First Cemetery of Athens
The First Cemetery of Athens (Greek: Πρώτο Νεκροταφείο Αθηνών, Próto Nekrotafeío Athinón) is the official cemetery of the City of Athens and the first to be built. It opened in 1837 and soon became a prestigious cemetery for Greeks and foreigners. The cemetery is located behind the Temple of Olympian Zeus and the Panathinaiko Stadium in central Athens. It can be found at the top end of Anapafseos Street (Eternal Rest Street). It is a large green space with pines and cypresses.
Foreground: Tomb of the Pesmazoglou family (right) and Melina Mercouri (middle). Background: Tomb of Heinrich Schliemann (left on the high pedestal). | |
Details | |
---|---|
Established | 1837 |
Location | Central Athens |
Country | Greece |
Coordinates | 37°57′47″N 23°44′16″E |
In the cemetery there are three churches. The main one is the Church of Saint Theodores and there is also a smaller one dedicated to Saint Lazarus. The third church of Saint Charles is a Catholic church. The cemetery includes several impressive tombs such as those of Heinrich Schliemann, designed by Ernst Ziller; Ioannis Pesmazoglou; Georgios Averoff; and one tomb with a famous sculpture of a dead young girl called I Koimomeni ("The Sleeping Girl") and sculpted by Yannoulis Chalepas from the island of Tinos. There are also burial areas for Protestants and Jews, however, this segregation is not compulsory.
The cemetery is under the Municipality of Athens and is declared an historical monument.
Notable interments
- Odysseas Androutsos, hero of Greek War of Independence
- George Averoff, philanthropist, businessman
- Sotiria Bellou, singer
- Nikolaos Bourandas, police and fire service general, politician
- Yannoulis Chalepas, sculptor
- Christodoulos, Archbishop of Athens
- Chrysostomos II, Archbishop of Athens
- Richard Church, general
- Jules Dassin, director, actor
- Stratos Dionysiou, singer
- Dorotheus, Archbishop of Athens
- Odysseas Elytis, poet
- Demetrios Farmakopoulos, painter
- Adolf Furtwängler, archaeologist
- Dimitris Horn, actor
- Humphrey Jennings, filmmaker
- Georgios Kafantaris, prime minister
- Dimitrios Kallergis, statesman
- Tzeni Karezi, actress
- Manos Katrakis, actor
- Nikos Kavvadias, poet
- Stelios Kazantzidis, singer
- Theodoros Kolokotronis, general, politician
- Marika Kotopouli, actress
- Ellie Lambeti, actress
- Grigoris Lambrakis, politician
- Zoe Laskari, actress
- Vassilis Logothetidis, actor
- Yannis Makriyannis, merchant, military officer, politician, author
- Orestis Makris, actor
- Alexandros Mavrokordatos, politician
- Melina Mercouri, actress, politician
- Andreas Michalakopoulos, politician
- Dimitris Mitropanos, singer
- Dimitri Mitropoulos, conductor, pianist, composer
- Kostis Palamas, poet
- Alexandros Panagoulis, politician, poet, democracy activist
- Antonios Papadakis, University of Athens' greatest benefactor
- Georgios Papadopoulos, military dictator during the Regime of the Colonels
- Andreas Papandreou, Prime Minister of Greece
- George Papandreou, Prime Minister of Greece
- Katina Paxinou, actress
- George Polk, American journalist murdered during the Greek Civil War
- Alexandros Rizos Rangavis, poet
- Demis Roussos, singer
- Alekos Sakellarios, director, screenwriter, lyricist
- Rita Sakellariou, singer
- Dimitris Papamichael, actor and director
- Alexandros Papanastasiou, lawyer
- Kalliroi Parren, feminist
- Heinrich Schliemann, amateur archaeologist who excavated the site of Troy
- Giorgos Seferis, poet
- Seraphim, Archbishop of Athens
- Angelos Sikelianos, poet
- Michael Tositsas
- Charilaos Trikoupis, Prime Minister of Greece
- Vassilis Tsitsanis, rebetiko composer
- Ioannis Varvakis, member of Filiki Eteria
- Thanasis Veggos, actor
- Sofia Vembo, singer
- Aliki Vougiouklaki, actress
- T.H. White, author
- Emmanuil Xanthos, a founder of the Filiki Eteria
- Nikos Xilouris, singer and composer
- Nikos Zachariadis, politician, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) from 1931 to 1956
- Ernst Ziller, architect
- Xenophon Zolotas, prime minister
Gallery
- Entrance
- Grave of Adamantios Korais
- Graves at the First Cemetery of Athens
- Angel statue
- Andreas Papandreou grave
- Damaskinos of Athens grave
- Grave of Richard Church
- Grave of Sofia Vembo
- Grave of Kalliroi Parren
- General view
- Entrance to the chapel
References
External links
Media related to First Cemetery of Athens at Wikimedia Commons