Benaki Museum of Greek Culture

The Benaki museums have several branches in Athens and beyond. In this blog series,the Museum of Greek Culture and the Museum of Islamic Art in Athens are showcased.

The Benaki Museum building was originally a family residence. It was opened in April 1931 as a museum. After renovation, the building was reopened on 7 June 2000. The building focuses on Greek culture and other objects from the Benaki collection are displayed elsewhere. Photo OI
Antonis Benakis, like many of the people involved in the establishment of museums in Athens or the accumulation of collections, was an expatriate Greek. He was born in Alexandria, Egypt in 1873, moved to Athens permanently in 1926 and died in 1954. Benakis was an avid collector. After the death of his father Emmanuel, Antonis bequeathed his collection and his parents' home to the Greek State. Image from the museum brochure

 
The Benaki Museum of Greek Culture is located near Evangelismos metro station. Around the station is a museum cluster, where several museum sites can be found within walking distance - the archaeological site of Lyseion, the Byzantine Museum, the War Museum, the Museum of Cycladic Art and, in the other direction from the metro station, the National Gallery.

The Benaki Museum presents the history and art of the Greek world from prehistory to the 20th century. 6 000 objects are on display on four floors of the museum. The result is a bit like a national museum, with a chronological display of national costumes.

Photo of the exhibition. Photo OI


The museum's guidesigns show how the periods of Greek culture are divided up in the museum. Neolithic period, 6500-3200 BC, Bronze Age, 3200-1100 BC, Dark Age, 1100-900 BC. Geometric period, 900-700 BC, Archaic period, 7th-6th Century BC, Classical period, 5th-4th Century BC, Hellenistic and Roman periods, 3rd century BC-300 AD, Late Antiquity, 400-900 AD, Byzantine world

The content themes are: 12 Greek icons, Folk art: Costume, embroidery, jewellery, ceramics, stone carving, engraving, painting, Everyday life and spiritual life, The Greek War of Independence, The formation of the Greek state and its first governor, Lonannis Capodistria, (1821-1831) The reign of King Otto, Athens as the new capital of Greece, The Constitution, (1833-1862), The reign of King George, The era of Eleftherios Venizelos, The Asia Minor disaster, The period between the Greek wars and the Second World Wa.(1863-1941)

The collection of prehistory is good, although you can perhaps explore the subject in more depth at the Archaeological Museum's exhibition.

Photo from the exhibition. Photo OI
Gold bracelet with snakehead connectors. The eyes are glass and the tongue is emerald. From a woman's tomb in Piraeus, first century
Burial portrait of a man painted on linen with pigments mixed with wax (encaustic technique). From Antinous in Egypt, second quarter of the 200th century


The icons, the oldest of which date from the 15th century, are extremely impressive. There is also a good collection of works of art relating to the history and antiquities of Athens.

The Nativity of Christ. Constantinopolitan artist, first quarter of the 15th century. The caption highlights the icon both for the exceptional quality of the painting and for the intellectual depth. The work combines tradition with an understanding of current developments in Italian art. According to the museum, the icon represents an intermediate stage between the two most important periods of late Byzantine art

The Virgin and the Child. Second half of the 15th century. Icon in the Italian-Cretan style. Cretan painters were famous for their ability to paint either alla maniera Greca or alla maniera Latina, i.e. in Greek or Latin style. The choice of painting style depended on the preferences of the clients. These included both Orthodox and Catholics 
The bombardment of the Parthenon on 26 September 1687. Watercolour by an eyewitness, the Venetian army officer G. M. Verneda. The museum's object text sums up the tragic irony that the monument was destroyed at the dawn of the Enlightenment, just as it was about to be 'rediscovered'.
Map of Greece. Late 17th century - early 18th century. Egg tempera on wood. An Italian map showing Venice's efforts to reconquer Ottoman-occupied territories
The museum's café is small but pleasant. Photo OI



Location: Mousio Mpenaki, Koumpari 1, Athina 106 74, Kreikka

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