Glass walls and floors a hit in New Acropolis Museum

The use of glass in Athens' New Acropolis Museum has been praised in a review of the new building.

The museum might have been due to open around the time of the Athens Olympics in 2004, Nikki MacDonald reports in Stuff magazine, but the delay has seemingly been worth the wait.

Much of structure's impact is down to the extraordinary use of glass both as a medium to let in light and expose the underground areas, which also offer an insight into the last.

In order to shield museum visitors from the ancient ruins the museum is built on, a glass floor - as opposed to the roof lights seen in many buildings - has been constructed over a great deal of the site.

While this has the desired effect of acting as a protective layer, it also means that the public can view the excavations which took place over a seven-year period.

A wall has also been made of glass as part of an attempt to use natural light to illuminate the exhibits as much as possible, with automatic blinds being employed to protect the items on display from damage if the light becomes too intense.

When complete, the New Acropolis Museum will house artefacts relating to the Acropolis Hill in Greece's capital city.