This is one of the world's great museums, ranking alongside the British Museum in London and the Louvre in Paris .

You should allow at least half a day, or two visits, if you hope to explore fully the largest collection of Greek art in the world. Highlights include the beautiful frescoes from houses on Thíra (Santorini), which were contemporaneous with the Cretan Minoan civilisation before being engulfed in the island's massive earthquake. Elsewhere are the treasures from Mycenae, including the gold mask which caused archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann to declare, 'I have gazed upon the face of Agamemnon'. More recent experts have thrown great doubt upon Schliemann's impulsive and bold claim. Many of the statues in the museum will be familiar, including a magnificent figure of a powerful Poseidon about to throw his trident, while on a more delicate scale the 'Jockey-boy' of Artemission shows a young boy encouraging his horse with great urgency and grace.