Archeological Museum of Kythera

The space where the Museum of Kythera is housed has been granted by the Kytherian Association. The Museum is located at the entrance of the settlement of Chora and in a short distance from its central square. After a long period of ten years where it remained closed, the Archaeological Museum of Kythera was recently opened (May 2016), fully renovated and with a modern exhibition containing objects from the 9th millennium B.C. to the 3rd century A.D. The most important exhibits are the stone tools from the first settlement on the island (9th-8th millennium B.C.), the findings from the Minoan colony in Paleopolis, the rare bronze figurines from the Minoan peak sanctuary at Agios Giorgis on the mountain, the figurines and jewels from the sanctuary of Athena in Palaiokastro, the marble lion of Kythera from the 6th c. B.C. and the coins from the sanctuary of Poseidon in Antidragonera. Also, in a separate section, objects from the excavations of Antikythera are exhibited. The Museum also emphasizes multimedia. At the entrance of the museum there is a ten-minute documentary about the most important archaeological sites of Kythera. In the first room there is also an interactive touch screen about the history and archeology of the island. Also, next to the exhibit of the ancient Lion of Kythera, there is a ten-minute video about the fascinating history of the sculpture and how it finally ended up in the Archaeological Museum of Kythera. Finally, the museum is accessible to people with mobility disabilities as well as people with visual impairments. In the exhibition space of the Museum, there are replicas of ancient objects, accessible for tactile contact. Also, the Museum has free special brochures in Braille for the visually impaired individuals. The project of repairing and re-exhibiting the Museum was carried out by the Directorate of Studies and Execution of Museums and Cultural Buildings Projects and the Ephorate of Antiquities of Western Attica, Piraeus and the Islands in the framework of the Action titled ""Repair, Reorganization and Re-exhibition of the Archaeological Museum of Kythera"", for the Operational Programme ""Attica"" of the Programming Period ""ESPA 2007 - 2013"". The Action was co-financed by the European Union (European Social Fund) and by national resources.