Iliou Melathron

: The facade of Ilios Melathros towards El. Venizelou (University)

: View of Ilios Melathros from his garden

: The back of Ilios Melathros

Iliou Melathron is situated at city centre of Athens.
It was designed by the German architect Ernst Ziller and it was built during 1878-1879 as the residence of the Schliemann family. Its name, meaning “the megaron of Troy”, is connected to the discovery of the ancient city by Heinrich Schliemann.

It is a two-storey building that shows impressive decorations. The first floor functioned primarily as a place for social engagement. The room of Hesperides, where receptions were held, the salon for literature evenings, the guest room and the dining room were all organised around the central space. The bedrooms, the offices and the library were located on the second floor. On the ground floor there were the auxiliary rooms, the rooms of the service personnel, as well as the room where the finds from the excavations of Troy were exhibited. In the large garden at the back there were a depot and a stable.

: Watercolor of the facade of Ilios Melathros

: Top view of the ground floor of Ilios Melathros

: Top view of the first floor of Ilios Melathros

: Top view of the second floor of Ilios Melathros

Iliou Melathron is considered as one of the most notable works of Ziller.
It was built in an eclectic style, since it combines elements taken from the Italian Renaissance and Neoclassical style (like the loggias, the layout of the building volumes, mosaic floors and architectural elements on the facades), the imitation of pictorial Baroque (visible from the style of various ceiling frescoes), and Exotic style (like the floral motifs of other ceiling decorations, murals and the mythological figures on the railing fence, gates, handrails and some forniture). All the metallic decorative elements were built in cast iron in a factory located in Pireos area. Moreover, the building was also adorned with two balconies in the façade, which add to the building’s lightness and elegance.

The technological innovations that were employed in the building’s structure comprise air vents behind the gypsum plaster acanthus, which runs the ceilings of all rooms, gas heating, as well as fire-protection measures with the restricted use of timber in doors and windows.

The construction works were supervised by Vasileios Drosinos, mechanic and personal friend of Schliemann. The whole building project cost 439.650 drachmas, which was a quite a large amount at that time.

The opening of the luxurious house took place with a glorious reception on January the 30^th 1881.

: The evening room on the first floor of Ilios Melathros

: The southeast room on the first floor of Ilios Melathros

: The SE frieze of the ceiling of the evening hall. Erotides study maps and old editions of Homer and Pausanias

: Front clamps from the railings of the fence

The decoration of the building reflects the great passion of Schliemann for antiquity and is in line with his efforts to promote himself as a man of literature and art.

The ceiling and wall frescoes were made by the Slovenian painter Jurij Subic (1855-1890), who was famous for his works in Paris and Vienna. He worked for about a year and his payment was 8.500 drachmas.

Wall decorations are characterized by the reproduction of mural paintings from the houses of Pompeii and by the inclusion of selected excerpts from ancient Greek literature, including excerpts from the works of Homer, Hesiod, Pindar and Lucian.

The mosaic floors were made by Italian artisans and cost 20.201 drachmas. They depict finds from the excavations of Schliemann or themes that are inspired by them.

The exterior and interior metal decorations in a workshop in Piraeus.

The decoration of the mansion also included clay copies of ancient statues that were constructed in Vienna. Three of them were placed in the garden, while 24 were placed around the roof.

: Meeting of the Supreme Court in the central hall of Ilios Melathros (evening room)

: Ilios Melathron after its transformation into a Numismatic Museum

: The room for the donors of the Numismatic Museum on the first floor of Ilios Melathros (dining room of the Schliemann family)

After Heinrich Eric Schliemann’s death in 1890, the building passed to his wife Sophia, who lived there with their two children.

Sophia Schliemann was the first to make changes to the appearance and decoration of the building. In 1923, a new building structure has been annexed to the southeast side of the building, in order to add functional spaces.

In 1926 the building was sold to the Greek State for 27.000.000 drachmas so as to cover the needs of the Schliemann family. The expense was covered through the bequest of Alexandros Soutzos, in order to house the Museum of Fine Arts and the Numismatic Museum. Nevertheless, from 1929 onwards the building housed successively the Council of State (1929-1934), Areios Pagos/the Supreme Court (1934-1980) and the Court of Appeal (1981-1983).

In 1983, the Hellenic Public Real Estate Corporation (ΚΕΔ) ceded Iliou Melathron to the Ministry of Culture. Following the restoration of the building, it housed the Numismatic Museum. Initially, in 1998, the museum’s permanent exhibition was transferred on the building’s first floor, while since 2003 Iliou Melathron housed all collections, the library and the offices of the museum.