The Academy of Athens ( el, Ακαδημία Αθηνών, ''Akadimía Athinón'') is

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

national academy A national academy is an organizational body, usually operating with state financial support and approval, that co-ordinates scholarly research activities and standards for academic disciplines, most frequently in the sciences but also the humanit ...

, and the highest research establishment in the country. It was established in 1926, with its founding principle traces back to the historical Academy of Plato, and operates under the supervision of the

Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...

. The Academy's main building is one of the major landmarks of Athens.

History and structure

The organization of the Academy of Athens, whose title hearkens back to the ancient Academy of Plato, was first established on 18 March 1926, and its charter was ratified by the law 4398/1929. This charter, with subsequent amendments, is still valid and governs the Academy's affairs. According to it, the Academy is divided into three Orders: Natural Sciences, Letters and Arts, Moral and Political Sciences.

Research centres

The Academy today, maintains 14 research centres, 5 research offices and the "Ioannis Sykoutris" library. In 2002, the Foundation for Biomedical Research of the Academy of Athens was established.

Membership in international organizations

From its foundation, the Academy of Athens has been a member of the

International Association of Academies The International Association of Academies (1899–1913) was an academy designed for the purpose of linking the various Academies around the world, of which the first meeting was held in Paris, France France (), officially the French ...

(AIA), and the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU). It also participates in the following body:

All European Academies All European Academies (ALLEA) is the European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities. It was founded in 1994, and brings together more than 50 Academies of Sciences and Learned Societies from over 40 member countries of the Council o ...

(ALLEA), European Academies Science Advisory Council (EASAC), Inter Academy Council (IAC), Inter Academy Medical Panel (IAMP).

Main building

Socrates by Leonidas Drosis, Athens - Academy of Athens

The main building of the Academy is a neoclassical building between

Panepistimiou Street Panepistimiou Street ( el, Οδός Πανεπιστημίου, "University Street", named after the University of Athens, the central building of which is on the upper corner) is a major street in Athens that has run one way for non-transit v ...

and

Akadimias Street Akadimias Street (Greek: Οδός Ακαδημίας) (named after the Academy of Athens) is a major street in Athens that runs parallel to Panepistimiou Street and Stadiou Street from Vassilissis Sofias Avenue, in Kolonaki district, to in th ...

in the centre of Athens. The building was designed as part of an architectural "trilogy" in 1859 by the Danish architect

Theophil Hansen Baron Theophil Edvard von Hansen (; original Danish name: Theophilus Hansen ; 13 July 1813 – 17 February 1891) was a Danish architect who later became an Austrian citizen. He became particularly well known for his buildings and structures in A ...

, along with the

University A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

and the

National Library A national library is a library established by a government as a country's preeminent repository of information. Unlike public library, public libraries, these rarely allow citizens to borrow books. Often, they include numerous rare, valuable, o ...

. Funds had been provided by the magnate

Simon Sinas Simon von Sina or Simon Sinas ( el, Σίμων Σίνας; 1810–1876) was a Greek-Austrian banker, aristocrat, benefactor and diplomat. He was one of the most important benefactors of the Greek nation together with Georgios Sinas. Biography Sim ...

specifically for the purpose, and the foundation stone was laid on 2 August 1859. Construction proceeded rapidly, after 1861 under the supervision of

Ernst Ziller Ernst Moritz Theodor Ziller ( el, Ερνέστος Τσίλλερ, ''Ernestos Tsiller''; 22 June 1837 – 4 November 1923) was a German-born university teacher and architect who later became a Greece, Greek national. In the late 19th and earl ...

, but the internal tumults during the latter years of King

Otto Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants ''Audo'', ''Odo'', ''Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity". The name is recorded fro ...

