I decided that this summer I will be posting on my blog photo diaries about the museums and archaeological sites in Greece that we visited last year. This series of posts begins with the Acropolis Museum, one of the most important and modern museums in Europe, and will be followed by the National Archaeological Museum, the Ancient Olympia Museum and Site.
There are three things that I want to point out concerning the Acropolis Museum:
1. It is a huge Glass building, with glass floors in many parts, from the entrance to the top level, that you can see what's beneath you many meters down. I figured that those of you who suffer from anxiety, like me, when walking on glass floors, needed to know about that "dizzy" detail... Τhere are also glass windows all around the top floor (level 3), named The Parthenon Gallery. During the day, the natural sunlight comes inside and visitors can enjoy the artifacts under the Greek sun reflection, while at the same time get a great view of the Parthenon. At night, when the museum is closed and all the lights inside the building are on, if you are walking pass it on Areopagitou Street, you can see the marbles and statues 'floating' in the dark, which is really spectacular.
2. Inside The Parthenon Gallery (level 3), you will see from very close the entire frieze of the temple with the original marbles along with the replicas of those that are kept in the British Museum. The rectangular cement core of the museum has exactly the same dimensions as the cella of the Parthenon, which enables a comprehensive viewing of the narrative of the story of the Panathenaic Procession, as you take the perimetric walk of the Gallery. In this same floor you also get to see the replica of the beautiful Anthemion with a few of its original pieces attached on. The installation and placement of the entire floor are overwhelming.
3. The famous Caryatids are on level 1, the glorious women holding the ceiling of Erechtheion with their heads, but one is missing. She was stolen by Lord Elgin, along with other artifacts from the temple and is currently kept at the British Museum. Since 1982, the Greek government, led by Melina Merkouri who was Minister of Culture at that time, has been negotiating her return along with the rest of the Marbles and Statues of Parthenon and other buildings of the Acropolis compound that were also stolen by Elgin between 1801 and 1812. I really hope that while I am still alive I will be lucky enough to witness the return of the Caryatid and the rest of the stolen pieces where they belong; home...
Ahead of your visit, you should check the ticket prices and opening hours, how to get there as well as some more useful information.
xoxo
|barefoot duchess|
Photos by The Duke and myself
