The Museum as research
Organization
Organizing Secretary
Organized by Scuola Normale Superiore, in collaboration with the Italian Archaeological School at Athens, the school is funded by the PNRR through the MERITA, the network for talent project*.
Date: 26 - 31 May 2026
Location: Italian Archaeological School at Athens
Total hours: 48
Max participants: 15
Language: English and Italian
Application deadline: 21 February 2026
Target audience: specialization students, PhD candidates, young researchers
The School aims to offer direct field experience with Greek museums, in which the critical observation of museums and their installations becomes an opportunity for enhanced dialogue between archaeology, history, art history, architecture, and the sciences of communication. In recent decades, Greece has become a laboratory for museographic reflection and experimentation of great interest to the international scientific community. From the foundation of the first archaeological museums in the 19th century - instruments for constructing the historical consciousness of the new State - up to the most recent experiences of architectural and curatorial renewal, the Greek museum landscape reflects a continuous tension between conservation, communication, and public participation.
The initiative stems from the collaboration between the Italian Archaeological School at Athens and the Scuola Normale Superiore, with the aim of fostering integrated training that combines the study of materials with the analysis of practices for the exhibition, narration, and valorisation of cultural heritage. The Greek experience, articulated between Athens, Attica, Euboea, and Boeotia, will allow participants to follow the evolution of the very concept of the museum: from the 19th-century institution, conceived as a “temple for antiquities”, to contemporary museums, conceived as spaces for shared knowledge, dialogue, and cultural experimentation, capable of narrating the past and stimulating new forms of understanding of heritage.
Applicants must submit an application using the form no later than February 21, 2026 and attach a motivational letter (300-500 words long) and a short biographical note outlining the study interest.
Every day consists of approximately 8 hours of lectures and/or visits (9:00-13:00, 15:00-19:00), with 2-hour lunch breaks.
Day 1. Athens. Acropolis Museum of Athens; inaugural keynote lectures.
Day 2. Athens. Museum of Cycladic Art; National Archaeological Museum of Athens.
Day 3. Attica. Archaeological Museum of Vravrona; Archaeological Museum of Marathon.
Day 4. Euboea. Archaeological Museum of Chalkida “Arethousa”; Archaeological Museum of Eretria.
Day 5. Thebes. Archaeological Museum of Thebes; roundtable at the Italian Archaeological School at Athens.
Day 6. Presentation of the group projects by the Summer School participants. The participants, divided into study groups, are encouraged to present project proposals, either in Italian or in English, on the themes of the Summer School.
Participation in the School does not entail enrollment fees.
Admission to the School includes participation in all lectures and museum visits, four lunches, one social dinner, accommodation in single or double rooms at partner facilities, and transportation for visits outside of Athens (museums in Attica, Euboea, and Thebes).
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