The museum's star attraction is the magnificent statue of Apollo, the Piraeus Kouros, the larger-than-life, oldest hollow bronze statue yet found. It dates from about 520 BC and was discovered buried in rubble in 1959. Other important finds from the area include fine tomb reliefs from the 4th to 2nd centuries BC.
Piraeus Archaeological Museum
Piraeus
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
5.09 MILES
This dazzling museum at the foot of the Acropolis' southern slope showcases its surviving treasures. The collection covers the Archaic period to the Roman…
5.09 MILES
Designed to be the pre-eminent monument of the Acropolis, the Parthenon epitomises the glory of Ancient Greece. Meaning 'virgin's apartment', it's…
5.11 MILES
The Acropolis is the most important ancient site in the Western world. Crowned by the Parthenon, it stands sentinel over Athens, visible from almost…
4.89 MILES
This lush, tranquil site is named for the potters who settled it around 3000 BC. It was used as a cemetery through the 6th century AD. The grave markers…
5.09 MILES
The Agora was ancient Athens' heart, the lively hub of administrative, commercial, political and social activity. Socrates expounded his philosophy here;…
6.08 MILES
This outstanding museum, based in the 1848 Villa Ilissia, offers exhibition halls, most of them underground, crammed with religious art. The exhibits go…
Benaki Museum of Greek Culture
5.9 MILES
In 1930 Antonis Benakis – a politician's son born in Alexandria, Egypt, in the late 19th century – endowed what is perhaps the finest museum in Greece…
National Archaeological Museum
6.02 MILES
Housing the world's finest collection of Greek antiquities in an enormous neoclassical building, this museum is one of Athens' top attractions. Treasures…
Nearby Piraeus attractions
0.32 MILES
As nautical museums go, this isn't one of the best, despite Greece’s long maritime history. Still, it does have all the requisite models of ancient and…
0.78 MILES
Tucked inside the Piraeus station, this museum is a trove of old switches, nifty models and cool machinery, including a gleaming old wooden train car. It…
2.51 MILES
Take the tram to this highly family-friendly park with loads of playground facilities and a summer puppet theatre, plus an open-air cinema. The coast just…
4. Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center
2.61 MILES
Sitting beneath a man-made slope above Faliron Bay, and shaded by a 'Magic Carpet' roof covered with solar panels, this stunning Renzo Piano building,…
2.65 MILES
In 2018, the National Library shifted more than 720,000 items from its collection to this stunning new building that is part of the Stavros Niarchos…
2.72 MILES
Athens is short on green spaces, so this vast seaside park is a blessing. Covering a man-made slope that incorporates the roof of the Stavros Niarchos…
2.88 MILES
This educational centre devoted to science and technology includes Athens' planetarium, a 950-sq-metre hemispherical dome on which 3D virtual trips to the…
3.14 MILES
To get a sense of how ancient ruins once looked, take a virtual-reality trip at this multimedia centre. The Tholos virtual-reality theatre takes you on an…