Acropolis Museum: Record Visitor Numbers and the Ongoing Fight for the Parthenon Sculptures

The Acropolis Museum consistently ranks among the world’s most popular museums, welcoming around 2 million visitors through its doors every year, according to figures for 2023–2025.

Visitor Records and a Strong Message

Between early 2023 and the end of 2024 alone, the Acropolis Museum attracted a remarkable 3,904,768 visitors. These figures, shared during a recent presentation of the Museum’s activities over the past two years, also highlighted key milestones from June 2024 to June 2025.

“The numbers are carefully managed,” emphasized the Museum’s Director General, Professor Nikolaos Stampolidis. Visitor flow is kept under control, avoiding the overcrowding problems faced by the Louvre — still the world’s most visited museum. Even during peak tourist season — May through August — daily attendance at the Acropolis Museum rarely exceeds 7,000 people on average, and when it nears 10,000, visitors are smoothly distributed throughout the Museum’s opening hours, from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

A Global Favorite

Since opening its doors in 2009, the Acropolis Museum has consistently featured on The Art Newspaper’s annual list of the world’s 100 most visited museums. In 2024, it ranked 33rd globally with 2,000,312 visitors.

View of the Archaic Acropolis Gallery from the second floor of the Acropolis Museum. Photo by Sofia Papastrati.

Although the first half of 2025 is still underway, early figures suggest that this year’s attendance will match or even surpass last year’s numbers, possibly topping 2 million once again.

![View of the Archaic Acropolis Gallery from the second floor of the Acropolis Museum, Photo: Sofia Papastrati]

The Acropolis Museum remains the only Greek museum — and one of the few in Southeastern Europe — included in this prestigious global list. More than just a top tourist attraction, it draws new audiences through a steady program of exhibitions and cultural events, as demonstrated by the success of the NoHMATA exhibition.

Beyond ticketed visitors, the Museum welcomed an additional 10,000 people last year for special events in the “Dimitrios Pantermalis” Auditorium, as well as musical performances in the Museum’s foyer and courtyard.

The Parthenon Sculptures: A Continuing Cause

With renewed attention on the Parthenon Sculptures following London’s Parthenon Project initiative — which included Greek First Lady Mareva Grabowski Mitsotaki — and reports of progress in talks between the Greek government and the British Museum, Professor Stampolidis outlined recent milestones in the ongoing negotiations. These include the successful return of the “Fagan fragment” from the A. Salinas Museum in June 2022, and Greece’s position at the 24th session of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to its Countries of Origin (ICPRCP) in May 2024.

“The Acropolis Museum is the guardian and showcase of the Acropolis and the Parthenon. For that reason, the sculptures must come home.”

He also highlighted key events from 2025, including a special gathering by the Acropolis Friends Association in January and the launch of British author and vocal Parthenon repatriation advocate Sir Stephen Fry’s new book, hosted by Greece’s Ministry of Tourism and the Greek National Tourism Organisation. Additionally, Scottish filmmaker David Wilkinson has produced a documentary on the Parthenon Sculptures, arguing passionately that their return is a matter of moral principle.

The Director-General of the Acropolis Museum, Professor Nikolaos Chr. Stampolidis, during a presentation on the reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures, at the “Dimitrios Pandermalis” Amphitheater, Acropolis Museum. Photo by Studio Panoulis.

Symbolism in a Fragmented World

Professor Stampolidis stressed:

“The Acropolis Museum is not just a museum — it is the home where the Acropolis and Parthenon artworks are protected and celebrated. That’s why the sculptures must return. In a fragmented world — just look around: divided societies, wars, pandemics, economic crises — this reunification stands as a symbolic act, a reminder of how nations and people should relate to one another and to our shared heritage.”

Exhibitions and Cultural Initiatives

A small but meaningful exhibition, The Parthenon and Byron, continues in the Museum’s ground-floor foyer, exploring the removal of the Parthenon’s architectural sculptures by Lord Elgin. Earlier this year, from March to April 2025, a digital version of this exhibition was also displayed on the first floor of Athens International Airport, reaching global travelers.

![Presentation titled "On Health: Tracing a Universal and Timeless Value," European Heritage Days 2024, Photo: Nikos Katsaros]

On June 25, 2024, the Museum officially opened the Excavation Museum, which uses 1,150 carefully chosen artifacts to vividly depict daily life in the ancient neighborhood beneath the site. The Antiquities Collection Department has since documented these items in the Museum’s Collection Management System (MuseumPlus), adding to the digital catalog’s existing 2,264 objects.

From October 18, 2024, to January 26, 2025, the Museum hosted Ancient Civilizations of Basilicata: Treasures Brought to Light, organized in collaboration with Italy’s Directorate General of Museums and the Basilicata Museum Network.

Presentation titled “On Health: Tracing a Universal and Timeless Value,” European Heritage Days 2024. Photo by Nikos Katsaros.

More recently, from May 13 to October 31, 2025, the Museum presents the first part of the trilogy Allspice | Michael Rakowitz & Ancient Cultures. This collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and the NEON Organization showcases works by internationally acclaimed contemporary artist Michael Rakowitz, juxtaposed with artifacts from ancient civilizations of the Middle East and Southeastern Mediterranean.

Visitor Numbers at a Glance

A Celebration of 16 Years

On Friday, June 20, 2025, the Acropolis Museum will celebrate its 16th anniversary. To mark the occasion, the Symphony Orchestra of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens’ Department of Music Studies will perform an open-air concert featuring classical works by Greek composers and beloved film scores, conducted by acclaimed Assistant Professor and internationally renowned maestro Zoe Zeniodi. The concert will begin at 9:00 p.m. in the Museum’s courtyard, with free admission for all visitors.