ABSTRACT
This chapter sheds light upon the relationship between the legal framework of antiquities in Greece and the processes of the formation of national identity and of the Modern Greek state. In order to preserve and protect antiquities, the first museum was founded in 1829 in Aegina, by a resolution of the Governor Capodistrias. Named the National Museum, it was intended to house the 'precious relics of antiquity which the classical earth of Greece covers and to bring common benefit and glory to the nation'. In 1834, at the time of the Regency the first national archaeological legislation was introduced, which was pioneering for its time. It is evident that in Greece the special approach to and legal treatment of antiquities, as compared with other cultural legacies can be traced back to the 19th century and the central role of the ancient monuments in the formation of national identity and of the Greek state, in conjunction with their renown in Europe.
