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The Paul and Alexandra Canellopoulos Museum consists of a private collection of Greek art from antiquity to the Byzantine period. It’s located in the Plaka neighborhood of Athens, Greece.
History of the Canellopoulos Museum
The Canellopoulos Museum, or CAMU, was founded by Paul Canellopoulos (1906-2003) and his wife, Alexandra (1921-2008). Paul began collecting artifacts in 1923 while studying in Munich. He obtained his collector’s license for Greek and Byzantine antiquities in 1940. In 1972, Paul and Alexandra donated their entire collection, then numbering over 4,500 items, to the Greek government. The Canellopoulos Museum later opened in 1976 and currently boasts a collection of over 6,500 items.
Buildings
The Canellopoulos Museum is housed in the Michaleas Mansion and a modern wing constructed in 2004. The three-story Neoclassical Michaleas Mansion was built in 1894 by Ioannis Michaleas. It was expropriated by the Greek government in 1963 in order to house the museum collection. The building’s owner at the time, Paul Michaleas, an architect, prepared the plans himself and supervised the work. During renovation of the courtyard, a marble frieze originating from the Erechtheion on the Acropolis was discovered. It’s now displayed at the Acropolis Museum.
Visiting the Canellopoulos Museum
The Canellopoulos Museum is open daily except Tuesdays from 9am to 4pm. Adult admission is 3€ (as of July 2023).
First Gallery
The arrows on the floor from the lobby lead to the first gallery in the new building. This gallery contains a collection of Prehistoric and Classical antiquities.
Artifacts on display include bronze weapons and helmets, coins, weights and measures, and objects used in daily life.
Some of the most impressive items in this gallery include funerary jewelry made of gold, silver, bronze, and semi-precious stones. There are also marble objects from the Archaic to Late Roman period.
Excavation Area
In between the first and second galleries in the new building is an excavation area displaying a six meter section of the Rizokastro, which was the medieval wall surrounding the Acropolis. It was built in the 13th century when Athens was under Frankish rule. In the back is a wall from a Byzantine house with the entrance and threshold. A storage jar sits behind the wall.
Second Gallery
The second gallery in the new building is the largest gallery in the museum. It contains Prehistoric and Classical artifacts on display in chronological order. The first items are from the Neolithic period followed by Aegean cultures during the Bronze Age. This includes Cycladic and Minoan art.
Next are items from the Archaic period, including Cretan, Corinthian, Boeotian, and Attic items. The collection in this gallery is rounded out by items from Egypt, Italy, and the Roman period.
Old Building
The galleries of the old building were under renovation at the time of my visit, so only the first floor gallery was open to the public. It contained a condensed collection of art from the Early Christian through the Early Modern periods. This included Fayum funeral masks from the 2nd and 3rd centuries; Coptic textiles from the 5th through 9th century; bronze and silver ecclesiastic and household items from the Early to Middle Byzantine periods; and crosses from the Early to Middle Byzantine periods.
The rest of the first floor displayed Byzantine jewelry from the 5th through 15th century as well as beautiful icons.
My Thoughts
Overall, I enjoyed my visit to the Canellopoulos Museum. Unlike in some much larger museums, the collection isn’t overwhelming. There are also lots of unique items that stand out. It’s well worth visiting the museum if you’re in Athens.
