Academy of Athens Announcement. Advising Hugh Gilchrist of his award. The Silver Medal.
Advising receipt of the SILVER MEDAL, for recognition of his outstanding achievement in the publication of a three-volume work, entitled Australians and Greeks.
AKAΔΗΜΙA AΘΗΝΩΝ
ACADEMY OF ATHENS
Ο ΠΡΟΙΔΡΟΣ
THE PRESIDENT
H. E. Ambassador Paul Tighe
Australian Embassy in Greece
Athens
Athens, 28 December, 2005
A. 7. 0114
Dear Mr Ambassador,
The Plenary of the Academy of Athens decided to award Ambassador Hugh Gilchrist with the Silver medal, in recognition of his outstanding acheivement in the publication of a three-volume work entitled "Australians and Greeks".
The ceremony of the various Awards by the Acadeny will take place on December 29th, at 6.pm. (it wil last approxiamtely two hours).
Today Ambassador Gilchrist informed the Academy that he will not be able to attend the ceremony and that he would be grateful if a member of the Australian Embassy or other personality could represent him.
Please find herewith two invitations for the ceremony.
I would appreciate an oral reply from the Embassy to the Public Relations Officer of the Academy, Mr Ionnnis Skarentzos (tel: 210 - 36 64 705), or Mrs Evi Angelopoulou (tel: 210 - 316 14 552).
Sincerelely yours
Emmanuel Roucounas
President of the Academy of Athens
The Academy of Athens
The Academy of Athens occupies the right side of a grandiose neo-classical architectural complex, which also includes the National Library (on the left) and the University of Athens (in the middle). The three structures, designed by the Danish architects Christian and Theophil Hansen, stand on the adjacent large lots between Akadimias Street and Panepistimiou (Venizelou) Street in the center of the city.
The Academy was designed by the younger of the Hansen brothers, Theophil, and built between 1859 and 1887. The main entrance to the building is flanked by two tall Ionic columns carrying statues of Athena and Apollo. The side tympana are topped with sculpted owls, symbols of wisdom and of the goddess Athena.
In front, two large sculptures of seated philosophers, usually identified as Socrates and Plato, but perhaps representing Socrates and Aristotle, guard the main staircase.
The embossed compositions on the central pediment and the statues outside are works of the sculptor L. Drosis. The embossed compositions on the eight small pediments are worked by Fr. Melnizki (1875) and the wall-paintings in the interior were made by K. Grupenckel.
The main donator to finance the construction was the family of the Baron Simon Sinas, Ambassador of Greece in Vienna, Berlin and Munich. In 1887, the architect Hernest Ziller, acting as proxy of Sinas' heirs, delivered the building complete to the then Prime Minister Charilaos Trikoupis.
From time to time, preservation and restoration works take place. The facets, the statues and other decorating elements were cleaned in 1980 and the wooden roofs were restored between 1990 and 1992.
By a ministerial decree of 1952, the building, together with eleven other most distinguished edifices of Athens, was identified as preserved monument "in need of special protection" according to the relevant 1950 Law.
Address: 28 Eleftherios Venizelos Ave., 10679 Athens
Prefecture: Attica
District: Attica
Directorate: Cultural Buildings and Restoration of Modern Monuments
Phone numbers: +30-210-36.00.207, 36.00.209
Fax: +30-210-36.42.918
