Stunning Old Photos of Athens (and Greece) in the 19th Century
Menu Rare Historical Photos Rare and Stunning Old Photos of Athens (and Greece) in the 19th Century In this article, we invite you to travel back in time to Athens of the 19th century, a city of stark contrasts and rapid development. Through a rare collection of amazing photographs, we’ll explore the old neighborhoods, the Parthenon, and the many other iconic landmarks that have defined Athens for generations. In 1832, Otto, Prince of Bavaria, was proclaimed King of Greece. He adopted the Greek spelling of his name, King Othon, as well as Greek national dress, and made it one of his first tasks as king to conduct a detailed archaeological and topographical survey of Athens, his new capital. He assigned Gustav Eduard Schaubert and Stamatios Kleanthis to complete this task. At that time, Athens had a population of only 4,000 to 5,000 people in a scattering of houses at the foot of the Acropolis, located in what today covers the district of Plaka. Athens was chosen as the Greek capi...