Spyridon Metaxas Residence (Metaxas Mansion)

The house of Spyridon A. Metaxas was designed by the architect Ernst Ziller and built between 1897-1899. It is a preserved neoclassical three-story building, with a clear separation of the ground floor from the two remaining floors. The tripartite organization in base, main body and crown is very clear on all faces of the building. The ground floor is formed externally in the format of vaulted masonry, in contrast to the two upper floors, which are plastered with mortar, where thin architrave beads give the impression of isodomic masonry. The openings are surrounded by piers with imposts, decorated with the head of Hermes and bear wooden French shutters. The corner openings on the first floor are crowned with a section of entablature and cornice, while the corresponding ones on the second floor are decorated with a pediment finial. On the face towards Lambraki Avenue, the two corner openings of the first floor display small balconies with a curvilinear balustrade decorated with floral motifs and figures of young boys, in contrast to the impressive elongated balcony of the second floor, which is supported by ornate marble corbels and bears balustrades of the same morphological format. The two openings to this exterior are flanked on either side by ceramic Atlas-male figures instead of simple pilasters, and are crowned with a projecting entablature with decorative dentils. The face on Vas. Georgiou Street is similar. The entrance on Louka Ralli Street has a monumental gallery, with figures of Caryatids supporting both architrave and balcony. The initials of the first owner of the house, “S.A.M.” (Spyridon A. Metaxas) are preserved on the metal exterior gate. The roof has a parapet, where small piers alternate with balustrades, which are decorated with ceramic statues. The Metaxas Mansion was depicted by Yiannis Tsarouchis in the painting entitled “The House of Metaxas in Piraeus”, Marousi 1967.