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Tickets: Purchase at the museum.
The Museum of Greek Folk Musical Instruments is a vast collection of approximately 1200 Greek musical instruments that date from the 18th century up until present day. It represents the culmination of decades of study by the musicologist Fivos Anoyanakis and is housed in the 1840 mansion built in 1840 of General Yiorgos Lassanis, a hero of the War of Greek Independence.
There are 3 floors to the exhibition hall, with artifacts exhibited according to instrument class. Headphones and videos are set up throughout the museum for guests to appreciate musical samples and listen to the differing instruments on display. Among other uniquely Greek sounds on display are the gaïda (Greek goatskin bagpipes) and the wooden planks employed by priests on Mount Athos to summon prayer.
Next to the museum is a research centre with archives and a lecture hall, plus a gift shop. Musical events are sometimes held in the garden during summer. Situated in Plaka near the Roman Agora, about a 300-metre walk from Monastiraki Square and its metro station.
Museum of Greek Folk Musical Instruments Hours and Information
- Hours: Wednesday to Sunday 8:30am to 3:30pm, last entrance at 3:10pm. Closed Tuesdays. The museum is closed on January 1, Orthodox Easter Sunday, May 1, and December 25 & 26.
- Website: odysseus.culture.gr
- Location: 1 Diogenous Street
- Telephone: +30 21 0325 0198
- Admission Fee: 2€
- Free Entry: Children under 5, disabled visitors. Free admission for all visitors on March 6, April 18, May 18, the last weekend of September, October 28, and every first Sunday of the month from November through March.
- Parking: Street parking, nearby pay lots.
- Nearest Metro: Monastiraki
Museum of Greek Folk Musical Instruments
