Archeological Museum of Corfu
Archaeological Museum of Corfu
Category: History & Archaeology
Prefecture: Corfu City: Corfu
Address: Armeni Vraila 1
Postal Code: 49100
Telephone: +30 26610-30680
Fax: +30 26610-43452
The Archaeological Museum of Corfu was built between 1962 and 1965, on a site that was donated by the Municipality of Corfu, and was inaugurated in 1967. The main purpose of its construction was the exhibition of the huge Gorgon pediment of the Artemis temple, excavated in Paleopolis in the beginning of the 20th century. In 1994, two more halls were added to the museum, where the new acquisitions from the resent excavations of the old town and the Garitsa cemetery were exhibited.
The exhibits came from an old collection of unknown origin, the excavations of the ancient town of Corfu, the excavations of the ancient town of Kassiopi in northern Corfu, and the excavations of Thesprotia on the opposite coast of Epirus. The collections are comprised of bronze statues from the Archaic to the Roman era; funeral offerings from the Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic eras; from the cemeteries of Garitsa and Almyro; ancient coins; findings from the Prehistoric era and the 7th and 6th century B.C. including an exceptional Menecrates lion, clay pottery and terracotta statuettes from the shrines of Corfu and the impressive Gorgon-Medusa pediment from the great temple of Artemis, made in 585 B.C., excavated in 1911 near the monastery of Aghioi Theodoroi, the oldest, so far, stone-pediment of an ancient Greek temple. In other halls of the Museum there is another impressive limestone pediment (500 B.C.) from a Dionysos temple at Figaretto, 13 identical terracotta statutes of Artemis, exhibits from the 4th century B.C. to the Roman period, and the marble heads of the poet Menander and historian Thucydides. Finally there are exhibits from Paleopoli and Kassiopi, including bronze surgical tools, clay oil-lamps and bone-tools of everyday use.
Exhibits
The collections of the museum include a collection of unknown origin, finds from excavations from the ancient city of Corfu, finds from the region of Kassiopi in Corfu and finds from excavations in the district of Thesprotia.
The main exhibits are:
- The Gorgon pediment from the Artemis temple. It is the oldest stone pediment in Greece dated to 590-580 B.C. and is described in the New York times review of the museum as the finest example of Archaic temple sculpture extant.
- The Lion of Menecrates. This is the work of a famous Corinthian sculptor of the Archaic period dated to the end of the 7th century B.C.
- The pediment of Dionysus (Bacchus). Dated to 500 B.C.
- The base and part of the body of a kore from the late Archaic period. It was found during the excavation of a pottery workshop in the area of Figareto.
- A marble torso of Apollo. This is a copy of the original statue of "Parnopios Apollo" created by Pheidias (its type is known as the "Kassel Apollo"). Dated to the 2nd century A.D.
- Funerary stele with inscription approximately translated as: 'You went twenty three years old in the underworld and left your mother Arpalis in mourning, your husband Aristandros widower and the children orphan. You chose for yourself the last sleep.'
- The terracotta statuettes of Artemis. They were found in large quantities in the small temple of Artemis at Kanoni in Corfu city.
- Four cases with coins found in excavations at various sites of Corfu.
Archeological Museum of Corfu - Corfu Magazine - Vol. 4, No. 1, September 15, 2008
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