Archaeological Museum of Chalkida: A Museum of Euboean and Skyrian History
Site at a Glance
- Rating
- 4.3
- Popularity
- Low
- Country
- Greece
- Primary era
- Classical
- External website
- Open
- Eras represented
- Stone Age, Classical, Medieval, Early Modern, Modern
- Civilizations
- Ancient Greek, Byzantine, Ottoman, Roman
- Site type
- Museum
On this page7 sections
History
The Archaeological Museum of Chalkida “Arethousa” is a museum in Chalkida, Greece, established in 2017 and inaugurated in May 2021. It presents the history and archaeological remains of Euboea and Skyros, tracing their political, social, religious, and artistic development from the Paleolithic period through antiquity and into the Byzantine, Ottoman, and early modern periods.
The history of Euboea and Skyros
The museum’s thematic program begins with the Paleolithic period, the earliest phase of human prehistory, and continues through the Geometric and Archaic periods into the Classical, Hellenistic, and Roman periods. The Hellenistic period followed the conquests of Alexander the Great, while the Roman period refers to the era of Roman political dominance. Later displays address Byzantine rule, meaning the medieval Roman Empire centered on Constantinople, Ottoman government, and the early modern period.
Among the subjects presented are the Heroon of Lefkandi, a heroon being a monument or sanctuary associated with a hero, burial, or cult; Euboean colonization; and the westward movement of the Euboean alphabet. This ancient Greek alphabetic tradition was carried by Euboean colonists to settlements in the western Mediterranean and contributed to scripts that ultimately influenced the Latin alphabet. The program also examines the Sanctuary of Artemis at Avlida, the myth of Iphigenia, and the religious history and material culture of Euboea.
Other themes follow Chalkida under Byzantine and Ottoman rule, the island’s changing political organization from city-states to the modern period, and the city’s industrialization. The history of the Arethousa factory forms a separate part of the museum’s interpretation. The building had operated as a distillery and ice factory, and its industrial activity ended in 1980.
The older Archaeological Museum of Chalkida
A separate Archaeological Museum of Chalkida was created to house the large quantity of material found in Chalkida, its surrounding region, and other parts of Euboea. Its purpose was to present the island’s historical, political, and social development through archaeological evidence. Continuing excavations by the local archaeological authority led to a reorganization of its exhibition, which was presented to the public in 1990.
The older museum’s building required repairs after the earthquakes of 1980–1981. Its courtyard was later adapted for additional finds as the archaeological collection grew. These changes allowed the older institution to continue presenting material from across Euboea alongside the newer Arethousa museum.
Remains
The Arethousa industrial building
The Arethousa museum occupies the former Arethousa S.A. industrial building, erected in 1902. The early twentieth-century structure is protected as a heritage monument, and restoration for museum use was completed in 2020. Its previous functions as a distillery and ice factory are retained as part of the museum’s historical interpretation. The museum stands near remains of ancient port installations associated with Chalkida, beside the Euripus, the narrow strait separating Euboea from mainland Greece.
Archaeological displays
The exhibitions bring together archaeological material from Euboea and Skyros, extending from the Paleolithic period and antiquity to later historical phases and the beginning of the twentieth century. They include material from the prehistoric site of Manika, finds from Edipsos, and objects associated with the Euripus Strait. One exhibition focuses on Euboean voyages and colonization in the western Mediterranean, while others address material culture, religion, political organization, and artistic development.
Among the displayed works are marble figurines, bird-goddess figurines, pottery, ceramic figurines and other ceramic objects, a bronze mirror, a vase, and a gold wreath associated with an athlete. The collection also includes part of a statue probably representing Poseidon, the ancient Greek god associated chiefly with the sea, earthquakes, and horses. A copy of the sculptural group depicting Theseus and Antiope is associated with the Temple of Apollo Daphnephoros at Eretria. Apollo Daphnephoros means “Apollo the Laurel-Bearer,” an epithet used in connection with Apollo’s cult.
The older museum building and courtyard
The older Archaeological Museum of Chalkida occupies a state-owned neoclassical building at 13 Eleftheriou Venizelou Street. Construction was completed in 1901–1902, the museum opened in 1902, and the design is attributed to the architect Lykakis. Its three exhibition rooms follow a chronological arrangement from the Paleolithic period, beginning around 100,000 BC, to the Roman period.
The right-hand room covers the Paleolithic through the Geometric periods, while the left-hand room presents the Archaic through Roman periods. The central room is devoted to large-scale sculpture from the Classical, Hellenistic, and especially Roman periods. Informational panels and photographs accompany the displays.
The courtyard extends the older museum’s exhibition space with funerary monuments, decrees, architectural members, and sculptures from the Classical, Hellenistic, and Roman periods. Two covered structures and a landscaped area were added when the main rooms could no longer accommodate the growing archaeological collection.
