The Museum of Byzantine Culture is a state museum, which is part of the Ministry of Culture and Sports. The building, a work of art and historically listed monument, constructed between 1989-1993 and based on the plans of Kyriakos Krokos, joins elements of modernism and of Greek architectural heritage. It has received a special notion by the international committee of the competition Awards 2000 of the Hellenic Institute for Architecture.
The Museum of Byzantine Culture aims in presenting various aspects of life during the byzantine and post-byzantine periods. 3190 artifacts, organized in display units which narrate, in chronological order, "short stories" that present, in a comprehensive and pleasant way, aspects of byzantine art and culture.
At the same time, all of its activities render the Museum into an exceptionally important centre for the preservation, research and promotion of Byzantine and Postbyzantine culture.
In 2005, the Museum of Byzantine Culture was awarded the “Museum Prize” of the Council of Europe, given for the first time in its history to a Greek museum. The Museum received this distinction because of its “visitors-friendly” and educational character. The eleven rooms of the permanent exhibition opened gradually to the public from 1997 to the beginning of 2004. 2014 is a landmark, because there have been supplemented twenty years from its first opening to the public.
Our Museum is innovative museum both in the fields of exhibiting its objects and also in its activities. One of our goals is to organize exhibitions with institutions located both in Greece and abroad. We aim at establishing unique events promoting not only scholarly research, but also dissemination of knowledge to the wider public. The Museum’s overall work involves a variety of subjects connected to the Byzantine and Post-Byzantine culture, the mutual influences between Orthodox and non-Orthodox peoples within the ecumenical Byzantine Empire and -last but not least- the role of Thessaloniki as the most important political, economic, intellectual, and artistic centre after Constantinople.
Our conservation laboratories are of high standards both for their staff’s experience and for the implementation of diagnosis and conservation methods. Since 1998 the Department of Educational Programs has been planning and implementing educational activities addressed to students of primary and secondary schools, teachers, children with disabilities, families and adults.
Our overall goal is to make the museum an appealing destination for all ages, depending on the public’s interests and regardless of their level of education. We try to integrate the museum within the city’s cultural life, through the organization of literary and artistic events, conferences and workshops, working primarily. Our collaborations consist mainly of museums, institutions and organizations in Thessaloniki, but we also reinforce our collaborations with various institutions from abroad.