What I can see

This marble monument, a work by Efthimios Kalevras, depicts a priest, a teacher and a child on one side, symbolizing learning, the core of the Pontian Greeks’ identity. The teacher looks protective towards the girl, who, however, has wild facial features. On the back side, a man in traditional costume plays the Pontic lyre. This realistic sculpture, despite the many faces, unfortunately lacks plasticity and the figures are weak. The girl does not exude any childishness and the overall design has problems with proportions. The artist’s attempt to fit many things into a monument resulted in making it “rambling”.

What I can't see

The work was donated by the Thessaloniki Black Sea Club, as indicated at the bottom of one side. The Pontic Greeks were massacred by hundreds of thousands during the Greco-Turkish War, which followed right after World War I. After the end of the war, the population exchange between Greece and Turkiye was implemented, as agreed in the Treaty of Lausanne (1923). A huge number of Pontic refugees arrived in Thessaloniki and these days, a very large part of the city’s population are their descendants.

Info

• Address: Ermou St.

Bibliography