Athens’ National Archaeological Museum is being extended as part of a refurbishment by David Chipperfield Architects.
The project will expand the existing neoclassical building to provide two new levels of subterranean galleries and a raised roof garden, said the architecture studio.
The museum, located in Athens’ Exarcheia neighbourhood, houses one of the world’s most important collections of prehistoric and ancient art.
“Through refurbishment and extension, the National Archaeological Museum of Athens will be modernised to meet today’s standards of quality, openness and sustainability,” it added (via Dezeen).
New subterranean galleries
“Respecting the building’s historical value, the extension does not aspire to compete with the existing architecture, but forms a harmonious ensemble of spaces, finding a balance between old and new.”
The studio’s proposal for the National Archaeological Museum’s extension, which includes around 20,000 square metres of additional space, was unanimously selected from a competition with a shortlist of 10 proposals.
It was designed in collaboration with landscape architect Wirtz International and the architecture studios Tombazis & Associate Architects and Atelier Brückner, as well as engineers WH-P Ingenieure and Werner Sobek.
Meanwhile, the British Museum’s chairman George Osborne has suggested a way for the 2,500-year-old Parthenon marbles to be “seen both in London and in Athens”.
Parthenon marbles deal
“It’s a very hard problem to solve,” Osborne told the BBC’s Today programme.
“But I think there is a way forward where the sculptures could be seen both in London and in Athens, and that will be a win-win for Greece and for us.”
“We’re talking to the Greek government about a new arrangement,” he added. “What I didn’t want to do is force the Greeks to accept things that they find impossible, and equally they can’t force on us things that we would find impossible.”
In December, Pope Francis announced plans to return the Parthenon marbles held at the Vatican Museums to Greece.
Images: David Chipperfield Architects / Greek Ministry of Culture and Sports
