The Archaeological Museum of Samothrace is located in the Paleopolis of Samothrace and houses local finds, most of which come from the American excavations, as well as from traditions made by the inhabitants of the island. Since 1938, the Foundation for Archaeological Research of New York University, began excavations at the archaeological site, since during the 19th century it was occupied by French and Austrian poachers and antiquarians. The museum mainly exhibits findings from the excavations at the Sanctuary of the Great Gods, which are presented in four rooms.
In the central hall, there are architectural restorations from the main buildings of the Sanctuary, such as the thrigos of the Court of the Altar of the Sanctuary and the Dome of Arsinoe II, which are decorated with bulls and rosettes. Also parts of the superstructure of the Hall of Vows, a marble inscription that forbade the entry of the uninitiated into the sanctuary of the Palace (Amyiton mi isienai). In the second room there are parts of the relief marble frieze of the Temple of the Propyla (dated around 340 BC) with the dancers, who according to Ciriaco d'Ancona were Muses, the bust of the seer Teiresias, a full-length but headless figure perhaps of Persephone and others
In the third room the visitor sees a bench with marble supports which come from the Holy House. At the back of the third hall is exposed a headless statue of Nike, which was the rear corner cape of the Sanctuary. It was a tribute to Demetrius the Besieger after his victory in Cyprus and was placed on the bow of a ship with open wings trumpeting the victory. The statue is made of Pario marble and is 2.75 meters tall. In the showcases of the third room, where metal objects are exhibited, a Persian pin in the form of a lion stands out.
In the fourth room are exhibited finds from the Necropolis and a cast of the Victory of Samothrace, which is currently in the Louvre Museum. In 1863, when the French Consul in Adrianople C. Champoiseau, discovered and transported to Paris the headless statue of the "Victory of Samothrace". Also in this room in a showcase are most of the precious jewels and silver coins found during the excavation of the Necropolis, among them silver and gold earrings, buckles, rings, gold necklaces, gold wreaths, etc. dating from the end of the 6th c. BC until the time of August. The archaeological museum is open to the public every day, except Mondays, from 08:30 to 15:00.
Editor: Fotini Anastasopoulou
