Archaeological Museum
(6, Man. Andronikou Str.)
The history of Ancient Macedonia is presented through magnificent artifacts, dating from the pre-historic era to late antiquity. The Archaeological museum is one of the biggest museums is one of the biggest museums in the country and the most important of Thessaloniki as it hosts the unique treasures of Vergina, including the gold urn. In its big renovated hall, known as hall P, one can visit the exhibition “The Gold of the Macedonians”, which has been enriched with new, unknown gold findings which equal in brilliance those found in the royal tombs of Vergina. Gold and gilt findings that date back to the period between the 6 th and 2 nd century B.C. and that were excavated from
the cemeteries of Macedonia are presented in the central part of the exhibition, whereas their role in burial customs is also analysed.
Museum of Byzantine Culture
(2, Leof. Stratou)
A large collection of artworks dating between the 2nd and 20th century AC reveals aspects of the Byzantine and the post-Byzantine culture from the city of Thessaloniki and the Region of Macedonia in general. The museum of Byzantine Culture is housed in a modern building, which spreads over a total area of 11.500 m 2 . In 2005, the Council of Europe nominated in European Museum of the Year. The permanent exhibition of the Museum presents various aspects of Byzantine art and culture, as well as of the period after the fall of the Byzantine Empire in 1453 to the Ottoman Turks. More than 2.900 objects, wall paintings, mosaics, icons, marble architectural members, valuable ecclesiastic utensils, as well as everyday use objects originating from the Northern
Greece area are displayed as witnesses of the culture that created them and the society that used them.
FOLK ART & ETHNOGRAPHIC MUSEUM OF MACEDONIA-THRACE
(68, Vas. Olgas Str.)
The Folk Art and Ethnographic Museum of Macedonia-Thrace was founded in 1970 and is housed in the old Government House, a building that is representative of the architecture and eclectic style of the beginning of the 20 th century. Its collections comprise of 15.000 objects of folk tradition, such as clothes of local communities, hand-woven materials, embroideries, tools, everyday use utensils, furniture, woodworks, folk musical instruments and figures of the shadow theatre.
State Museum of Contemporary Art:
(Moni Lazariston, Warehouse B1-Port)
A dynamically developing museum that promotes modern and contemporary art, through its temporary exhibitions. One of the most important collections of the Museum is the Costakis Collection, which consists of 1275 artworks of prominent Russian Avant Garde artists. The acquisition of the Giorgos Kostakis collection comprising of Russian avant-garde art works by the Ministry of Culture made the operation of the Museum well-known throughout the world. The museum at Moni Lazariston hosts works from the permanent collection of Kostakis, while, since the summer of 2002, an exhibition area at the port has been functioning parallel to the one at Moni Lazariston.
MACEDONIAN MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART
(International Fair grounds)
The permanent collection of the Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art comprises of more than 1.500 paintings, sculptures, engravings and photographs by well-known Greek and Foreign artists, as well as works from the collection of Iola, which were donated by the great collector.
MUSEUM OF PHOTOGRAPHY
(Warehouse A′, Port)
The permanent collection of the museum comprises of a significant number of photographs by Greek and foreign photographers which have been either purchased or donated. Every year, during spring, the Photosynkyria festival takes place with exhibitions that last for several months.
SCIENCE CENTRE AND TECHNOLOGY MUSEUM
(6 TH Km.Thessaloniki-Thermi)
The planetarium excites both children and grown-ups with its travels into space, which take place in a hall that offers visitors the opportunity to view a three-dimensional image of the motion and evolution of the universe. All the achievements accomplished by science and the contemporary world can be found in the halls of the Museum of Technology.
SPORTS MUSEUM
(3 rd Septemvriou & Agiou Dimitriou Str.)
The extremely modern building of the museum hosts two large exhibitions; one on Greek and foreign football comprising of T-shirts of famous football players, balls and cups and another on track events consisting of flags, trophies, athlete cards and cups won by teams mainly from Thessaloniki.
WATER WORKS MUSEUM
(26 th Octovriou Str.)
Of particular interest is an old pumping plant with electricity generators, while extremely impressive is also the area of the old steam generators, a unique archive consisting of maps and designs for water supply works of the 19 th and 20 th century, as well as the water park where pump machinery and water pumps are exhibited.
MUSEUM OF THE MACEDONIAN STRUGGLE
(23, Prox. Koromila Str.)
Among the most significant exhibits are the weapons uniforms and personal items belonging to the leader’s of the Macedonian struggle (1904-1908), as well as a collection of 1300 photographs from that period. In the basement of the building one can see life-size dioramas representing scenes of the struggle and on the ground floor there is an audiovisual system on the Modern History of Macedonia.
WAR MUSEUM
(3 rd Soma Stratou)
Its permanent collections present all the important events of Modern Greek History, from the Balkan Wars (1912-1913) to the liberation of the country (1944). At the core of the exhibits are photographs of the time, uniforms of the armed forces, weapons and war spoils, stone engravings, replicas of artillery and ships, letter-cards, works of art, maps indicating the position of fortifications and rich archive material.
Gallery of the Society for Macedonian Studies:
The developments in modern since 1850 can be viewed through the 300 paintings, sculptures and engravings that comprise the Gallery’s permanent collection.
Museum of Ancient, Greek, Byzantine Instruments
More than 200 musical instruments used in Greece from the Bronze Age to the early 20th century are exhibited in the Museum. The Museum is located in the historic district Ladadika of Thessaloniki.
Jewish Museum of Thessaloniki
(13, Agiou Mina Str.)
Aspects of the daily, financial and religious life of the pre-World War II Jewish community of Thessaloniki is presented through various relics, books written in the Hebrew language, photographs and documents. The Jewish Museum was founded for the purposes of honouring the rich and creative Sephardic heritage of the city, as the Jewish community developed it after the 15 th century. It hosts printing, cartography and medical science tools, as well as exhibits from the everyday, religious and commercial life of the community and, naturally, unique documents on the Holocaust. Of great value are also the archives of the library, which includes rare editions from the 16 th and 17 th century.
MUSEUM OF CINEMA
(Port, A′ Warehouse)
At the halls of the Museum of Cinema, one can see various film cameras and projectors, developing equipment for films, a rich collection of Greek and foreign films and documentaries. Also, transparencies, photographs, posters and promotional material for films, books, cinema magazines and newspapers, while of particular interest are the giant handmade posters and the music library which includes soundtracks on CD’s and LP’s.
MUSEUM OF ANCIENT BYZANTINE AND POST-BYZANTINE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
(12-14, Katouni Str.)
The museum is housed in a renovated building belonging to the Bank of Piraeus. Its
collection comprises of more than 200 replicas of musical instruments dating from the period from 2800 B.C. to the beginning of the 20 th century. At the same time, it also hosts 82 authentic musical instruments in a special showcase, alongside with the pictorial evidence of their existence.
For additional information visit Thessaloniki’s Official Site