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Plaka, the oldest neighborhood in Athens, sits just off the northern slopes of the Acropolis. It’s hard to imagine this was pretty much all of Athens back in the 18th and early 19th centuries – not much more than a village.
Introduction to Plaka
Plaka has a lot to offer for every taste. There are countless outdoor cafes and tavernas scattered around the area, historical sites, shopping, museums, interesting architecture, and churches. It’s the historic heartbeat of Athens.
The best way to see Plaka is to simply wander the streets. This is how I stumbled upon most of the places in this entry. You’ll also get to admire some impressive architecture along the way. Almost the entire neighborhood is full of attractive alleys, stairways, and small squares.
Monumental Hadrianic Building
First, walking down Adrianou from Monastiraki is the Monumental Hadrianic Building. The ruins at this small plot date back to the reign of Roman Emperor Hadrian, sometime between 117 and 138. The building was a three-aisled basilica estimated to be 85 meters long and 40 meters wide. It was built atop the remains of Late Hellenistic and Early Roman period ruins. It was discovered in 1968 and was believed to be either the Common Shrine of All Gods (Pantheon) or Panellenion.
During the 3rd century, the northern side of the building became part of a Late Roman fortification wall. A tower and gate were added during the reign of Byzantine Emperor Justinian in the middle of the 6th century. Part of the tower survives today as well as the remains of a 17th century post-Byzantine church, Panagia Krystalliotisa, in the basement of a neighboring building.
74th Primary School of Athens
Further along Adrianou past the Benizelos Mansion is the 74th Primary School of Athens. Despite its name, it was actually the first public school in the city. Dimitrios Kallifronas (1800-1897), the first elected mayor of Athens, founded the school in 1875, although land expropriations started taking place several years earlier in 1824. Several prominent politicians, scientists, actors, singers, and cultural icons attended the school, which operated for 130 years until the 2005-2006 school year.
Archdiocese of Athens
Taking a hard left down Agias Filotheis are the offices of the Archdiocese of Athens. The Greek Orthodox Archbishopric of Athens is the senior see of Greece.
The archdiocese was established by Paul the Apostle in 50 or 51 when he preached on the Areopagus and gained several followers. The first bishop was Dionysus the Areopagite. Today, the Archbishop of Athens and All Greece is the head of the autocephalous Church of Greece. The seat of the archbishop is the Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens.
Complex of the Archdiocese of Athens
The Archdiocese of Athens was built on the site of a monastery founded by Saint Philothei around 1550. Her family house, the Benizelos Mansion, was just around the corner. Around 1890, the Metropolitan of Athens, Germanos Kalligas (1844-1896), demolished the ruined buildings of the monastery and oversaw construction of the Archdiocese. The Metropolitan’s Residence was completed in November 1892 and the Synodal Palace in May 1894. The Synodal offices were relocated to the Petraki Monastery in Kolonaki in 1958.
Church of Saint Andrew
On the grounds of the Archdiocese of Athens is the Church of Saint Andrew. It was built between 1892 and 1893. The church measures 13 meters long by 11 meters wide.
Church of Agia Eirini
Also on the grounds of the Archdiocese of Athens is the small Church of Agia Eirini, also known as Rinaki of Plaka. It has a single aisle and measures just 5.45 meters long by 4.5 meters wide. The height is 4.15 meters high, and its foundations sit almost two meters below the current ground level. It can be seen around the corner on Navarchou Nikodimou.
The Church of Agia Eirini was built atop part of the ancient Roman bath. There have been several phases of construction, and the original building is difficult to date. The interior contains 7th century carvings as well as 12th and 13th century frescoes.
School Life and Education Museum
Past the Archdiocese of Athens is the School Life and Education Museum. It presents exhibits on the history of Greek education. The museum is open daily from Tuesday through Saturday and admission is 5€ (as of February 2023). I plan to visit on my next family trip to Athens.
Old Baths
On the block behind the Archdiocese of Athens, along Thoukididou, is an active archaeological site. It contains the remains of an old bath complex. It’s visible from the road and there’s no public access or information posted.
House of George Finlay
Detouring south a block down Thoukididou at the corner of Kekropos is the house of George Finlay (1799-1875). He was a Scottish historian and philhellene who in 1823 traveled to Greece to join the Greek Revolution, fighting alongside Lord Byron. He ended up spending the rest of his life in Athens.
The house was built sometime in the 1830s. Greek rebetiko singer Sotiria Bellou (1921-1997) and her band also lived there in 1972. A plaque on the house in Greek commemorates both residents.
