Greece 22: Athens - The National Archaeological Museum

 The National Archaeological Museum is amazing, naturally.  Here are some of my favorite sights.

This bronze statue of Zeus was found in a shipwreck so whoever paid for it probably never got to see it. Insert moral here.

This is not just any helmet. A note carved in it says that it belonged to Miltiades, who led the Greek army against the Persians at the battle of Marathon. How cool is that? 

 

 

 From the Cycladic culture, thousands of years before the Minoans and the Myceneans.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Minoan Bull

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The Antikythera Device was found in a shipwreck near that island a hundred years ago.  It took scientists most of a century to figure out that it was a hand-cranked computer for calculating the movements of stars and predict eclipses.  They assume a missing piece would track planets as well. It probably dates from around 100 BCE.  The picture on the right is a modern attempt at reproduction.

Roman heads

Next stop: Strange Things, Sad Things