The Kotsana Museum of ancient Greek technology opened in January 2018 in the Kolonaki district. Come and discover the high-tech inventions of ancient Greece! While the contribution of the ancient Greeks in the fields of philosophy, fine arts and science is well known, it is often overlooked that they were also at the cutting edge of technology. The museum reveals the astonishing modernity of objects created so long ago (the museum covers the period from 2000 BC to the end of the ancient Greek world). We see, among other things, the first “computer” in human history, the first alarm, the ancestor of cinema as we know it today, and so on.
The Museum of Ancient Greek Technology: practical information
The Kotsana Museum is located at 6 Pindarou, in the Kolonaki district of Athens (Google Maps). Access by Metro: Syntagma (M2 and M3) or Panepistimiou (M2).
Opening hours: The museum is open daily from 10am to 6pm. Check out the Kotsanas museum’s website.
Admission: Full price €5, reduced ticket €3.5 (children aged 6-17, over 65, students), free for children under 6. 10€ for the 1-hour interactive tour. Entrance ticket.
A visit to the Kotsana Museum of Ancient Greek Technology is interesting for adults and children alike.
The high-tech inventions of the ancient Greeks
Hellenistic and Classical engineers developed ingenious devices for astronomy, time measurement, automation of everyday tasks, communications and more. The legacy of these inventions still forms the basis of our modern technology today.
Around a hundred objects are on display in the Museum of Ancient Greek Technology. Copies of various inventions, instruments and machines used by the ancient Greeks are on display. Some of these inventions are interactive, making them great fun for the little ones to experiment with.
Among the objects on display at the Museum of Ancient Greek Technology are :
- the “slot machine” created by Heron: a cup with a coin box where the faithful threw a coin to automatically obtain holy water,
- the robot maid, created by Philo of Byzantium, who served wine to visitors (the first robot designed by man)
- a copy of the Antikythera mechanism, the first computer
- Sophisticated lifting equipment to build very tall structures with minimum manpower,
- clocks that run automatically and continuously without human intervention,
- the Pythagorean cup: a glass that forces you to drink in moderation. The user can fill the glass up to a certain level. If he respects the limit, he can drink normally. If it exceeds the limit, the glass empties completely from the bottom.
The objects on display are accompanied by audio-visual aids: detailed panels in Greek and English, illustrations, explanatory photos, video screens with animations and documentaries to help visitors better understand how the machines on display work.
There’s also a small exhibition of ancient Greek musical instruments on the second floor. These include a lyre of Hermes and a guitar of Apollo.
The Museum of Ancient Greek Technology in practice
For whom?
The museum is open to all, technology enthusiasts and beginners, children and adults alike. It will be of particular interest to children aged 10 and over. But the little ones will also have fun with the interactive objects: even if they don’t understand the technical explanations, they can touch the objects, experiment and learn while having fun. Ideal for talking about science and history in a fun way!
For how long?
The tour lasts about an hour. If you can, we strongly recommend that you take a guided tour so that you can benefit from the explanations. To book your guided tour online, click here.
What next?
To extend your day, there’s no shortage of things to see and do in the vicinity of the Ancient Greek Technology Museum: shopping in Kolonaki, a stroll in the National Garden, the Benaki Museum, the evzones of Syntagma Square, etc. And if you’ve enjoyed discovering ancient Greek technology at this museum, don’t miss the models and reconstructions at the Herakleidon Museum in Thissio, another museum on a similar theme.
Laure M.
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Have you visited the Kotsana Museum of Ancient Greek Technology? So leave us a comment at the bottom of this article to tell us what you thought.
Contact: Phone (+30) 211 411 00 44 / Mail: info@kotsanas.com / Website
Updated on February 20, 2024
