Prokesch-Osten house in Athens, Protected neoclassical building on Feidiou Street, Athens, Greece
The Prokesch-Osten house at 3 Fidiou Street is a neoclassical building with symmetrical window rows and stone decorative elements across its facade. The structure displays typical features of this architectural period including straight lines, column details, and tall ceilings common to early Athens construction.
Anton Prokesch-Osten, Austria's first ambassador to liberated Greece, built the house in 1836–37 on a plot of about 10,000 m², financed by loans from Simon Sinas and a Trieste bank. The German architect Gustav Adolf Lueders executed designs by the Viennese Carl Roesner. From 1837 to 1849 it housed the Austrian embassy and was a noted salon; in 1919 the Greek Conservatory moved in.
The house reflects how European diplomats lived during the 1800s when Athens was becoming established as a capital city attracting foreign residents. The building's layout and decoration show the daily life of these international families in a rapidly developing urban area.
The building is located on a main street near Omonia Square and is easily accessible on foot. Visitors can view the facade from outside, but note that it is a protected monument and the interior is not open to the public.
The house was built in 1836/1837 on a plot of about 10,000 m², financed by loans from the Greek banker Simon Sinas in Vienna and a bank in Trieste. Its garden once reached from Panepistimiou Street to the church of Zoodochos Pigi.
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