Tegea Archaeological Museum received Special Commendations in EMYA 2016  organised by the European Museum Forum. The European Museum of the Year Award (EMYA), organised by the European Museum Forum (EMF), was presented at the 2016 Award Ceremony held in San Sebastian, Spain, in collaboration with TOPIC, Tolosa’s International Puppet Centre, on 9 April 2016.

Located in the heart of ancient Arcadia, the museum uses the rise of the polis, the city-state, as its central theme; it has placed the visitor at the centre of its thinking with integrated, state-of-the-art electronics, offering a coherent interpretive strategy and a clearly structured narrative.

The museum was included in a list of candidates posted on the website of the European Museum Forum (EMF), which organizes the competition. The Tegea Archaeological Museum’s dossier was put together in spring 2015 and submitted to the EMF with the support of the Stasinopoulos-Viohalco Public Benefit Foundation. The museum is situated in the traditional settlement of Alea in Tripoli, Peloponnese, and was one of the first public museums of the independent Greek state, founded in 1907. Recently, it has been extensively renovated using EU funds, with improvements to both the building and the exhibition, and reopened in 2014.

Established in 1977 under the auspices of the Council of Europe, the EMYA is awarded annually with the aim of encouraging the best practices and innovative actions by museums in Europe.