The Getty Villa entryway into the museum is striking.
The Palace of Nestor was described in Homer’s Odyssey and Iliad as Nestor’s kingdom of “sandy Pylos.” The structure is one of the best-preserved Mycenaean Greek palaces discovered – a two-story building with workshops, baths, receptions rooms and a sewage system. It was destroyed by fire in 1250 BC.
Ironically, a new exhibit, The Kingdom of Pylos: Warrior-Princes of Ancient Greece, featuring artifacts from the Palace of Nestor, opened June 27 at the Getty Villa and will be on display through January 12, 2026.
The Palisades Fire destroyed nearly 7,000 buildings in January 2025, but the Getty Villa survived.
During the Fire, Getty employees were sent home, and the heavy museum doors were shut, preventing smoke and ash from entering.
According to an LAist February story (17 Employees Helped Save the Getty Villa from the Fires. They’re Telling Other Museums How It Was Done”), the 17 who stayed watched security camera feeds as the fire approached the museum and then would go out in teams of two, wearing N95 masks and goggles, and put out spot fires with fire extinguishers.
In a January 7 statement, the Getty noted “Some trees and vegetation on site have burned, but no structures are on fire and staff and the collection remain safe.”
After being closed nearly six months, the museum reopened on June 27. But Villa Docent and Palisades resident Ricardo Gallo has noticed visitors have been slow to return.
Gallo, who volunteers every Wednesday morning and has for the past 11 years, assists visitors and answers questions, by his usual location at elevator five.
He asked if this editor had seen the new exhibit and when he found out I had not, said this was the first time these objects were seen outside of Europe and recommended it.
Standing at the upper level of the Villa, on a lovely sunny morning, it was hard to tell there had been a fire. Gallo pointed out some trees facing the ocean had burned but it wasn’t noticeable because the views of the ocean were striking.
From the top of the ramp to access the Villa, one can now see the ocean.
In the galley where the exhibit his housed, this editor had entire rooms to herself to leisurely enjoy the artifacts. The crowds have not yet returned.
Gallo was right, even if one is not familiar with Messenia, an epicenter of the Mycenaean civilization, the exhibit was fascinating.
A complex of four buildings, the ancient Palace of Nestor consisted of 105 ground-floor rooms serving ceremonial, commercial and residential functions. There was a three-minute virtual tour of the palace and a floor plan, goldwork, sealstones, weapons and wall paintings.
The next room featured finds from the undisturbed burial of a Mycenaean warrior, called the “griffin warrior.” The tomb was discovered in 2015 by the University of Cincinnati researchers and artifacts were part of the exhibit. Some of the items included gold rings, bronze weapons and artifacts that included a nocturnal owl and butterflies – which are thought to represent the soul.
If a resident has not been to the Getty since the fire, this exhibit is worth the trip. Admission is free but requires a timed-entry reservation. Parking is $25 per car or motorcycle; $15 after 3 p.m. click here.
The museum, located at 17985 Pacific Coast Highway, is open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Closed on Tuesdays). There is a café that opens at 11 a.m. and a coffee kiosk.
Reservations are required for Garden Tea, served Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 1 to 3 p.m. (The Garden Tea was inspired by the Getty Villa’s authentically recreated first-century Roman gardens—and by visitors’ fond memories of the beloved Tea Room, which closed in 1997.)
UPCOMING: Thursday through Saturday, September 4 to 27, Oedipus the King Mama! will be presented at the Villa at 8 p.m. The presentation is described as “The maternal musical mash-up of Sophocles’s Oedipus the King with the music of the King of Rock & Roll, Elvis Presley!
“ARE YOU LONESOME TONIGHT? Then come see the only LA theater company older than the Getty antiquities—the Troubies! They’re celebrating 30 years of entertaining audiences with Sophocles’s ancient tragedy of incest and patricide. What could be more hilarious?!” click here.
Thank you for the lovely review of the Getty Villa re-opening. For several years (with two years off), I’ve led K-12 student tours through the premises (although never in the special exhibits). We’ll be hosting the schools that were canceled due to the fire first. Eventually, all schools that signed up will be welcomed. The grounds look lovely, and the weather is welcoming.