Epigraphic Museum

What I can see

In the southern wing of the National Archaeological Museum and on Tositsa Street, is the Epigraphic Museum, a real treasure of Greek culture. It consists of outer courtyards, inner courtyard, colonnades, vestibule and 11 rooms. It is not a “fancy” museum. It mainly attracts the interest of researchers and students. Its value is inestimable, as it is a direct source of History. Among the thousands of inscriptions housed in the museum, most are written on marble or stone and some on ceramic tiles and vases. Most of them are written in Greek, some in Latin and a few in Hebrew, Phoenician and Ottoman. They date back to the 8th century BC until the early Christian years, while there are also some inscriptions from the Byzantine period, the Ottoman period and more recent centuries. They come mainly from Athens and Attica, although many come from the rest of Greece and Asia Minor.

What I can't see

It is the largest museum of its kind in the world. Its purpose is the protection, preservation, study and exhibition of ancient inscriptions. It was designed by Ernst Ziller, Panagis Kalkos and Ludwig Lange. Later changes were made by Patroklos Karatinos (1950). The first person who collected inscriptions – mainly from the Acropolis hill – was the first Greek archaeologist, Kyriakos Pittakis (1798-1863). Their study takes us into every aspect of ancient Athens and the ancient Greek world’s social life, such as resolutions, religious life, burial customs, and other events and activities.

Info

• Address: 1 Tositsa St.

Bibliography