In memoriam

Nelly's collage for the poster of the International Tourism Exhibition, New York 1939


Yannis Sakellarakis (1936-2010)
In memoriam


Είγε ετελεύτα

«Πού απεσύρθηκε, πού εχάθηκε ο Σοφός;
Έπειτ’ από τα θαύματά του τα πολλά,
την φήμη της διδασκαλίας του
που διεδόθηκεν εις τόσα έθνη
εκρύφθηκ' αίφνης και δεν έμαθε κανείς
με θετικότητα τι έγινε
(ουδέ κανείς ποτέ είδε τάφον του).
Έβγαλαν μερικοί πως πέθανε στην  Έφεσο.
Δεν τόγραψεν ο Δάμις όμως· τίποτε
για θάνατο του Aπολλωνίου δεν έγραψεν ο Δάμις.
Άλλοι είπανε πως έγινε άφαντος στην Λίνδο.
Ή μήπως είν’ εκείν’ η ιστορία
αληθινή, που ανελήφθηκε στην Κρήτη,
στο αρχαίο της Δικτύννης ιερόν.—
Aλλ’ όμως έχουμε την θαυμασία,
την υπερφυσικήν εμφάνισί του
εις έναν νέον σπουδαστή στα Τύανα.—
Ίσως δεν ήλθεν ο καιρός για να επιστρέψει,
για να φανερωθεί στον κόσμο πάλι·
ή μεταμορφωμένος, ίσως, μεταξύ μας
γυρίζει αγνώριστος.— Μα θα ξαναφανερωθεί
ως ήτανε, διδάσκοντας τα ορθά· και τότε βέβαια
θα επαναφέρει την λατρεία των θεών μας,
και τες καλαίσθητες ελληνικές μας τελετές.»


Έτσι ερέμβαζε στην πενιχρή του κατοικία—
μετά μια ανάγνωσι του Φιλοστράτου
«Τα ες τον Τυανέα Aπολλώνιον»—
ένας από τους λίγους εθνικούς,
τους πολύ λίγους που είχαν μείνει. Άλλωστε —ασήμαντος
άνθρωπος και δειλός— στο φανερόν
έκανε τον Χριστιανό κι αυτός κι εκκλησιάζονταν.
Ήταν η εποχή καθ’ ην βασίλευεν,
εν άκρα ευλαβεία, ο γέρων Ιουστίνος,
κ’ η Aλεξάνδρεια, πόλις θεοσεβής,
αθλίους ειδωλολάτρας αποστρέφονταν.

Κ.Π. Καβάφης

A Bacchus without grapes?

Aphrodite

Product Description
Almost everyone has heard of Aphrodite. But not everyone knows that she was the goddess of love, beauty and passion in ancient Greece. Pure as the driven snow, our Aphrodite's himation (toga) is sewn to the classic peplos (tunic) at one end – the other can be fastened with a hook and loop fastener. The elegant peplos has an elasticized waist and is closed at the back. Be as creative as the Greek Goddess of Innocence with how you wear the matching headband. Wait a minute: this sexy costume is the aphrodisiac in fabric form for any "toga" party.

Material:100 % polyester

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Bacchus

• Costume, 3-piece
• With chiton tunic
• With himation cape
• With cord sash
• Without grapes, jewelry or shoes

Product Description

Bacchus is not only the god of wine, he is also in charge of fertility. That must be why no holds were barred at the Bacchanalia – the Roman festival held in honor of Bacchus. The wine poured like a waterfall and the rites they performed were more like orgies. These days, Bacchus has calmed down: after all, he's a few millennia older. Instead of impressing his followers with his ability to hold his alcohol, he relies on his classic outfit: a chiton with an elegantly casual himation. A truly heavenly look!

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Greek scholar

With tunic
With headband
With cloak
Without scroll
Product Description: Whether proficient Pythagoras or adroit Archimedes, the classic Greek scholars are still known today for their rich spirit of invention, deep thirst for knowledge and modest attire. The chiton (tunic) and headband of this Greek Scholar are in pure white and his chlamys (cloak) is trimmed with the famous Greek key pattern. In this costume, you can explain your treatise for hours at a time or cloak your desire to meet people as wisdom.

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[My personal favourite]

King Agamemnon

(note the pseudo-parchment resolving once and for all its use in Mycenaean times - unless he's reading an Egyptian letter or something)

Product Description: King Agamemnon was the leader of the Greek army during the ten-year siege of Troy. We aren't convinced that he dreamed up the idea of the Trojan horse himself. But it's true that the general led his army to victory thanks to the legendary horse trick. Of course his military uniform can't provide the high level of wearing comfort and elegant look of the dark blue and golden royal robe. Today's King Agamemnon enjoys the comfortable tunic with a sewn-on cloak. A large, blue rhinestone gleams on the belt. Peace can look just as interesting as war!

