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National Archaeological Museum extension

Museum extension·Exarcheia

Designs approved

David Chipperfield’s new galleries under a raised garden add about 20,000 m² to the great museum.

A rendering of the new forecourt and sunken courtyard leading up to the National Archaeological Museum — Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © David Chipperfield Architects (rendering: Filippo Bolognese)

A rendering of the extension’s low street façade, with the raised garden and the museum above — Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © David Chipperfield Architects (rendering: Filippo Bolognese)

A rendering of a gravel path through the pines of the new museum garden — Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © David Chipperfield Architects (rendering: Filippo Bolognese)

A rendering of a lawn in the raised garden facing the museum’s neoclassical front — Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © David Chipperfield Architects (rendering: Filippo Bolognese)

A rendering of the broad steps rising from the street into the museum garden — Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © David Chipperfield Architects (rendering: Filippo Bolognese)

A rendering of a long sculpture hall in the existing building, lined with ancient statues — Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © David Chipperfield Architects (rendering: Filippo Bolognese)

A rendering of the new Classical Hall, with marble statues under a skylit ceiling — Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © David Chipperfield Architects (rendering: Filippo Bolognese)

A rendering of refurbished galleries in the existing building, with tall windows — Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © David Chipperfield Architects (rendering: Filippo Bolognese)

A rendering of a new gallery in the extension, with rammed-earth walls and a glazed façade — Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © David Chipperfield Architects (rendering: Filippo Bolognese)

A rendering of an underground gallery in the extension, with display cases — Photo Credit
Image courtesy of © David Chipperfield Architects (rendering: Filippo Bolognese)

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About National Archaeological Museum extension

Greece’s finest collection of ancient art is to gain a new setting: David Chipperfield Architects, with Tombazis and Associates, extend the museum’s plinth to the street, creating about 20,000 m² of space, including two floors of galleries beneath a raised garden of pines, holm oaks and lawns by Wirtz International. A sunken courtyard and an extended monumental staircase join old and new; the new wing holds the entrance hall, shop, café, restaurant, auditorium and exhibition spaces behind rammed-earth walls, while a new Classical Hall crowns the sequence of sculpture inside Lange and Ziller’s 19th-century building. The Ministry of Culture’s advisory councils have unanimously approved the studies, and the project now moves towards construction. Our advice: the museum is open as usual, so visit now and watch this space.