What Is The Archaeological Museum Of Mycenae?

Mycenae is an archaeological site near Myokines in Argolis, north-eastern Peloponnese, Greece. It is about 120 kilometres south-west of Athens and 11 kilometres north of Argos. The site is built on a hill rising 274 metres above sea level.

The little museum is built just to the north of the citadel. While the most important Mycenaean artifacts are exhibited at the National Archaeological Museum of Athens, a variety of other objects found in the area are exhibited in its three halls. This include important artifacts and thematic educational groupings that shed some light on life and commerce during Mycenaean times.

Mycenae was one of the major centres of Greek civilization in the second millennium BC. It was a military stronghold which dominated much of southern Greece, Crete, the Cyclades, and parts of southwest Anatolia. Around 1250 BC when Mycenae was at its peak, the citadel and lower town had a population of 30,000 and stretched over an area of 32 hectares.

History

The Archaeological Museum of Mycenae is found at the entrance of the ancient site, just a few steps before the Lion Gate. Giorgos Mylonas who was a member of the Greek Archaeological Society, came up with the idea for the construction of the museum right next to the ancient site in 1980. This was done in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture who agreed with the location on the northern slopes of the Acropolis, despite objections by local representatives who wanted to build the new museum in the adjacent village.

Building the museum within the greater archaeological site also determined the presentation of finds in the exhibition, which follows the topographical arrangement of find spots, interrupted or concluded by thematic sections which aim to highlight both the crucial importance of Mycenaean civilization as well as less brilliant moments in its history.

Construction of the museum began in 1984 and was completed in 1997. During this time over 35,000 portable finds scattered among various storage areas were transferred to its storerooms, the musicological and musicographic studies were prepared, and the exhibitions concluded. The museum was inaugurated in 2003.

The ingenious study prepared by architects of the Archaeological Service integrated the building harmoniously into its wider natural and archaeological surroundings. It offered a discreet and functional solution which provided for the storage, conservation, and study of the many articles.

The construction of the museum was co-funded by the European Union and the Greek state and executed by the Scientific Committee for Mycenae and the 4th Ephorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities.

Through the contribution and involvement of specialized staff members, under the guidance of Elizabeth Spathari and Spyros Lakovidis, the site acquired a museum which drew 2,500 artifacts and offered them to the site’s many visitors within the framework of a didactic presentation highlighting Mycenae’s history down through time.

The building is modern and covers a surface of 2,000 square metres. It is erected in three levels and a large part of the building is used for storage and elaboration of the findings. Only three rooms on two levels are exhibition rooms.

Interest For Today

Mycenae is one of the most important Bronze Age archaeological site in Greece. All the exhibits in the museum come from Mycenae and the wider region and represent the periods from the Copper Period around 3,000 BC until the Hellenistic time in the 2^nd century BC. The exhibits mostly include ceramic vases, wall paintings, jewellery, weapons, and tools. The jewellery pieces are very impressive, made of gold with complicated designs.

Excavations at Mycenae began in the 19th century and visitors will gain an appreciation for the Bronze Age culture, and the most powerful kingdom of the era. The museum emphasizes several topics from the era and its exhibitions are divided into several units with artifacts from Bronze Age every-day life, commerce, worship, and economy.

The first room of the Archaeological Museum of Mycenae is dedicated to the private and personal life of the Mycenaeans with ceramic exhibits from the ancient town.

The second room is dedicated to life after death and includes exhibits from graves, such as offerings to the dead. The finds from the royal Grave Circle B, the rich cemeteries of chamber tombs, and several historical copies of the grave goods from royal Grave Circle A are displayed here. Items found in the graves contained an excess of gold decorations, bronze weapons, pottery, linear B tablets, frescoes, and every-day objects.

The third room is dedicated to the Mycenaen civilization dedicated to their achievements in the religion, science, art, administration, and trade.

In one of the rooms, visitors can see a copy of the Golden Mask of Agamemnon, a grave mask that was found in the Treasury of Atreus. The original mask, a funeral mask made of pure gold, is kept in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. Although it is not a proven fact the archaeologist Schliemann, who first excavated Mycenae, believed it was the funeral mask of King Agamemnon.

At the entrance of the museum, there are wall posts narrating the history of Mycenae and of its excavation as well as a model of the ancient site.

Hours of Business

• Winter: 1 November – 31 March from 08:30 – 15:30
• Summer: April – August from 08:00 – 20:00
• 1 September – 15 September from 08:00 – 19:30
• 16 September – 30 September from 08:00 – 19:00
• 1 October – 15 October from 08:00 – 18:30
• 16 October – 31 October from 08:00 – 18:00
• Good Friday from 12:00 – 17:00
• Holy Saturday from 08:30 – 16:00

Holidays

• 1 January: closed
• 25 March
• 1 May: closed
• Easter Sunday: closed
• 25 December: closed
• 26 December: closed

Tickets

• Full: €12, Reduced: €6
• November – March: €6
• April – October: €12

Tickets are valid for the Acropolis, Atreus treasury, and the Museum

Free admission days

• 6 March (in memory of Melina Mercouri)
• 18 April (International Monuments Day)
• 18 May (International Museums Day)
• The last weekend of September annually (European Heritage Days)
• 28 October
• Every first Sunday from 1 November to 31 March

Contact information

• Address: Mycenae, Τ.Κ. 21 200, Mykines (Prefecture of Argolida), Greece
• Coordinates: 37°43′49″N, 22°45′27″E
• Telephone: +30 27510 76585, +30 27510 76802
• Email: efaarg@culture.gr

There is a shop, communal bathrooms, and a water spigot near the museum. The only place for food is a food truck in the parking lot across from the citadel.

How To Get There?

The museum is inside the archaeological site and it is recommended that visitors visit the site in the summer. It can be reached by bus or private vehicle. The highway from Athens to the Mycenae area is new and well maintained. There is a parking area at the site.