Chios · Museums
Where the island keeps its treasures, from ancient sculpture to the objects of everyday village life.
Essential
Near Pyrgi, in the mastic groves
A modern museum of the Piraeus Bank Group Cultural Foundation, telling the story of mastic from the tree to the factory, with paths among the lentisk trees outside.
Must see: The old processing machines and the view over the groves
Chios Town
Finds from the Neolithic to Roman times, from the Bronze Age harbour of Emporios to the archaic sanctuaries of the island, with fine sculpture and pottery.
Must see: The archaic korai and the finds from Emporios
More to explore
Chios Town, Vounaki square
Byzantine and post-Byzantine sculpture, frescoes and icons, housed in the 19th-century Mecidiye mosque on the main square of town.
Must see: The detached frescoes from village churches
Chios Town
One of the largest libraries in Greece, founded in 1792 and named after the scholar Adamantios Korais, with the Argenti collection of costumes, portraits and copies of Delacroix's painting of the massacre upstairs.
Must see: The costumes of the villages and the family portraits
Olympi, near Mesta
Not a museum but a sight to match one: a cave of stalactites discovered in 1985 in the hills of the south, opened to visitors with walkways. Visits are guided; check opening times before you go.
Must see: The great stalactites of the main chamber
Opening hours change seasonally. Check with each museum before visiting.