Church of the Transfiguration
Another couple blocks south along Kidathineon is the Church of the Transfiguration of the Saviour. It was originally built at the beginning of the 11th century during the Byzantine period. The church was built by the Kottakis family, probably on the site of an older temple. Today, only the eastern side and the dome remain from that period.
During the Greek Revolution, the church was heavily damaged. It was repaired by the Russian community of Athens, who were granted use of the church from 1847 to 1855. Unfortunately, they also damaged some of the original features and altered its appearance. The current form of the Church of the Transfiguration dates to an extension completed in 1908, when it was converted to a three-aisled basilica with a vaulted roof. The two bell towers were added in 1917.
The Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior was originally dedicated to Soteira Panagia. The chapel on the right side is dedicated to Saint George, the left one to Saint Demetrios. Only one Byzantine fresco has survived, while the rest date to the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries. Half of the carved marble shield of the Byzantine iconostasis is located in the chapel of Saint George. Ancient columns are incorporated into the building as well. Outside is a 17th century marble fountain and some ancient architectural fragments. Saint Nicholas Planas (1851-1932) was ordained a deacon in this church on July 28, 1879.
Jonas King House
Back to the 74th Primary School of Athens, if you make a right down Flessa, you’ll see the Jonas King House at the next corner. Jonas King (1792-1869) was an American Protestant missionary who arrived in Greece in 1829. Within three years of his arrival, King had already established five schools and in 1835 began to instruct classes in theology. His goal was for his house to become his church, hence the architectural style.
As proselytization was and still is illegal in Greece, the authorities of the Greek Orthodox Church began to notice King’s efforts and grew increasingly concerned. By 1845, they asked the government to begin a criminal prosecution against him, and the press turned against him as well. King was taken to court several times, his life was threatened, and in 1847 he fled to Italy for a year. In 1851, he was named a US consular agent, but even that didn’t prevent his imprisonment and house arrest for 15 days in 1852. In 1874, five years after his death, a Greek Protestant church was finally built in Athens. King is buried in the First Cemetery of Athens.
Diogeneion
Around the corner at Kyrristou and Erechtheios is an open plot of land that’s an active archaeological site. It’s quite possible it was the site of the Diogeneion. The Diogeneion was a gymnasium named in honor of Diogenes Euergetes (d. 229 BC), the Macedonian garrison commander who freed Athens from foreign military occupation. It was built in the 3rd century BC and survived until the late 3rd century AD.
The Diogeneion was the center of ephebic (male adolescent) activities. It contained a sanctuary dedicated to the cult of Euergetes (doing good deeds). The Church of Agios Dimitrios Katiforis, which was demolished in the 19th century, once sat atop the site. Part of the post-Herulian wall is visible and is best seen from the back of the Benizelos Mansion.
Church of Agios Nikolaos Ragavas
Heading uphill off Tripodon down Prytaneiou towards Anafiotika is the Church of Agios Nikolaos Ragavas. It’s one of the most important historic churches in Athens. The church is typically open daily from 8am to noon and again from 5pm to 8pm.
History
Agios Nikolaos Ragavas is an 11th century Byzantine church built by the Ragavas family. It was originally a private family church within the family’s palace complex. The church was rebuilt in the 18th century following damage it sustained from a Venetian cannonball.
The church was restored and expanded in 1833, greatly changing its appearance. This included the addition of a bell tower. Today, it’s an important parish church for residents of Plaka and popular for weddings.
Let Freedom Ring!
During the Ottoman occupation, churches were forbidden to have bells. The bell of the Church of Agios Nikolaos Ragavas was kept hidden in the crypt. After the Ottomans surrendered the Acropolis at the beginning of the Greek Revolution in 1821, the Greek flag was raised and the church was the first in Athens to ring its bell.
On October 12, 1944, history repeated itself. The Church of Agios Nikolaos Ragavas was the first church in Athens to ring its bell signaling the city’s liberation from the Nazis. Therefore, it’s an important symbol of freedom for Athenians.
Architecture
The Church of Agios Nikolaos Ragavas includes pillars and other fragments of ancient structures embedded into its walls. The interior contains faded and damaged frescoes on the walls and ceiling. The beautiful iconostasis as well as the wooden pulpit and throne are other highlights.
