Athens is a city where history is everywhere. You can stand beneath the Acropolis, walk among ancient objects in museums, and admire masterpieces created thousands of years ago. But what if you could go one step further—not simply observing ancient Greek culture, but taking part in it?
At Ancient Symposium, art, mythology, wine, fragrance and storytelling come together in a hands-on cultural experience. It is a place for travellers who want to understand ancient Greece through their own senses, their own creativity and the objects they make themselves.
From Observer to Creator
A museum gives us the rare opportunity to stand in front of authentic objects from the ancient world. That encounter is invaluable: it inspires curiosity, admiration and new ideas. Yet museum objects must remain protected behind glass or at a respectful distance.
A hands-on experience offers something different and complementary. Instead of remaining a spectator, you touch the materials, follow a process, ask questions and create. What you learn becomes connected to a personal memory—and that is often what stays with you long after your trip has ended.
A Space That Tells Its Own Stories
Ancient Symposium is located in Kallithea, on Syngrou Avenue, the road connecting central Athens with the Athenian Riviera. Once visitors step inside, the pace of the city begins to fade. Sculptures, helmets, vessels, artworks and carefully chosen details surround them, each carrying a story.
The purpose is not to reproduce a museum. It is to create an environment where the visitor can listen, touch, make, taste and participate. The room itself becomes part of the experience, helping mythology, art and daily life in the ancient world feel immediate rather than distant.
Sculpt a Face Inspired by Hermes
Many guests begin the sculpture workshop with the same concern: “I have never worked with clay,” or “I am not artistic.” That is exactly why the workshop is taught step by step. No previous experience is required.
Rather than carving a face out of a solid block, participants learn how to build it in clay. Small additions, measurements and corrections gradually create volume, proportion and character. At first, unexpected expressions often make everyone laugh. Then, as the face begins to take shape, laughter gives way to concentration and a genuine sense of achievement.
Hermes is an especially meaningful subject. The famous statue known as Hermes and the Infant Dionysus, traditionally attributed to Praxiteles, is among the most admired works associated with ancient Greek sculpture. Hermes was also the protector of travellers—a fitting guide for visitors discovering Athens.
The most important lesson is not perfection. It is the discovery that creativity can appear where someone did not expect to find it. Guests leave with a work made by their own hands and, sometimes, with the desire to continue creating after returning home.
Discover the Scents of the Gods
Fragrance also had a place in the religious and everyday life of the ancient Greek world. At Ancient Symposium, this history becomes the inspiration for a modern, participatory perfume-making experience.
Each guest chooses an Olympian deity through a guide that brings together personality, symbolism and aromatic notes. Zeus may evoke confidence and leadership through deep, resinous and woody notes. Athena is connected with clarity, wisdom and calm. Poseidon suggests sea air, freshness and mystery.
The activity is inspired by ancient ingredients and perfume-making traditions while being designed as an accessible contemporary workshop. Guests take part in the selection, blending and preparation of their fragrance, then carry the small vessel home. It becomes more than a souvenir: it holds the memory of a place, a story and the deity they selected.
Wine, Philosophy and the Ancient Symposium
In ancient Greece, a symposium was not simply a drinking occasion. It could combine conversation, music, games, ideas and hospitality. Participants reclined on couches, shared wine and explored a chosen subject—love, virtue, beauty or another question—while each speaker was expected to contribute a fresh thought.
Wine was commonly mixed with water. Moderation allowed the gathering to remain social and thoughtful: Dionysian pleasure held in balance with Apollonian order. Drinking unmixed wine to excess was associated with a loss of self-control, while the symposium valued participation, wit and conversation.
The shape of the kylix, the broad ancient drinking cup, also changes the tasting experience. Its open form brings the face close to the wine, allowing aromas to become part of every sip. Used while reclining, its two handles made it both elegant and practical.
At Ancient Symposium, wine is presented through history, objects and atmosphere. Visitors learn how wine was made, stored, served and understood in its cultural setting. The experience is not a conventional tasting placed in an ancient-looking room; it is an invitation to see how wine, discussion and ritual belonged together.
Three Generations of Art in One Space
The story behind Ancient Symposium is also personal. Its host and teacher, Manos Roussis, first discovered modelling as a child, creating small figures from modelling clay while watching his father transform a simple piece of material into a face. That ability—to create something expressive from almost nothing—became the beginning of his own path.
Today, works by three generations of artists from the family can be found in the gallery. The connection is not only displayed on the walls and shelves; it is carried forward through teaching. The aim is to give each visitor the same spark: the feeling that a new creative path might be possible.
An Experience Open to Everyone
Couples, families, solo travellers, friends, schools and company groups may arrive with different expectations, but creativity and knowledge do not belong to one type of person. The experiences are designed for beginners and for people who simply want to try something meaningful during their time in Athens.
One especially moving participant joined the sculpture activity without fingers. Through determination, careful guidance and a willingness to experiment, he created his own distinctive face in clay. The experience became a powerful reminder that making art is not about fitting a conventional idea of who an artist should be.
Experience Ancient Greece—Do Not Simply Observe It
If you have already visited the Acropolis and Athens’ museums, Ancient Symposium offers a natural next step. Here, you can move from seeing to doing: shape clay, explore fragrance, taste wine through its cultural history and enter a conversation that began thousands of years ago.
You do not need artistic training or specialist knowledge. Bring curiosity. The rest unfolds through the materials, the stories and the experience itself.