Hamidie School/ Axylithiotis Machine Factory
The former Hamidie School (later Axylithiotis Machine Factory) functions as a multicultural space.
Modern and Contemporary era (1912 - )
1992 Declared listed monument.
2011 Beginning of restoration and conversion to a cultural multi-space.
2015 Restoration completed.
Ottoman era (1453- 1912)
The buildings were built at the end of the 19th century.
1874 Founded.
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
Initially it operated as an orphanage complex and Islahane (House of Restoration) technical school under the name “School of Arts and Vocations Hamidieh”. 120-150 orphaned Muslim children aged 5-13 were housed and trained here. Their studies used to last five years and they were mainly trained in carpentry, blacksmithing, weaving, tailoring, shoemaking and printing. The complex consisted of three buildings, but only the school’s workshop building survives today. After its renovation, it has been operating as a multi-cultural space and includes a permanent exhibition on the history of the building and the neighbourhood, using audio-visual media, photographs, texts and other archives.
What I can't see
After the annexation of Thessaloniki to Greece, the school gradually declined and finally closed. Small industries and the Axylitiotis machine workshop, a thriving business until the early 1990s, were housed here. After the exchange of populations between Greece and Turkiye (1923), it housed refugees and the 3rd Boys’ Secondary School. Today, the multipurpose space hosts periodic exhibitions, scientific, musical, theatrical and other cultural events.
Info
- Address: Elenis Zografou St.
Bibliography
http://odysseus.culture.gr/h/1/gh151.jsp?obj_id=25987
Last visit 9/12/2022
Ζafeiris Ch., (2014), Θεσσαλονίκη, η παρουσία των απόντων, η κληρονομιά Ρωμαίων, Μουσουλμάνων, Εβραίων, Ντονμέδων, Φράγκων, Αρμενίων και Σλάβων, [Thessaloniki, the presense of the absent, the heritage of Romans, Muslims, Jews, Doenme, Franks, Armenians and Slavs], Thessaloniki: Epikentro
Open House Thessaloniki, (2019), Ισλαχανέ,[Islahane] OHTh
