The Garden of The Muses

                                    Ernst (Ernestos) Moritz Theador Ziller. His architecture work is                                  
                                    marked by its creativity  and its sense of artistic freedom.
                                    He was a Saxon architect who later became a Greek national
                                    and in the late 1800s and early 1900s was a major designer of
                                    royal and municipal buildings in Athens, Patras, and other major
                                    Greek cities.   
 
                                   Iliou Melathon, a work of Ernst Ziller was one of the most                                        
                                   beautiful residences of Athens in the 19th century.
                                   Situated on the "Boulevard", (E.Venizelou street today), it was
                                   an impressive and glorious building of imposing architecture,
                                   also expressing the eccentric personality of its owner Heinrich
                                   Schliemann.
                                   The statue of an Amazon of the Mattei type (above), a fabulous
                                   statue,  is still found today in the garden which is formed after
                                   the Main Entrance.                                         
                                   All the statues of the garden are clay copies of ancient Greek
                                   sculptures.
                                   The nick name of the gardener was "Priam". However Schliemann
                                    himself enjoyed taking care of his vine arbor, peanuts,  
                                    pomegranates, apricot trees and peach trees, when he was not
                                    away in some trip of excavation.  
                                                                              
                                
                                    In the garden, apart from the multifarious trees, there were also
                                    palm trees, cypresses, accacias and some other trees common
                                    in Athens at that time.
                                    Even though Schliemann was aware of the Virtues of eucalyptus
                                    and personally took upon himself its promotion among the
                                    the Athenians, it's not known whether these trees were planted
                                    in the Iliou Melathron Garden. 

                                     Cats, poultry, and pigeons freely circulated  in the
                                     garden finding an ideal refuge in a paradise, in the heart of the city.
                                                                                                                              
                                     Wine arbour or Vitis vinifera, Johann and Josef Knaqp,
                                      Detail of the Main Entrance.
                                                                                 

43 comments:

Lisa Anne said...

I so want to go to Greece. If I ever get there now I know what to look for. Thanks!!

Anonymous said...

I have a few minutes on the library computer...thought I would stop by one of my favorite blogs....as always I've enjoyed the visit.

Steven

Ekanthapadhikan said...

The Iliou Melathron looks majestic! Thanks for sharing.

Ziggy Stardust said...

Wow that is beautiful.

Anne

athina said...

Fabulous building!!!

Betty's Cuisine said...

Wonderful building ~ unfortunately one of the very few left in Athens!

Drahdrah said...

Gorgeous, simply gorgeous !

mia maria said...

Πολύ ωραία η ανάρτηση σου! Και εμείς εδώ, τόσο όμορφα κτίρια, στο τρέξιμο για την καθημερινότητα τα προσπερνάμε χωρίς δεύτερη ματιά!

Corrie Howe said...

Lovely. I'd already put Greece on one of the places I'd like to visit before I die. This just makes we want to do more.

Phivos Nicolaides said...

The pictures are gorgeous in all respects!

Nicole said...

Gorgeous garden!!! I love the mosaic of the bee. I wish someone would come and design my apt like that garden lol:)

dannyd said...

Wow! That is a really stunning garden, and those are also great statues! I went to Greece last year, and I may go back for study abroad in college. When I do, I'll make sure to see this!

I also hope you can read this post:

http://dannysignifyingnothing.blogspot.com/2009/10/short-story-1-google-yahoo-merger.html

Allison said...

Gorgeous! Your pictures make me want to get on a plane right now...there's just the little problem of the money!

Betty Manousos said...

Steven, thank you so much.
Please come back soon!

Charlotte Ann said...

I always wonder if the natives of Greece are appreciative of their surroundings and awed by their views. I've always wanted to vacation in Greece. How lucky you are to be from there!

wenn said...

wow..it's so beautiful..

Betty Manousos said...

Charlotte, thank you. Yes, I'm absolutely lucky.

Liz Mays said...

How absolutely gorgeous!!!!

Chapters From My Life said...

Fascinating... Thanks for the free tour. The pics are so clear.
Great job

Claudya Martinez said...

Gorgeousness! Thank you.

Stacey J. Warner said...

Loved the tour. Greece is high on the list of places to go...now it's even higher.

much love

Sahildeki Ev said...

It's lovely. I love how the past generations enjoyed the good life..

Maria B. said...

πολύ ωραία η ξεναγησή σου! πραγματι είναι ενα απο τα πιο όμορφα νεοκλασσικά κτήρια. Αλλωστε όλα τα κτήρια του Τσίλερ είναι εκπληκτικά !!!

Εμεις εδω στον Πειραιά και συγκεκριμένα στην Καστελλα έχουμε ακόμη μερικά νεοκλασσικά που κοσμούν την περιοχή!!

ευχαριστούμε !

Lynette Jacobs said...

My most ideal dream holiday...a cruise among the Greek Islands...I will have to save like crazy:)

Betty Manousos said...

Maria B,O Piraias einai kataplhktikos!

Betty Manousos said...

Lynette, it would be a wonderful experience!

Unknown said...

Beautiful pictures and nice background info Betty!

yonca said...

Beautiful! I grown up in Istanbul but never got a chance to see Greece.

Peter said...

That is fantastic!

PopisK said...

This house is wonderful!

Nelly said...

What a great architect!

michael said...

So majestic house!. I love Greece!

Unknown said...

I adore that building.

ritsa said...

Greece is so beautiful!

Unknown said...

I so want to travel to Greece.

Unknown said...

The house is wonderful. I like the statue also.

Laura said...

Just amazing!

Unknown said...

Beautiful!!!!!

Georgia said...

I love Greece! and its culture.

Nicholas Garcia (Nick) said...

YOU KNOW I'M VERY THANKFUL FOR THE GROUP OF BLOGGER THAT I PICKED TO FOLLOW.EACH ONE HAS ADD THEIR OWN LITTLE MIX. HELPING ME TO LOOK BEYOND MY OWN BACK YARD, CITY, STATE OR EVEN COUNTRY....NICK

Cheri Pryor said...

So pretty! Beautiful architecture!

cheri said...

this is such a beautiful garden. thanks for sharing :)

shuttling in from SITS :)

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