Bath of Aerides
The Bath of Aerides is the only surviving public bath of the Ottoman period in Athens.
Modern and Contemporary era (1821 - )
From the beginning of the 20th century until 1965 it functioned as a municipal bath.
1984 It belongs to the Museum of Greek Folk Art.
1999 Restored and operated as a museum.
Ottoman era (1453- 1821)
Constructed during the first Ottoman period (1453- 1667).
Byzantine era (331 AC- 1453)
Roman era (30 BC- 330 AC)
Hellenistic era (322- 31 BC)
Classical era (478-323 BC)
Archaic era (800-479 BC)
Geometric era (-1100- 800 BC)
Prehistory (-1100 BC)
What I can see
It is the only surviving public bath of the Ottoman period. It has undergone alterations and additions over the years, and this explains the labyrinthine ground plan. The first phase included only the changing rooms and two rooms for hot and warm water, with different days for women and men. In the second period (1870) it doubled in size, separating the facilities for men and women. The façade became neoclassical and the space also acquired individual baths, called “European baths.” The interior decoration is elaborate (panels, floors with Islamic patterns) and the marble contrasts with the deep colours of the walls. Small domed glass holes in the roof favour the natural lighting in the room. Today, the bath is a museum of Cleaning and Embellishment of the Body.
What I can't see
It was also called Hammam of Abid Effendi. Unlike the earlier baths (Byzantine, Roman), there was no cold water tank as the Koran prohibits the washing of the body with stagnant water – one must use running water. The bath, except for being a place of body cleansing and purification of the soul, according to the Muslim tradition, constituted a point of socialisation, especially for women, regardless of whether they were Muslim or Christian.
Info
- Address: 8 Kyrristou St.
- Phone: +30 210 3244340
Bibliography
Museum of Greek Folk Art, (2013), Το κτήριο, [The building]
http://www.melt.gr/gr/episkepsi/to-loutro-ton-aeridon/to-ktirio/
Last visit 2/9/2015
Cade D., (2013), Αθήνα, η αλήθεια, αναζητώντας το Μάνο Χατζιδάκι λίγο πριν «σκάσει η φούσκα», [Athens, the truth, searching for Manos just before the “bubble burst”], Savvalas
