HISTORICAL MUSEUM OF CRETE

The Historical Museum of Crete was founded in 1953 by the Society of Cretan Historical Studies (SCHS) and houses valuable exhibits of the history of the island from the early Christian to modern times.

The Historical Museum with its unique collections gives the visitor a comprehensive trip, through time, in the region of Crete.

The visit to this historic site is appropriate for all ages and it is truly worthy to learn the manners and the customs of this beautiful place.
The building of the Museum is a two-storey neoclassical building of 1903, which was built in place of one older of Kalokerino’s family by a project of Mr. K. Tsantirakis.
It declared as a historical monument.

The visit starts from the Andrew C. Kalokerino’s hall with an overview of Cretan history and representative artifacts from the collections and the time periods.

In the next room (2) are the Collections of Ceramics and Sculptures in a chronological order from the first Byzantine period to Ottoman and Venetian periods.

The Numismatic Collection follows with the presentation of all phases of the Cretan economical history from the early Christian period to the 20th century.


As for the Byzantine and Post-Byzantine Collection, you can see the progress of the painting and you can find out the coexistence of the local Orthodox population together with the Venetians and Ottoman rulers.


The apex of these exhibits are the superb paintings by El Greco (El Greco).


The Baptism of Christ (1567) and the View of Mount Sina and the Monastery of Sina (1570), which are the only works, of this acclaimed and globally renowned Greek artist, exhibited in Crete.

In the next rooms the modern and contemporary history of Crete is revived, which is divided into four stages. First is that of the Ottoman domination, second that of the period of revolutionary upheaval in the 19th century which resulted in the Union of Crete with Greece, third is that of the inter-war period and ends with that of the World War II with exhibits of the Greco-Italian War, of the Battle of Crete and the National Resistance.

Next to them are the halls of Nikos Kazantzakis with a representation of his office and the library of the home of this gifted writer in Antibes in France, enriched with publications of his books in several languages, giving a comprehensive picture of his life and work.

The tour in the history of Crete ends with the Ethnographic Collection showing the successive phases of human life and the major activities, of the space and the natural environment in which they live.

The Library of the Historical Museum of Crete is enriched with rare publications, magazines, archive of local newspapers, an important set of historical records and a valuable photograph set that are addressed not only to researchers but and to the general public.


OPENING HOURS
Historical Museum of Crete
Soph. Venizelou 27 & Summer Lysimachus 7
71202 Heraklion, Crete Tel.: 2810.283.219, 2810.288.708
Fax:  2810.283.754