikolaos and Dolly Goulandris. It holds around 3,000 Cycladic, ancient Greek and ancient Cypriot artefacts, including the famous Cycladic marble figurines.

The Benaki Museum of Greek Culture, in a neoclassical mansion near the Hellenic Parliament, was donated to the nation by Antonis Benakis and his three sisters. Its exhibition traces Greek culture from prehistory to the 20th century.

The Byzantine and Christian Museum was founded in 1914 and has been housed since 1930 in Villa Ilissia, built in 1848 for the Duchess of Plaisance. Its more than 25,000 artefacts cover the 3rd to the 20th century AD.

Where ancient Athenians lived and died

At the foot of the Acropolis, the Museum of the Ancient Agora has been housed since 1957 in the reconstructed Stoa of Attalos, originally a gift to Athens from King Attalos II of Pergamon in the 2nd century BC. Its exhibits include finds about how Athenian democracy worked.

The Archaeological Museum of Kerameikos, opened in 1938, displays finds from the most important cemetery of ancient Athens, mainly sculpture and funerary pottery.

Plan your visit

State museums and archaeological sites run by the Culture Ministry are free for all visitors on 28 October, the national holiday. According to the ministry’s museums directorate, the Ancient Agora and Kerameikos are open 08:00–18:00 until 31 October (from 10:00 on Tuesdays), with shorter winter hours from 1 November. The ministry advises visitors to check opening times before they go.

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