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Chania Home | Chania Hotels | Archaeological Museum | Chania Churches | Ancient Kydonia |
The Archaeological Museum of Chania on the island of Crete |
The Archaeological Museum of Chania can be found in the Halidon Street, in the St. Francis Church, which dates from the Venetian period. This church is located in the busy shopping street where you can also find the Mitropolis cathedral. When we wanted to take a look the entrance was free (but I understand that normally you would have to buy a - cheap - entrance ticket). The museum houses finds from Chania and surroundings, but also from other parts of the island. Some things were found during excavations in houses and other items were found in caves. The excavations on display start with clay objects from the Neolithic period. |
At the entrance your attention directly goes to the large beautifully painted sarcophagi that date from the Minoan period and the large beautiful mosaic floors depicting mythological scenes that date from the Roman period (3rd century AD). Also the large marble statues in the main hall are attracting the attention. The mosaic floors were found in a number of houses in Chania. On one of them you can recognize Dionysos (the god of wine) and the faun Pan. Another god who is depicted on the mosaic floors is the god of the sea Poseidon. There are also many displays of utensils and decorative items such as jars, sculptures, jewelry, coins, perfume bottles and a few weapons and a helmet. There are also examples of tablets with the Minoan script (that is called Linear A and Linear B script). Outside in the courtyard of the museum is a wonderful Turkish water source and there are pieces of architecture from the Venetian times (lions and columns). |