Church of the Holy Unmercenaries
A bit further up the street is the Church of the Holy Unmercenaries Kolokynthis. The church, also known as Agioi Anargyroi, was built in 17th century by the Kolokynthi, a wealthy Athenian family, on the site of a temple dedicated to Aphrodite. It’s dedicated to Saints Cosmas and Damian and initially functioned as part of a Catholic monastery.
Since the 18th century, the church has been the property of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem. It functions as an Exarchate of the Holy Sepulchre.
The entrance to the complex is through a set of gates hidden next to a stairway off Prytaneiou Street. There’s a narrow alley leading to the church and a peaceful garden behind it.
The church itself is a vaulted single-aisled basilica with a cylindrical dome. The iconostasis is carved in wood and there are frescoes along the walls. There are also some important icons.
Every Easter, the Church of the Holy Unmercenaries is the first church in Greece to receive the Holy Light from Jerusalem, which is then distributed to other churches in Athens and throughout Greece. It’s a popular place for locals to celebrate the holiday.
Athens University History Museum
Continuing down Prytaneiou as it turns into Tholou is the home of Greek architect Stamatios Kleanthis (1802-1862). It was originally built during the Ottoman period but remodeled between 1831 and 1833 as the home and offices of Kleanthis and Prussian architect Eduard Schaubert (1804-1860). The building hosted the University of Athens from 1837 to 1841. Today, it’s occupied by the Athens University History Museum, which opened in 1987. It’s open Monday through Friday from 9am to 4pm and admission is 2€ (as of July 2023). It was closed each time I walked by.
Church of the Transfiguration
On the street above the Athens University History Museum, between Anafiotika and the Canellopoulos Museum, is the small Byzantine Church of the Transfiguration of the Savior. It was built sometime between the 11th and 14th centuries.
Museum of Modern Greek Culture: Man & Tools
At the west end of Tholou is a small building containing a branch of the Museum of Modern Greek Culture. This building features the Man & Tools exhibition. It’s open daily except Tuesdays and admission is 2€ (as of February 2024).
Man & Tools is a permanent exhibition that explores the relationship between tools and the people who produced or used them. The tools featured were common in towns and villages long before mass production.
The exhibition contains interactive elements and is full of photos, quotes, archives, and personal narratives. It takes visitors into the not too distant past, and may draw out memories of their own family history.
Choragic Monument of Lysicrates
On the south side of Plaka is the Choragic Monument of Lysicrates. It’s the only surviving example of a choragic monument in Athens. It sits at the convergence of Lisikratous, Vyronos, and Tripodon Streets.
Origin
The Dionysia festival was the second most important festival in Athens. It honored Dionysus and involved theatrical performances as well as choral and dance contests. The contests were prepared by a choregos, or patron. The festival was held at the Theatre of Dionysus on the south slope of the Acropolis.
During the 5th century BC, the winners of the choral and dramatic contests were awarded tripods. These tripods were placed along the Street of the Tripods on elaborate structures that looked like temples. In 335/334 BC, Lysicrates, a wealthy choregos, built the Choragic Monument of Lysicrates as a place to display the bronze tripod he was awarded during the Dionysia.
Architecture
The Choragic Monument of Lysicrates is a circular structure resting on a square podium four meters wide and three meters high. It consists of six Corinthian columns of Pentelic marble alternating with panels of Hymettian marble. An inscription on the monument reads:
Lysikrates son of Lysitheides of Kikynna was sponsor, Akamantis was victorious in the boys’ competition, Theon was pipe-player, Lysiades of Athens directed, Euainetos was archon.
A circular frieze around the top depicts scenes from the life of Dionysus. The roof was decorated with carved leaves that ended at an acanthus-shaped base which supported the tripod. It was the first ancient Greek monument built in the Corinthian order on its exterior.
French Monastery
In 1658, a French Capuchin monastery was built nearby. The monastery purchased the monument in 1669 and built a closed space around it. By the early 19th century, the monument was being used as the monastery’s library.
The famous English poet Lord Byron (1788-1824) stayed at the monastery from 1810 to 1811. Also, in 1818, Friar Francis planted the first tomato plants in Greece in the monastery garden. Unfortunately, the complex was completely destroyed by the Ottomans in 1824 during the Greek Revolution, leaving the Choragic Monument of Lysicrates exposed to the elements.
Restoration
In 1829, the monks offered the monument to an English traveler, but it was too cumbersome to disassemble and ship. Lord Elgin (1766-1841), who removed the sculptures from the Parthenon between 1801 and 1812, also tried to negotiate for the monument but was unsuccessful. The property was entrusted to the Legation of France in 1830.
