The Hellenic Museum (Greek: Ελληνικό Μουσείο Μελβούρνης) is an art and history museum in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Victoria, Australia promoting Hellenic culture, both ancient and contemporary, through programs, exhibitions and events. The museum also covers the

Greek community of Melbourne Greeks of Melbourne (Greek language, Greek: Έλληνες της Μελβούρνης) compose one of the largest Greek diaspora communities in the world and Melbourne hosts the largest Greek-speaking population outside of Greece and Cypru ...

and Australia.

History

The museum was founded in 2007 by businessman and philanthropist Spiros Stamoulis and is based in the

Melbourne City Centre The Melbourne central business district (colloquially known as "the City" or "the CBD", and gazetted simply as Melbourne) is the city centre of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. As of the 2021 census, the CBD had a population of 54,941, and is ...

district at the former Royal Mint building. The Hellenic Museum’s aim is to promote “the celebration, understanding, and preservation of the artistic and cultural heritage of ancient and modern Greece”. The museum’s current chairman, Harry Stamoulis, has continued his father’s pursuit of cultural partnerships and collaborations through philanthropy in the arts.

Collections

The Hellenic Museum hosts both temporary and permanent exhibitions and collections. Permanent collections and exhibitions include the photographic installation ''Oneiroi'' by Australian photographer

Bill Henson Bill Henson (born 7 October 1955) is an Australian contemporary art photographer. Art Henson has exhibited nationally and internationally in galleries such as the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, the Venice Biennale, the National ...

, the Mary and Peter Mitrakas Collection of Cypriot Antiquities, a collection of cast ancient Greek statues from the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and the Greek National Archaeological Museum, the Koumountatakis Family collection of pottery from Magna Grecia and Roman marbles, and a range of Byzantine icons. In 2013, the Hellenic Museum partnered with the

Benaki Museum The Benaki Museum, established and endowed in 1930 by Antonis Benakis in memory of his father Emmanuel Benakis, is housed in the Benakis family mansion in Athens, Greece. The museum houses Greek works of art from the prehistorical to the modern ...

in Greece to house a semi-permanent collection of antiquities in Melbourne, which commenced in 2014. Exhibitions at the Hellenic Museum generally focus around history, culture, education, the visual arts, film, music and architecture.

Building

The Hellenic Museum is housed in the former Royal Mint, located on the corner of William and Latrobe Streets in the Melbourne City Centre. In 1872 the building opened as a branch of the British Royal Mint; designed by architect J. J. Clark, it provides one of the few examples of the Renaissance Revival style in Australian buildings. The building the Hellenic Museum is located in served as the administrative building for offices alongside the living quarters for the Deputy Master, his family and domestic servants. The administrative building, alongside the gatehouses on either side of it, is the only remaining part of the original Mint complex. The Melbourne Mint officially closed in 1968, the machinery was sold and the operative departments demolished. The building is actively conserved and heritage listed.

References

{{Authority control Museums in Melbourne Buildings and structures in Melbourne City Centre Ethnic museums in Australia Greek-Australian culture in Melbourne Museums established in 2007 Australia–Greece relations 2007 establishments in Australia

History

Collections

Building

See also

References