Benizelos Mansion, Ottoman noble residence in Plaka, Greece.
The Benizelos Mansion is a two-story townhouse in the Plaka neighborhood of Athens, with stone walls on the ground floor and a timber-framed upper level. The building still has its rear courtyard, which opens onto the outbuildings and storage areas that were part of the property's daily operations.
The Benizelos family's residence probably dates from the first half of the 16th century, when it consisted of two low two-storey structures. It was substantially extended between the late 17th and early 18th centuries, when the south facade and three internal walls were kept up to the present first floor and arcades were added at ground level. After the Greek War of Independence it served as a tavern, was divided into two dwellings in the early 20th century, and remained inhabited until the 1960s. Expropriated by the Ministry of Culture in 1972 and granted to the Archbishopric of Athens in 1999, it was restored and opened as a museum in February 2017.
The house is also called the house of Saint Philothei of Athens, born Revoula Benizelos in 1522. She founded the women's monastery of Saint Andrew about a hundred metres east of the family property, on the site of today's Archbishopric of Athens. Her memory remains tied to the mansion.
The mansion stands at Adrianou 96 in Plaka, set back from the street behind a high wall, with the main courtyard and its well reached from the entrance. The garden with the 16th-century olive press and cistern lies to the south, reached from the north courtyard through a vaulted passage. Remains of the Roman wall uncovered in 2008 are visible in the courtyard.
The mansion has a connection to Philothei of Athens, a 16th-century woman from the Benizelos family who was later canonized as a saint for her work helping women in need. Her story is still linked to the building, giving the house a meaning that goes well beyond its architecture.
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