They say that the history of a city is written in its buildings. The buildings are the witnesses of the events that took place in the history of a city. There are buildings in our city that we pass every day, that have stood there forever and that are part of our daily lives. Have we ever thought about their stories? Who built them and lived in them? In this article, we will present 7 (+1) emblematic buildings of Athens, the stories of which few of us know.
Villa Ilissia / Byzantine and Christian Museum
The Byzantine and Christian Museum is housed in Villa Ilissia. The villa is one of the most beautiful buildings created in Athens during the first years of its historical journey as the capital of the newly formed Greek state. It was one of the six buildings ordered to the architect Stamatis Kleanthis by Sophie de Marbois-Lebrun, Duchess of Placentia/Plaisance. The Duchess, a great admirer of the ancient Greek civilisation and the Greek Revolution, decided in 1837 to settle permanently in Athens after the unfortunate death of her daughter. The construction of Villa Ilissia began in 1840, just outside the city limits, a short distance from the Royal Palaces (the current Parliament), which had begun to be built in 1836.
Villa Ilissia was located between the banks of the river Ilissos, which today is covered, in order to be used as the winter residence of the duchess, and it is actually a complex of buildings. The main building, the residence of the Duchess, lined externally with marble, consists of two floors and a basement. It is a building that is distinguished for its simplicity and strict symmetry. The construction of Villa Ilissia was completed in 1848. It was inhabited by the Duchess until her death in 1854. Later the complex came to the Greek state, housing for three years the military school and then other military authorities. In 1926 Villa Ilissia was granted to house the Byzantine and Christian museums. (Vasilissis Sofias 22, Syntagma)
Psychas Mansion / Italian Embassy
The Mansion of Psychas, which now houses the Italian Embassy, ranks among the most beautiful urban mansions in Athens. Builders began constructing these grand residences in the mid-1870s, opposite the Royal Palaces. Stefanos Psychas, a wealthy banker, commissioned the famous German architect Ernst Ziller to design this particular mansion around 1885 as his private residence. In 1902, Greek Prince Nicholas (1872–1938), the third son of King George I, moved into the mansion after marrying Grand Duchess Elena Vladimirovna of Russia. The mansion then became known as the “Little Palace” (Petit Palais). After King Constantine’s resignation in 1922 and Prince Nicholas’s departure for Europe, the Psychas Mansion leased its premises to the Hotel Grande Bretagne, which operated them as a separate branch for an annual rent of £4,000.
The building then had a capacity of 60 beds, and in 1924 it accommodated 3,320 travellers. In 1933 it merged with Hotel Grande Bretagne. A few years later they sold it in order to house the Norwegian Embassy and, afterwards, the Italian Embassy. The mansion is a building of high aesthetics and belongs to the works of the mature architectural period of Ziller. The neoclassical porch of its entrance, a typical example of masterful design by the German architect, combines the Ionic order in the ground floor columns with the Corinthian order in the upper floor columns. (Vasillissis Sofias Avenue and Sekeri 2, Syntagma)
Pallis Mansion / Public Store
The Pallis Mansion at the corner of Syntagma Square was built around 1910-1911 by the famous architect Anastasios Metaxas. At this location was the oldest house of the Pallis family, an early neoclassical building of the previous century. They demolished the old house to make way for the new luxury mansion. Filippos Palis, who commissioned the new house, was a doctor, son of Alexios Palis, a doctor and professor at the National University of Athens. When the Pallis family left the building, it housed the Ministry of Communications and, after World War II, the Omega Technical Schools. On October 18, 1944, from the balcony of the building, George Papandreou, Prime Minister of the Government of National Unity, delivered the speech of the liberation of Athens from the German occupation.
During the 1960s, the ground floor housed the “Dionysos” cafe, a sister establishment to Zonar’s. Well-known figures from Athens’ theatrical scene, including Avlonitis and Sakellarios, often visited the cafe because it stood near the famous Kyveli Theatre. By the 1990s, the building stood as the only surviving old mansion on the square, after developers had demolished the others in the name of modern urban development. The authorities then declared it a listed building. In recent years, the Ministry of Culture approved restoration work that returned the building to its former appearance. The project also introduced major interior changes to accommodate the needs of Public, the flagship Greek department store. (Karageorgi Servias 1, Syntagma)
Serpieris Mansion / Former ATE Bank Main Branch
The Mansion of Serpieris is one of the few surviving mansions in Athens from the end of the 19th century. The building was completed in 1884. It was the residence of the Italian businessman Ioannis Baptistis Serpieris (Greek name of Giovanni Battista Serpieri). The Italian mining businessman Serpieris was born in Rimini, Italy, in 1832 and died in 1897 in Athens. His arrival in Athens relates to the concession to him by the Greek state of the exploitation of Lavrio Mines. His company began its operations in Lavrio in 1864. During his management, he was often accused of horrific working conditions, which led to frequent accidents and illness of employees.
