Rhodes - Hospital of the Knights Archeological Museum

Diagonally opposite the former church of the Order of St John in Rhodes town is the massive Hospital of the Knights (15th C.; restored), now occupied by the Archeological Museum. From the inner courtyard, a staircase leads up to the Infirmary on the upper floor (small chapel in a recess opposite the entrance; gravestones of knights). A passage on the right leads to the rooms displaying finds from Ialysos, Kameiros and other sites, including two Archaic kouroi (sixth century B.C.) and, in the same room, the funerary stele of Krito and Tamariste (end of fifth century B.C.). In other rooms are a life-size figure of Aphrodite, an expressive Hellenistic head of Helios, and a small crouching figure of Aphrodite known as the Venus of Rhodes (first century B.C.). Also of interest is the rich collection of vases opening off the gallery round the courtyard, which covers all periods from Mycenaean times onwards and includes some particularly fine examples of Rhodian ware.