ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM

The archaeological museum contains a large part of the exceptional finds found in the soils and seas of Kalymnos: thanks to the tradition of sponge divers, many antiquities were indeed discovered in the waters. Located in part in the impressive patrician house of the Vouvalis family, the museum offers an insight into the millenary history of Kalymnos.

The beautiful villa was built on the heights of Pothea at the end of the 19th century, at the height of the island's wealth. Some rooms are still being visited, left as they were or renovated since the death of the last owner. Photographic archives and period furniture provide a better understanding of the bourgeois way of life at the turn of the century, before the sponge trade collapsed.

In the contemporary wing, the museum houses a magnificent archaeological collection, dating back to the Hellenistic, classical and even archaic periods (from the 7th BC to the 1st century AD). The most important room, by the volume of the finds, concerns the site of the sanctuary of Apollo, which was the political and religious centre of the ancient Kalymnos. There are marble statues, including the remains of a large sculpture of the healer god, Asclepius. Among the most precious finds is the Lady of Kalymnos, a magnificent bronze statue of a woman draped in her chiton, in perfect condition. Dating from the 4th century BC, it was discovered by a local fisherman in the 1990s.