The Archaeological Museum, located in the heart of Nicosia, is the oldest and largest museum in Cyprus. It stores all of the most valuable archaeological finds that have been discovered on the island.

The institution was founded in 1882 during the British rule in Cyprus at the initiative of the inhabitants of the island. The reason that prompted Cypriots to unite and file a petition requesting the creation of the museum, started several instances of illegal excavation, resulting in values ​​that have been found there, were taken abroad. For example, about 35,000 antiquities were sent to museums in Britain and the United States after the excavated American archaeologist Luigi Palma di Chesnola. Moreover, a significant portion of found items has been damaged in transit.

The museum was created with private funds and residents initially did not even have its own premises. And only in 1908, construction began on the building where the museum's collection is at the moment.

First official excavations were carried out only by European (mainly British) scientists. It was then, in the period from 1880 to 1931, was collected the bulk of the museum. But after gaining the independence of Cyprus in 1960 and revitalized the local archaeologists, who also put a lot of effort for the collection of the institution.

In total, the museum has 14 exhibition halls where you can see the ceramic, glass and stone products - statues and figurines, dishes and vases, tools, coins and ornaments, arranged in chronological order. These rooms are located around the main central room where there are satellite offices, a library and a laboratory.