Archaeological Museum of Mesara

The establishment of an Archaeological Museum entirely dedicated to the antiquities of Messara has been a constant demand of the residents and the excavators of the area for decades. The new Museum aims to highlight the unique character of this important region over time, from Prehistory to the Middle Ages, to highlight the impact of the particular geomorphology of the area on the emergence and development of civilization with the assistance of advanced technology, to talk about the past of this region to children and young people and to serve as an interconnection point for the numerous archaeological sites and monuments of the area. Within an area of 30 acres and with a total area of 2,900 sq.m., the Museum includes approximately 900 sq.m. of principal exhibition halls, an inner courtyard that will be used for exhibition and educational purposes, an auditorium and display room, a temporary exhibition hall, conservation workshops, a shop and a café. The building was constructed with funding from the NSRF 2007-2014 for Crete and the Aegean Islands, the studies for the permanent exhibition were funded by the Operational Programme "Competitiveness & Entrepreneurship” of the NSRF 2007-2014 and the implementation of the permanent exhibition by the NSRF 2014-2020. The permanent exhibition opened to the public on 22 April 2023