Upgrade and Underground Extension of the National Archaeological Museum of Greece

Upgrade and Underground Extension of the National Archaeological Museum of Greece

Location Athens, Greece

Client Oikogeneia NSL AMKE

Services Project Management

Project Value Confidential

Hill International is providing project management services for the upgrade and extension of the National Archaeological Museum (NAM) in Greece. One of the most important archaeological museums in the world and the largest museum in the nation, NAM is home to the most extensive and culturally significant collection of artifacts of the ancient Greek civilization. NAM’s 11,000 exhibits comprise works of art in marble, clay, copper, gold, and other precious metals, cataloged across five permanent collections. NAM also has more than 120,000 additional artifacts in storage. The Museum is housed in an 1889 neoclassical building designed by renown German architect Ernst Ziller in the center of Athens. Greece’s Ministry of Culture and Sports, under the auspices of the Prime Minister’s office, is conducting the project through the NSL Family Non-Profit Company.

Once complete, NAM’s expansion and upgrade will help to decongest heavily trafficked areas to optimize the museum experience by connecting current operational sections of the building with newly defined areas in a to-be-built underground space. This will enable the museum to enhance its reputation as the leading destination for ancient Greek civilization study, while also reimagining a cultural landmark in the urban landscape of Athens serving as a locus for education, culture, creative economic activity, and leisure for both visitors and residents.

Hill is supporting the project throughout the entire lifecycle. The initial design tender involved ten globally acclaimed architectural firms who, in partnership with talented Greek firms, submitted their proposals. Hill organized and monitored the tender process and offered specialized support to all stakeholders and will continue to support the project as it advances into design under the leadership of tender winner 2023 Pritzker Architecture Prize Laureate David Chipperfield Architects and Alexandros N. Tombazis and Associates and then into construction.

Images credit: David Chipperfield Architects/Filippo Bolognese Images