The National Archaeological Museum of Athens is to be completely renovated

The result of an international architectural competition was announced in December to increase the capacity of the 150-year-old museum, which attracts more than half a million visitors a year.

The project of the English architectural firm David Chipperfield Architects and its Greek partner Tombazis includes the creation of two new levels of underground galleries and a hanging garden on the roof, intended to create 20.000 square meters of additional space.

Although no timeline has been announced, Culture Minister Lina Mendoni said the museum would be "completely" transformed in four years.

Opened in 1889, the museum houses some of Greece's most valuable antiquities, including prehistoric frescoes from Thira, Bronze Age gold treasures from Mycenae, and the Antikythera Mechanism from the XNUMXnd century BC. , a device considered to be the world's oldest computer precursor.

“This museum has one of the most extraordinary collections in the world,” said David Chipperfield during the museum presentation.

Less than 10% of the tens of thousands of pieces in the collection are currently on display, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said.

He specified that the project will be financed by national and European resources.