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Artemis

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Se also Female chiton, Male chiton, Greek tunic, Female slave, Goddess

The Caryatids of St Pancras

The Caryatid Porch of the St Pancras Parish Church London

In 1818 the Trustees [of the St Pancras Parish Church] bought a site on the Euston Road from the Southampton Estate, and invited suggestions for the design of the new church.  Thirty entries were received, and the first premium was awarded to the local architect William Inwood and his son Henry.

The foundation stone of the new church (in the crypt) was laid with much pomp on 1st July 1819 by Frederick, Duke of York and Albany.

The New Church was consecrated for the worship of God on 7th May 1822, by the Bishop of London, William Howley.  The total cost was £89,296, making St Pancras the most expensive church to be built in London since the rebuilding of St Paul's Cathedral.  The inspiration for the design of the church is the Ionic Temple of the Erectheum on the Acropolis.  Its main feature, the caryatid porch, is here used for the two vestries which guard the entrance to the burial vaults. 

The tower is a copy, much enlarged, of the 'Tower of the Winds', the water clock of Andronicus Cyrrhestes.

The church is built of brick, faced with Portland stone, originally white but, in spite of cleaning, now darkened by years of London pollution. 

The rich ornamentation is in terra-cotta, as are the caryatids by Rossi, built up in sections around cast-iron columns.  The St Pancras figures lack the grace of the originals (one of which is in the British Museum).  Due to an error they were made too high and had to be truncated at the waist. 

The caryatids guard the entrance to the crypt.  This was used in two world wars as an air-raid shelter but its designed purpose had been a burial vault. 

When the new St Pancras cemetery was opened in 1854 the crypt was closed, by which time 476 burials had been recorded.  In 1838 the cost of a private vault was £110.

The tower was originally surmounted by a Corinthian finial carrying the cross.  This became dangerous and was replaced with a simpler design in 1953.

The tower contains a ring of eight bells hung for chiming.

All information and photographs are drawn from the church's site HERE.



   

All three of them legendary, all looking their age

Van Morrison and Bob Dylan performing "Crazy Love" with Acropolis in the background, for a BBC documentary.

"BBC2 filmed a career overview entitled One Irish Rover in 1991, which opened with Van Morrison and Bob Dylan singing a duet on the Hill of the Muses above Athens, Greece. Dylan and Morrison performed duets on "Crazy Love" "Foreign Window" and "One Irish Rover". The Independent described "the Irish singer flanked by Bob Dylan and the Acropolis: all three of them legendary, all looking their age, and all a waste of time talking to with a microphone in your hand."

(Information source HERE)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I warmly thank Aleksandar, an archaeologist from Belgrade, who kindly brought this to my attention.

A Doric column for the Chicago sky

In 1922 the American newspaper "The Chicago Tribune" announced an open architectural competition for a 400-foot (app. 145 metres) skyscraper to celebrate its 75 years. 263 architects from 32 countries participated, among them the Austrian architect Adolf Loos. His proposal, which was never realised, was about a skyscraper built of polished black granite in the form of a doric column.

One may read more on this proposal HERE.

Loos' design arrived too late for reviewing by the jury and the competition was eventually won by J.M.Howells and R.Hood with a neogothic design which was considered more appropriate.

See and read all about the Chicago Tribune tower HERE.

More on the competition HERE.

In 1992 an attempt was made to create a three-dimensional reconstruction of what Loos' building would have looked like.

One may see it HERE.

Acropolis Adieu

An international hit song.
Composed by Christian Bruhn, performed by Mireille Mathieu


English version



The leaves are falling all around.
The summer's gone, now autumn's here.
And I must leave the love I found
And hope we meet again next year.

Acropolis adieu, goodbye my love.
I won't forget those summer nights, by candlelight,
The golden days together.
Acropolis adieu.




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French version


Ce soir le vent vient de la mer
Septembre est là, l'été s'en va
Et le bonheur est éphémère
Comme les fleurs qui meurent déjà

Acropolis adieu, adieu l'amour
Les roses blanches d'Athénée se sont fanées
On s'est aimés quelques jours
Acropolis adieu





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German version


Es war September in Athen,
der letzte Abend war so leer,
ich fragte ihn, wann kommst du wieder,
da sagte er, vielleicht nie mehr.

Akropolis adieu, ich muß gehen,
die weißen Rosen sind verblüht,
was ist geschehen,
ich wär so gern geblieben

On the walls of Athens

Photo and stencil created by Political Zoo HERE