In 1832, French architect Jules Goury (1803-1834) funded a restoration campaign for the monastery. In 1867, François Boulanger (1807-1875) cleaned the ruins of the monastery and searched the area for missing architectural parts of the monument. He also excavated the base. Édouard Loviot (1849-1921) restored the monument between 1876 and 1887 under the auspices of the French School of Athens.
Roman Stoa
A few steps away at the corner of Lisikratous and Galanou is a Roman stoa sitting below ground level. There’s no information listed at the site, but apparently the columns were part of a peristyle or atrium of a temple dedicated to Artemis. A Christian basilica was built atop the ruins of the temple.
Church of Saint Catherine
The Roman stoa sits next to the Church of Saint Catherine, which was built as the Church of Saint Theodore in the middle of the 11th century during the Byzantine period. It’s the oldest example of a domed cross-in-square church in Athens. The church was built on the site of the original Church of Saint Theodore, founded in the 5th century by Aelia Eudocia, the wife of Emperor Theodosius II. Before that, the site contained an ancient temple dedicated to Artemis.
The church was dedicated to Saint Theodore until 1767, when it became property of the Monastery of Saint Catherine at the foot of Mount Sinai in Egypt. All priests who came from Sinai to Athens stayed there, and it’s believed they planted the palm trees around the church. The church was damaged during the Greek Revolution and repaired in 1839, slightly altering its appearance. Other renovations took place in 1882 and 1927. The frescoes were painted at the end of the 19th century and the narthex was added in the middle of the 20th century. The altar of rests on a part of an ancient column with inscriptions.
The Church of Saint Catherine houses the relics of Saint Polydoros of Cyprus, Saint Athanasios of Persia, and Saint Tryphon. They were brought there by Father Cyrilos Psylas, a priest who arrived as a refugee from Ephesus in 1922.
Bust of Melina Mercouri
Walking down Lisikratous towards Hadrian’s Arch, there’s a small open space just in front of Queen Amalia Avenue. In a small patch of plants and trees is a bust of Melina Mercouri (1920-1994), a beloved Greek actress, singer, activist, and politician.
Mercouri starred in the 1960 film Never on Sunday, was a member of Hellenic Parliament, and in 1981 became the first female Minister of Culture and Sports. She tirelessly campaigned for the return of the Parthenon Marbles from the British Museum in London. The bust is technically in the Makrygianni neighborhood.
Melina Mercouri Foundation
Continuing on the theme of Mercouri, on the far west side of Plaka is the Melina Mercouri Foundation. It was founded by Mercouri’s husband, American filmmaker Jules Dassin (1911-2008), to carry on her campaign for the return of the Parthenon Marbles and other work she was passionate about. An exhibition area is located in the building but it was closed each time I walked by.
Ioannis Kolettis Mansion
A block west is the mansion of Ioannis Kolettis (c. 1773-1847). It’s one of the most beautiful Neoclassical buildings in Athens. Kolettis was the first Prime Minister of Greece from 1834 to 1835 and served another term from 1844 to 1847. He conceived the Megali Idea, which eventually led to the Asia Minor Catastrophe in 1922, and also ordered the capture and assassination Odysseas Androutsos (1788-1825), a hero of the Greek Revolution.
The mansion, located at 13 Polygnotou Street and facing the Ancient Agora of Athens, was originally owned by Dr. Konstantinos Zografou (1796-1851). The prominent feature is the statue sitting in a niche on the 2nd floor of the façade. The building closed to the public and was undergoing restoration during my last few visits to Athens. There were plans to convert it to a museum honoring Alexandria-born Greek poet Constantine Cavafy (1863-1933), but it has yet to come to fruition.
Church of Saint Paraskevi
A block south of the Mercouri Foundation is the Church of Saint Paraskevi. It belongs to Greek Old Calendarists, who are not in communion with most other Orthodox Churches. They disagree with the use of the Revised Julian calendar and continue to use the Julian calendar.
Foundations of the Small Mosque
Finally, in a square just south of the Roman Agora are the foundations of the Small Mosque (Μικρό Τζαμί / Küçük Cami), also known as the Hacı Ali Mosque (Hacı Ali Camii). It was first mentioned in writing in 1824 and was definitely built before 1667.
The mosque was partially intact until 1920, and disappeared sometime between 1920 and 1929. It had a square prayer hall and one minaret. The foundations and parts of the floor were restored in 2004.
