TEGEA ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM
Dedicated to the ancient city of Tegea and its temple, once the largest in the Peloponnese. A particularly meticulous presentation.
This small museum (Αρχαιολογικό Μουσείο Τεγέας/Archaiologikos Mousio) is located in the village of Tegea, also known as Alea (population approx. 140). Founded in 1909, it is dedicated to the city of Tegea, which was the most powerful in Arcadia during antiquity. The museum is beautifully presented and houses a remarkable collection of works by the sculptor and architect Scopas of Paros. Around 350-330 BC, he and his team erected here the temple of Athena Alea, one of the most prestigious monuments of ancient Greece. Room 4 is dedicated to them: the head of Heracles, bearded and covered with a lion's skin, the portrait of Telèphe, legendary king of Tegea and son of Heracles, wearing a warrior's helmet, the splendidly draped body of Niké (divinity of Victory), plant motifs, a lion's head gutter... Scopas' most famous sculpture in Tegea, however, is to be found in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens: a ravishing head of Hygie, goddess of Health. Among the three other rooms, note the terrifying "Gorgon of Alea" (c. 600 BC). The museum ticket gives access to the archaeological site: 250 m to the north lie sections of the three rows of columns of the temple of Athena Alea, which was the largest (49 x 21 m) and highest (17 m) in the Peloponnese. The tour continues in a wooded area, 2 km to the northeast, with the ancient remains of Tegea (Hellenistic agora, Roman theater...), the ruins of medieval ramparts and a beautiful 15th-century church.
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