In 1875 he decided to build a private residence in Athens. He had to find a plot of land that corresponded to his economic and social status. Therefore, he chose the area opposite the Academy of Athens, which at that time was a series of plots where marblers and stonemasons worked. The mansion was designed to accommodate more than one use. It was not just to be the residence of a great businessman. It was also a place of large gatherings and a means of social promotion. In 1929, ATE Bank purchased the mansion in order to become its main branch. Today the building is empty and there are rumours that it is going to be transformed into a hotel. (Panepistimiou 23, Omonoia)
Kakourgodikeio / BIAA
The Kakourgodikeio building stands in the heart of bustling Psyri. In the capital of the newly established Greek state, a shortage of public buildings led the authorities to use several Byzantine and later churches for public services. The small church of Agia Eleousa in Psyri followed the same path. Builders erected the church on the site of an ancient altar during the Turkish occupation. The family of Prokopios Makris, the English consul in Athens, owned the church. Makris gained a place in history as the father of the beautiful “Daughter of Athens”, Theresia, or Teresa Makri. In 1810, the Philhellene Lord Byron stayed at the Makris family’s two-storey mansion on Agias Theklas Street. He fell deeply in love with the 13-year-old Teresa and dedicated his famous poem to her.
During the reign of King Otto, the Danish architect Christian Hansen transformed the church into a criminal courthouse. He chose to preserve the church’s sanctuary, which remains intact to this day. He built a two-storey building in the neoclassical style, without unnecessary ornamentation. During the 20th century, the building served various purposes and stood abandoned for long periods. Finally, in the 1950s, the authorities granted the building to the Holy Archdiocese of Athens, which now houses its library. (Agias Eleousas 4, Psyrri)
Church Tower
The Tower / Residence Church is an 18th-century Ottoman building – the only one surviving of its kind in Athens – that belonged to Sir Richard Church, an Irish general and ardent philhellene. This idiosyncratic house in Athens, which survived the Turkish occupation in Plaka was originally owned by the English historian of the Greek Revolution of 1821, George Finlay. The house gives the impression of a tower with its quirky chimney and small windows, features of its Ottoman origin, and was a peculiar sight in its time, surrounded by the humble houses of the other Athenians.
The Church Tower originally served as a garrison, known as a “karakoli” in Turkish, and housed a Turkish police outpost. After the Greek Revolution, workers repaired the building. Sir Richard Church came to Athens in early 1827 after the fall of Messolonghi to support the Greek Revolution. The Third National Assembly of Troizina elected him “commander-in-chief and director of the land forces of Greece” and sent him to Faliro to assist Karaiskakis. When Kapodistrias arrived, Church became the leader of Western Greece. After the election of Otto as King of Greece, Church joined the Council of State and later became a senator following the Revolution of 3 September. Today, the Greek State protects the building, but it looks neglected and covered in graffiti. (Scholiou 5, Plaka)
Archontiko Mpenizelon
The historic building named Archontiko Mpenizelon is located in the most crowded street of Plaka. It is a typical example of urban architecture of pre-revolutionary Athens (15th-16th centuries) and the ancestral house of Agia Filothei of Athens. The building is also the oldest surviving house in Athens. It is a two-storey construction with a loggia (“chagiati” in Greek), according to the standards of the post-Byzantine house, with a well in its front yard, while in the back yard it had an olive mill and a press, which survive to this day.
The house belonged to the aristocratic family of the Athenian lord Angelos Mpenizelos, who came from a Byzantine noble house. Angelos Mpenizelos was the father of Regoula or Rigoula Mpenizelou, the later nun and Agia (Saint) Filothei of Athens. The Christian and humanitarian work of the nun Filothei caused the wrath of the Turks, who, on the night of October 2, 1588, arrested and tortured her. She finally died of her many wounds on February 19, 1589. Today her relic is kept in the Metropolitan Church of Athens. The house was declared a protected monument and was restored with the care of the Holy Archdiocese of Athens under the supervision of the Ministry of Culture. Today it is open to the public on certain days (visit the official website for more information). (Andrianou 96, Plaka)
Kokovikos Residence
Finally, let’s take a brief look at a building in Plaka that may not match the historical or cultural importance of the sites mentioned above, but almost every Greek family knows it as the Kokovikos Residence from the classic Greek film Let the Wife Fear Her Husband (Η δε γυνή να φοβήται τον άντρα), which filmed here in 1965. The house at 32 Tripodon Street dates back to around 1800 and once housed the Turkish military administration. Archaeologists also discovered the base of a sponsored ancient monument on the plot.
I’m sure most of you who live in the city already know these buildings, so the next time you pass in front of them (you could see here a map with all the locations), be sure to take a closer look and remember their history.
In the category of our website “Athens” you could find more suggestions for your visit to the city
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