How Greece Built a €130M Museum That Touches Only 1.7% of the Ground Under It

The Acropolis Museum in Athens covers fourteen thousand square metres and stands on more than a hundred concrete columns, because the ground it was given already had an ancient city on it. Everything the building rests on every column base added together — was limited to one point seven per cent of the excavated area, so the column grid could not be regular: each one had to land in a gap between two ancient walls. The columns run down to bedrock and carry sliding bearings of steel and PTFE, which let the building stay still while the ground moves in an earthquake. The ground floor is glass, so visitors walk directly above the excavation. The top gallery is turned twenty-three degrees to line up with the Parthenon, and roughly half its frieze is bright white plaster where the originals are in London. It cost one hundred and thirty million euros and opened in June two thousand and nine. #Greece #Athens #Engineering #Architecture #Archaeology #Documentary DISCLAIMER _______________ This is not engineering advice. Everything here is for informational and entertainment purposes only. Contact an engineer licensed to practice in your area if you need professional advice or services. All non-licensed clips used for fair use commentary, criticism, and educational purposes.