Archaeological Museum of American University

The American University Archaeological Museum is the third oldest museum in the Middle East, after Cairo and Constantinople. It was opened in 1868, after Luigi Palma di Cesnola presented the newly formed American University with an ancient collection of Cypriot ceramics. The Archaeological Museum is located in one of the buildings of the American University of the capital of Lebanon - Beirut, on the Mediterranean coast.

Today, the museum is a unique overview of ancient historical monuments of the Middle East, from the early Stone Age to the Islamic period. Its exposition allows visitors to get acquainted with artifacts from 5,000 BC and including the present day. It features a unique collection of terracotta figurines, metal figurines, Phoenician pottery and glass, funerary reliefs from Palmyra, Egypt, Syria and Palestine, Byzantine mosaics and a collection of funerary sarcophagi.