Kerameikos Museum

The Kerameikos Museum was built in 1937 to the designs of H. Johannes with funding of Gustav Oberlaender. Thanks to the financial support of the Boeringer brothers, it was expanded in the 1960s.

The museum houses findings from excavations in Kerameikos, mostly objects directly connected to the cemetery and the burial customs of ancient Athens such as funerary urns, grave offerings as well as funerary monuments (stele). The latter, like the inscribed reliefs, the loutrophoroi (a distinctive type of Greek pottery characterized by its elongated neck that was used to hold water during marriage and funeral rituals, and was placed in the tombs of unmarried women.) dominate the displays while exact casts can be seen on the site.

Excellent examples of pottery can also be seen in the museum like an early Geometric urn amphora (860-840 BC), the Amasis Lekythos with a scene of the god Dionysus and two satyrs (mid-6th century BC), the hydria by the painter Meidias with a multifigured scene etc.

Another piece prominently displayed is the mid-6th century BC marble funerary monument with a man carrying a stick and a sword as well as its contemporary marble sphinx that funtioned as the crown of a funerary momnument. Particularly remarcable among the funerary marble reliefs are those of Ampharete in a scene with her grandchild (430-420 BC) and of Eukoline (380-370 BC) as well as the funerary monuments of Eupheros (420 BC) and of Dexileos (394-393 BC).

The first grave relief of the above was inscribed and in the epigram of the epistyle, Ampharete mourns her own death and the death of her daughter’s child which occurred at the same time. On the relief of Eukoline, daughter of Antiphanes, the young woman stares sadly at some object she holds in her hand (wich has not survived). The relief is accompanied by an epigram which laments the fate of the unfortunate girl.

The relief stele of Euphoros was found on top of the grave with the rich offerings of the young man, as if it too was burried, its colors almost intact. The background of the relief decoration was deep blue, the ribbon at his feet red and the hair bears traces of yellow. It was set-up next to the modest stele of Lissos, the brother of Eupheros.

The large monument of Dexileos, son of Lysanias from the deme of Thorikos, was found when his father’s family grave was discovered. The relief, standing on an inscribed base, depits the young man as horseman and victor. However, according to the inscription, the young warrior Dexileos was killed at the age of 20 during a battle against the Corinthians in 394-393 BC.

His monument looks towards the Dromos and the public cemetery of Athens because Dexileios was burried in the Demosion Sema while the bones of his brother Lysias and his sister Melitte were placed in his cenotaph. Dexileios’s name is written on a marble stele near the Demosion Sema with the names of the rest of his dead comrades.

There is a new exhibition of the most significant articles of the museum that includes striking sculptures (kouros, sphinx) found in recent excavations undertaken by the German Archaeological Institute.

You are advised to visit the museum after your walk around the archaeological site.

Opening hours and admission
148, Ermou Street - Kerameikos
Kerameikos
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