The Asklepieio Natural History Museum

Greek Natural History Museum in Ligourio

Situated in Ligourio, Argolida, only 5 km from the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus, the Asklepieio Natural History Museum (Kotsiomitis) is recognized as one of Europe’s leading scientific collections. Established in 1993 by Vasileios Kotsiomitis and Anastasia Sarri-Kotsiomiti, this non-profit organization functions in a 250 m² space offered by the Municipality of Asklepieio, working in partnership with esteemed Greek universities and the Institute of Geology and Mineral Exploration (I.G.M.E.). The museum showcases about 6,000 artifacts from an extensive 22,000-piece collection, including fossils that are between 3 million and 530 million years old. Notable features consist of uncommon hand-crafted geological maps, a variety of mineral crystals such as malachite and quartz originating mainly from the Lavrio region, and a one-of-a-kind "palaeontological monument" containing ammonite fauna found locally. In addition to its tangible items—such as trilobites, petrified trees, and stone tools—the museum functions as an essential educational center, employing maps and visuals to depict the development of life and the geological structure of the Earth