Benaki Museum

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The Benaki Museum ranks among the great benefactions which have enriched the material assets of the Greek state. At the same time, it is the oldest museum in Greece, which functions as a Foundation under Private Law.

Through its extensive collections covering several different cultural fields, as well as its more general range of activities which serve more than one social need, the Benaki Museum is perhaps the sole instance of a complex structure within the wider network of museum foundations in Greece.

The Benaki Museum was established and endowed in 1930 by Antonis Benakis in memory of his father Emmanuel Benakis, at the Benakis family mansion in downtown Athens. The museum houses Greek works of art from the prehistorical to the modern times, an extensive collection of Asian art, hosts periodic exhibitions and maintains a state-of-the-art restoration and conservation workshop.

Over the years it has been further endowed by various donors, and it now includes the seaside Kouloura Mansion in Palaio Phaliro, which is to house a Children's Toys Collection, the Benaki Islamic Art Museum in the Kerameikos district, the Nikos Hadjikyriakos-Ghikas Museum in downtown Athens, and the Delta House in Kifissia, which houses the Historical Archive Collection.

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