Musée d'Archéologie Méditerranéenne

The Musée d'Archéologie Méditerranéenne occupies wings of the Vieille Charité, at 2 Rue de la Charité in the Panier district of Marseille's 2nd arrondissement, in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of France. The collection concentrates on the ancient civilisations of the Mediterranean, with a particular strength in Egyptian antiquities, alongside Greek, Etruscan, Roman and Cypriot material. The Egyptian collection is among the most important in France outside Paris, and includes coffins, funerary figures, stelae and mummies, together with objects from daily life that illustrate burial practice and belief. The Greek and Etruscan displays include painted pottery, bronzes and terracottas, and there are Roman and regional objects that connect the Mediterranean world to the history of ancient Massalia and southern Gaul. The museum is housed in the buildings designed by Pierre Puget from 1671 as a hospice, and the long galleries around the arcaded courtyard give a calm setting for a collection of small and medium-sized objects. The curatorial approach is by civilisation and period, with cases grouped by culture and supported by labels and maps. The collection has been built up over the 19th and 20th centuries through acquisitions, donations and excavations, and it was reorganised after the restoration of the Vieille Charité in the 1980s. The condition of the displays is good, with climate control and modern lighting for fragile pieces such as painted coffins. Visitors can see the permanent collection for free according to the city, while temporary exhibitions in the same complex cost between about EUR 3 and 12. The museum is open from Tuesday to Sunday and closed on Mondays. Because it shares the site with the MAAOA, the chapel and the courtyard, it fits into a wider visit to the Vieille Charité. It is a manageable museum, suitable for a visit of one to two hours.