Painting, sculpture, theatre and cinema in Xanthi of the «Belle Époque»
This route is about 1 km, about 50 minutes and of moderate difficulty. The visitor will have the opportunity to get a taste of the arts, as expressed in Xanthi during the so-called Belle Époque period (1871-1914). Among the few surviving examples are the neoclassical statue in the courtyard of the church of Agios Georgios, the frescoes with Bavarian or German landscapes in the houses of Kougioumtzoglou, Stavropoulos and Michaloglou, the painted goddesses from the twelve Gods in the Metaxas Mansion and the ceiling paintings with decorative and floral motifs in Daniel's Grand Maison, the Moses Mansion and other mansions of Old Xanthi. All these works worthily represent the artistic flourishing of the period in the city.

In fact, the visitor passing by the site where once stood the theater "Apollo" and the cinema "Elysée", can imagine the performances of the time and the people who performed the various roles, such as the French actress Sarah Bernhardt who is said to have appeared in "Apollo".

25. Moses Mansion

Brief documentation:

The building was erected near the end of the 19th century, probably in 1880. It was built or bought by the Jewish tobacco merchant Aaron Moses. Then it passed into the ownership of the tobacco merchant Vasilios Mouratis (from Constantinople, with the famous Muratti cigarettes that exist until today) and then the tobacco merchant Ioannis Orfanidis. In 1926 the heirs of the latter sold the mansion to the Municipality of Xanthi. From that year until 2013 this building housed the Town Hall of the city, before it was moved to the central square of Xanthi. The building has now been renovated and is used as a cultural space of the Municipality.
It is an imposing two-storey mansion of bourgeois character. The architectural style of the building is eclectic with neoclassical elements and influences from the Romanesque standards of Western Europe. The mansion is lined with local stone, granite and sandstone from the area of Mandra. The façade of the building is organized with symmetry, while the building ends in a cross-shaped tiled roof. The doors in the arched entrances of the building are made of iron and have decorative elements, while the windows of the first floor above the main entrance include elaborate ironwork. After the main entrance there is a double, two-sided staircase, which leads to a large hall on the first floor of the building, around which the rooms are arranged in a symmetrical way.
Throughout the building and especially on the first floor there is extensive painting decoration with frescoes, ceiling paintings, Ionic waves made of plaster and false pillars with false capitals.


Category of thematic interest:  ARCHITECTURAL / HISTORICAL INTEREST


History:

The building was erected near the end of the 19th century, probably in 1880. It was built or bought by the Jewish tobacco merchant Aaron Moses. Then it passed into the ownership of the tobacco merchant Vasilios Mouratis (from Constantinople, with the famous Muratti cigarettes that exist until today) and then the tobacco merchant Ioannis Orfanidis. In 1926 the heirs of the latter sold the mansion to the Municipality of Xanthi. From that year until 2013 this building housed the Town Hall of the city, before it was moved to the central square of Xanthi. The building has now been renovated and is used as a cultural space of the Municipality.


Elements of architecture:

It is an imposing two-storey mansion Architecture of bourgeois character. The architectural style of the building is eclectic with neoclassical elements and influences from the Romanesque standards of Western Europe. The mansion is lined with local stone, granite and sandstone from the area of Mandra. The façade of the building is organized with symmetry, while the building ends in a cross-shaped roof with a tiled roof. The doors in the arched entrances of the building are made of iron and have decorative elements, while the windows of the first floor above the main entrance include elaborate ironwork. After the main entrance there is a double, two-sided staircase, which leads to a large hall on the first floor of the building, around which the rooms are arranged in a symmetrical way.


Description of other elements:

Throughout the building and especially on the first floor there is extensive painting decoration with frescoes, ceiling paintings, Ionic waves made of plaster and false pillars with false capitals.


Purpose - Use: Residence, Administrative building, Cultural site


Characterization: Preservable, Institution of the Ministry of Culture, Decision DILAP/C/1895/30606, Government Gazette 483/87


Dating (period): Late 19th century


Year of construction: Circa 1880


Location of the monument: 41.142710306260916, 24.887570345536513


Bibliographic references:

•    Dimitris Mavridis, Houses of Xanthi, Holy Metropolis of Xanthi and Peritheoriou – DEAX, Xanthi 2009
•    Thomas Exarchou, Islets Polis Xanthi 2, P.A.KE.THRA., Xanthi 2003
•    Katsari-Vafiadis, J. Ed. 2023. "History and recording of the neoclassical buildings of the traditional settlement". Xanthi: Municipality of Xanthi, p. 75


 Address: Mavromichali 8 and Filippou Amiridi


Visitable: No

 

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