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Benaki Museum, Athens

Benaki Museum, Athens, Greece. Benaki Museum, Athens, Greece.

The Benaki Museum was established in 1931 by Antonis Benakis in memory of his father, Emmanuel Benakis, a wealthy Greek/Egyptian who created a vast collection of Byzantine, Greek and Islamic objects as well as books, documents and so forth. Since the 1930's the collection has increased considerably.

Following an earthquake that structurally damaged the Athens home, the museum was shut for major renovations. It was re-opened in 2000 with a series of new permanent exhibitions that reflect Greek history. The items on display include a wide range of objects dating from prehistoric times to the twentieth century and include ceramics, glass, jewellery, metal work, paintings, and of course, Greek traditional costumes (mainly nineteenth and twentieth century examples) and accessories, as well as woven textiles and embroideries.

The textiles date from the thirteenth century onwards and include medieval examples of metal thread work, as well as various early examples of embroidered net and embroidered lace from Southern Europe.

In addition to the main museum, a series of satellite museums was established in various parts of Athens and elsewhere, each of which had a different theme. There is, for example, a Children’s Toys Collection, an Islamic Art Museum and a Historical Archive collection.

Address: 1, Koumbari Street and Vas. Sofias Av., Athens 106 74, Greece.

Museum website (retrieved 6th April 2016).

Digital source of illustration (retrieved 25th May 2016).

GVE

Last modified on Monday, 10 July 2017 19:46