's reign, which resulted in his ousting in 1862, hampered construction until it was stopped in 1864. Works resumed in 1868, but the building was not completed until 1885, at a total cost of 2,843,319 gold

drachma The drachma ( el, δραχμή , ; pl. ''drachmae'' or ''drachmas'') was the currency used in Greece during several periods in its history: # An ancient Greek currency unit issued by many Greek city states during a period of ten centuries, fro ...

s, most of it provided by Sinas, and, after his death, by his wife Ifigeneia. The Greek neo-classical sculptor

Leonidas Drosis Leonidas Drosis ( el, Λεωνίδας Δρόσης; (1834/1836/1843 - 1882)) was a Greek neoclassical sculptor of the 19th century. Born in Nafplion, to a German father named Von Dorsch and a Greek mother named Meksi, however he took the su ...

sculpted the principle multi-figure

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedimen ...

sculpture, on the theme of the birth of Athena, based on a design by painter

Carl Rahl Carl Rahl, sometimes spelled Karl Rahl (13 August 1812 – 9 July 1865), was an Austrian painter. Life Rahl was born in Vienna to Carl Heinrich Rahl (1779–1843), an engraver. He attended the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna and won a prize at ...

. This brought first prize at the Vienna Exhibition of 1873. Drosis is also responsible for the figures of

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of ...

and

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...

with lyre on the Academy's flanking pillars, and the seated marble figures of

Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...

and

Socrates Socrates (; ; –399 BC) was a Greek philosopher from Athens who is credited as the founder of Western philosophy and among the first moral philosophers of the ethical tradition of thought. An enigmatic figure, Socrates authored no te ...

, which were executed "by the Italian sculptor Piccarelli". The eight smaller pediments in the Academy complex are the terra-cotta work of Austrian sculptor

Franz Melnitzky Franz Melnitzky (13 November 1822, Krasíkov – 1 February 1876, Vienna) was an Austrian sculptor. Life and work His father was a stonemason, and he was originally trained for the same profession. After deciding to become a sculptor, he we ...

.Neoclassical Architecture in Greece, by Mānos G. Bīris, Márō Kardamítsī-Adámī, page 142 Interior murals and paintings were done by the Austrian artist

Christian Griepenkerl Christian Griepenkerl (17 March 1839 – 22 March 1916) was a German painter and professor at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna. Biography Griepenkerl was born to one of Oldenburg's leading families. As a young man, he heeded the advice of his ...

. On 20 March 1887, the building of the "Sinaean Academy", as it was called, was delivered by Ziller to the Greek Prime Minister,

Charilaos Trikoupis Charilaos Trikoupis ( el, Χαρίλαος Τρικούπης; 11 July 1832 – 30 March 1896) was a Greek politician who served as a Prime Minister of Greece seven times from 1875 until 1895. He is best remembered for introducing the vote of c ...

. In the absence of a national Academy, the building was used for housing the Numismatic Museum in 1890, and in 1914 the

Byzantine Museum The Byzantine and Christian Museum ( el, Βυζαντινό και Χριστιανικό Μουσείο, links=no) is situated at Vassilissis Sofias Avenue in Athens, Greece. It was founded in 1914, and houses more than 25,000 exhibits with rare ...

and the State Archives. Finally, on 24 March 1926, the building was handed over to the newly established Academy of Athens.

2004 commemorative coin issue

The Academy of Athens was recently selected as main motif for a high value euro collectors' coin; the €100 Greek Academy of Athens commemorative coin, minted in 2004 to commemorate the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

. In the obverse of the coin, a close view of the building is depicted. The intention was to highlight the premise that in the city of Athena, the Olympic Games should not only be the most important athletic event, but also reflect equal importance toward intellectual and cultural activities. All three should be equivalent to the style and character of the city that was the birthplace and the matrix for the revival of the modern Olympic Games.

References

External links

Official website

3D Scan of Academy of Athens
{{DEFAULTSORT:Academy Of Athens (Modern)

1926 establishments in Greece Education in Athens Buildings and structures in Athens Educational institutions established in 1926 Theophil Hansen buildings Members of the International Council for Science Neoclassical architecture in Greece Members of the International Science Council