The Numismatic Museum of Athens in Greece has an impressive collection of ancient and modern coins with more than 500 000 items. In addition to the coins themselves, the collection contains Byzantine lead seals, medals, weights, spoons and precious stones.
This is one of the most important numismatic museums in the world. The museum is a real treasury of historical data that trace the political, commercial and cultural spheres of influence of Athens for centuries. Where else can you see the original coin with the Athenian owl?
The Numismatic Museum, which was built in 1834, is one of the oldest in Greece.
Although the name implies only a collection of coins, the displays are quite various. The museum contains interesting items; it is located in a wonderful neoclassical mansion with an impressive facade, which was built in 1880 as the private residence of the famous German archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann. This gives the exhibition a special flavour and makes it even more unique.
German architect Ernst Ziller designed the building following the neoclassical spirit of the late 19th century; he adapted the elements of the Italian Renaissance to it. The interior is richly decorated with wall paintings that copy the Pompeian subjects and Schliemann's finds in Troy and Mycenae.
In addition, the Museum also functions as a research centre for scientists and the for general public; it arranges various events, publications and symposiums, educational lectures and programs, regularly holds special exhibitions in cooperation with other museums. The museum's library contains about 12 000 volumes related to the disciplines of Numismatics, History and Archaeology, and contains a rich archive of documents.
The display is supported by audio-visual means; it consists of sections according to the subject and chronology:
The richest part of the exhibition is a collection of ancient coins dating back to the 6th century BC. These are the coins of city-states, kings of the ancient Greek and Hellenistic world and the Roman Empire, its rulers and provinces.
The collection of Byzantine and medieval coins dates back to the 6th – 15th centuries and contains a large number of coins of the Byzantine Empire with images of its emperors, as well as the rulers of the medieval West and East.
The period from the 15th to the 20th century is represented in the exhibition mostly by modern coins. The main focus is on coins that have been common in Greece during these centuries, Ottoman coins, the ones of European countries and empires, as well as coins and banknotes of the new Greek state.
Special collections: sculptures and miniature artifacts. These are ancient Greek, Roman, Byzantine and medieval tools for weighing various products and coins. They are an important source of information about weighing and trading rules in different eras.
A rich collection of Byzantine seals is displayed in the museum as symbols of power. It also stores jewelry that have once been serving to demonstrate the special status and wealth of their owners.
The medals tell about historical characters and events, and the images on them — about buildings, cities and entire territories, reflecting the art of every era from the Renaissance to the present.
Generally, the display of the Numismatic museum of Athens is one of the richest in the world, along with the British Museum in London, the National library in Paris, the Hermitage in St. Petersburg, the Bode Museum in Berlin and The American monetary society.
The 329 coins of the first Archaeological museum, which was established in 1829 in Aegina, became the core of the collection. Since then, it has been gradually increasing by coins and other items. In the 1970ies, more than 50 000 coins were conveyed to the museum from excavations in Argos, Olympia, Corinth, Delphi, Olinthus, etc.
More than 190 000 coins belong to 670 ancient Greek, Roman, Byzantine, medieval and further "treasures" collected all over Greece. These unique coins are important sources of information about the monetary movement and economy in Greece from the antiquity to the beginning of the 20th century.
The exhibition on the first floor tells visitors how the coins were minted in Ancient Greece, including the signs on them. Here, visitors can also get acquainted with the archaeological research that were carried out after the discovery of the coins.
The second floor of the mansion is dedicated to how coins were minted in different parts of the world over the course of history. The museum houses the coins of the Roman Empire, Byzantium, the middle ages and modern times. Finally, the exhibition tells what coins are currently used around the world.
The opening hours of the Numismatic museum of Athens:
Visitors are allowed to enter the territory no later than 15 minutes before the museum is closed.
The tickets to the Numismatic museum of Athens cost 3€ per adult.
The single ticket to 4 state museums is 15 €. It is valid in the Byzantine and Christian museum, the National archaeological museum, the Epigraphic museum, the Numismatic museum.
All tickets can be purchased at the entrance to the museum.
Every first Sunday of the month from 01.11 to 31.03
The Numismatic Museum is located in the very center of Athens: Panepistimiou street, next to Syntagma square.
You can use public transport:
The audio guide is announced at the ticket counter, but is not actually provided. This is balanced out by the descriptions next to the exhibits in English and Greek. Descriptions, along with other things, tell about the methods of making coins, the historical reasons for choosing the appropriate images for coinage, and so on.
Peak traffic hours by the days of the week:
