benches of the agora

benches of the agorarasmus brink pedersen

2015

the publication is supported by the danish institute at athens

isbn: 978-87-996577-1-1first edition, 300 copies

all images by rasmus brink pedersen, except for (a), (d), (i), and (j) which appear on per-

mission from the ascsa, and (e), which is in the public domain. the drawings on the cover are

details from (i).

the whole work or parts of the work may be copied for noncommercial purposes

contact: nyrasmusp@gmail.com

^^CC- - .~

1

benches of the agora

Below us the tracks of the electric railroad run; behind us a narrow pedestrian zone is lined by busy cafés, restaurants and crammed shops all striving for an air of authentic Greekness; around and past us a fence displays souvenirs; in front of us on the small bridge sits the ticket office. Several languages are heard in the line but only Greek and English are spoken at the counter. Past the counter the bridge widens into a raised platform. Close to the edge of the platform there is a very low bench and a lectern carrying an enamel panoramic map, displaying buildings, most of which are missing in the greenery below. A silver and orange train rushes by under us on rattling rails and eyes chase behind it along colourful graffiti on marble, masonry, and moss covered foundations. Only two of the buildings shown on the map are visible in front of us: On our left a long majestic building with a double colonnade in pentelic marble which looks whiter, fresher, and of a more recent date than its architecture suggests; and on the top of the low hill on our right a doric temple proudly resides, its tan marble columns halfway hidden among the laurels and cypresses. Ahead of us the Panathenaic Way leads to the Acropolis. In the shade of the small stone building that houses the ticket office, a vending machine is working hard to keep bottled water chilled for the guests.

2

B. This page: bench i, Poros stone bench. Ends painted grey. Very low. Behind it: Ticket office and vending machine.

A. Previous page: Children on bench near the Altar of the Twelve Gods, toward the Temple of Hephaistos. Spring 1957. Image: ASCSA

3

dramatis personae

visitor aAn artist or academic. Male. Scandinavian. Speaks slowly, and confidently most of the time, but is somehow a little embarrassed by his need to share the results of his studies in the archives. A little tan shows that he has been in Greece for a month

or two.

visitor bAn artist or academic. South European, but not Greek. Female. Knows visitor a from a study exchange program in Northern Europe. They both speak Interna-

tional English well enough to get by, but slow and with an accent.

bench iShaky high pitched voice full of the unwarranted pride of a border police func-

tionary. See image (B)

bench iiThe voice of old fashioned upperclass privilege. See images (D), (F)

bench iiiHelpful and matter-of-factly. See image (O)

bench ivThe voice of an angry parent. See image (P)

group of young touristsTwelve young men and women. North European. They have witnessed the arrival of boat refugees on the beaches of a Greek Island. Dressed in the latest fashion.

Sunburnt skin – their faces dark red, with pale blotches left by sunglasses.

tourist iYoung. Male. Casual wear. Carries selfiestick and waterbottle.

tourist iiThe male tourist archetype. Wears: shorts, short sleave shirt, cap, hiking sandals,

sunblock, large camera bag.

4

i

(Sweating heavily and squinting their eyes in the midday sun the visitors move away from the noisy crowd towards the very low bench i (B). the visitors stretch their legs, trying to find comfortable ways to sit)

bench i: (as soon as the visitors have seated themselves) I am the boundary of the Agora!

visitor b: Was that the bench speaking just now? bench i: I am the boundary of the Agora!

visitor a: I think so...

bench i: I am the boundary of the Agora!

visitor a: (to bench i) Hey, you said that already! It’s impossible to get a conversa-tion going here with you interrupting all the time.

bench i: I am the boundary of the Agora!

visitor b: (reading aloud from a smartphone) “The Ancient Agora of Classical Athens is the best-known example of an ancient Greek agora, located to the northwest of the Acropolis and bounded on...”

bench i: (interrupts visitor b) I am the boundary of the Agora!

visitor b: (looks very annoyed but reads on) “The agora was probably laid out in the centre of the city as a public space in the 6th century BC.”

bench i: (its voice becoming increasingly steady with pride) I am the boundary of the Agora!

visitor a: (to visitor b) Come on don’t read Wikipedia posts, I want to show you around, and tell you about the place.

5

bench i: I am the boundary...

(the visitors get up before bench i finishes the sentence, and walk down the ramp leading into the park)

visitor a: So, in antiquity this was the most important part of the city after the Acropolis itself. (content to be able to complete a sentence without interruptions) This was the heart of ancient Athens.

visitor b: That was an incredibly annoying piece of furniture!

visitor a: (cutting in) Yes... it was the centre of politics and economy of the ancient city – the cradle of Western civilisation. During my first visit to Athens I was surprised by the way that past and present seemed to intermingle – flowing over and under the fences that were supposed to keep them separated. Of course such things are never truly static bubbles in a bustling capital like Athens, but still, it was interesting. I started reading about the different archaeological sites and the history of the Agora excavation captivated me.

(the visitors walk qiuetly along the Panathenaic Way)

visitor a: “The process of excavating an archaeological site is essentially destructive …”1 I got that off their website – you know, this used to be a crowded inner-city neighbourhood with thousands of inhabitants. It was called Vlastarou.

visitor b: In Antiquity?

visitor a: No, before they began excavating in the 1930s.

6

expropriation

In 1826, following the battles of the Greek War of Independence, the Vlastarou neighbourhood was completely destroyed and rebuilt as it had been several times before. A century later in 1925 the Greek government and the American School of Classical Studies at Athens (ASCSA) began negotiating a contract for the exca-vation of the Ancient Agora of Athens buried deep beneath Vlastarou. The dream of excavating the Agora had come into being along with the modern Greek state in 1830. Some parts had been cleared since then, for instance the foundations of the Stoa of Attalos, and the railroad to Pireaus had cut its way through the area in 1891. The Greek state, trying to get back on its feet after the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922), was unable to finance the expropriation of the 365 houses covering the area. The European countries behind the international archaeological schools in Athens were suffering from the aftereffects of World War I, leaving the ASCSA, which relied on private funding, as the only institution able to take on the task. The donor, kept anonymous throughout the negotiations, was later revealed to be the Rockefeller Foundation. The shortage of housing in Athens after the wars, and the following population exchange with Turkey, was overwhelming. This made the expropriation and demolition of an entire inner-city neighbourhood very unpop-ular.2 One of the clauses in the contract between the ASCSA and the Greek state provided that; once the excavation had been completed the area was to be turned into a park.

C. Visitors in the park.

7

ii

(the visitors are inspecting bench ii (D), (F) on the right side of the Panathenaic Way close to the Odeion of Agrippa and facing the Stoa of Attalos)

visitor b: (standing, facing bench ii) So, they kicked people out of their homes in the middle of a housing crisis to see what was lying underneath. I guess that shows how important this place is to the self-image of the Greek nation. But why not wait a while and make it a national endeavour – I mean, why let the American School do it if it is such an important symbol in the national imagination?

visitor a: (crouching by the end of bench ii inspecting the meander-like pattern of the arm rest) I guess it depends on who you ask. I’ve met a lot of people in Athens who are interested in the work of the archaeologist Yannis Hamilakis. According to him there is a connection between the stabilization loans granted by the United States Congress, and the very generous contract that the ASCSA was able to negotiate.3 At one point there was talk of a shared operation with Greek and American archaeologists working together, but in the end the ASCSA were given control over the excavations.

visitor b: (observing visitor a with a puzzled expression) What are you doing down there?

visitor a: (gets up too fast) I’m... wow, let’s sit. (swirls around and falls back into a sitting position on bench ii)

visitor b: Are you alright? (sits down next to visitor a) You were about to say something.

visitor a: (still a little confused, shakes head, wipes forehead) I was just looking at the design. This is the first bench that was set up in the park.

visitor b: How do you know that?

visitor a: That was what I was reading about when I was going through the archives.

8

D. Park bench. Diazotype, of drawing by R. E. Griswold. Image: ASCSA

9

visitor b: (in a forbearing tone) Now I remember you talking about the archives – so that’s why we’re here?

visitor a: Is that such a bad thing? I’ve spent a lot of time reading and studying. If I don’t share it afterwards it would have been a waste of time. (pauses) I was reading about the landscaping of the park and all the things that comes with such an undertaking – like the benches for instance. This marble bench was the first prototype.

visitor b: It is nice, why are the others not like this one?

bench ii: (in a feigned highbrow voice) Marble invites scribbling and doesn’t blend well with the surroundings.4 (resigned) Why couldn’t they just be honest and say that 144$5 a piece was over budget. (proud) Good looks doesn’t come for free, you know.

visitor b: Here we go again!

visitor a: I’m sorry, I’ve been here a lot and this has never happened before. (waits to see if bench ii replies, and then continues) I like the idea of treating the archive as a subject,6 and I’ve tried to somehow understand and follow that concept, but treating furniture as subjects is quite...

visitor b: Okay... (deep breath) back to the excavations: Don’t you think that the loans would have come through even if the Greeks had chosen to postpone the excavations and made it a national undertaking?

visitor a: I don’t know, probably, but in a way it became a national undertaking for the Americans as well. Hamilakis says it quite well, I think, (takes out a piece of paper from a jacket pocket, unfolds it) in this passage about the reception, in the American media, of the news that the ASCSA would be in charge of the exca-vations: (reading aloud) “[T]he land of freedom, democracy, and the free market will be excavating the birthplace of democracy – and not just any part of it, but its “marketplace.” Nationalism and a strong belief in free enterprise, capitalism, and Western democracy were to meet in the trenches of the ancient Agora, provided that the dirty old houses were gotten out of the way.”7

bench ii: Making way for a beautiful park, not a bad idea.

10

visitor b: So a financial crisis decided the outcome of it – sounds familiar doesn’t it?

visitor a: I guess, but the ASCSA administration also knew all the right people: influential diplomats, administrators, archaeologists and politicians. Elefterios Venizelos who happened to become Prime Minister in August 1928 was a personal friend of Edward Capps, chairman of the Managing Committee of the American School. (speaking faster and faster) A few days after Venizelos was ap-pointed to the post a new concession was signed. In May 1929 the stabilization loan was signed by President Hoover and in July of the same year a law passed signing over the excavations of the Ancient Athenian Agora to the ASCSA.

(bench ii lets out a loud exaggerated yawn)

visitor b: I can imagine that some would call that colonialism.

visitor a: (excited) I think Hamilakis’ thoughts are very useful here. He speaks of a double colonization: Firstly; by way of the new ruling class, which is imported from Bavaria, the area which becomes Greece in the 1830s, is colonized by West-ern Hellenism – the idealization of Greece of the classical period. On August 28, 1834 when the new ruler of Greece – the Bavarian King Otto – announced that the Greek capital would be moved to Athens it was celebrated here in front of the Hephaeisteion – or church of St George as it was called at the time – with a Christian mass, connecting the new capital, nation, king, and Christianity to classical antiquity (E). And then, a hundred years later, followed the colonization of this very specific place at the center of the capital and national imagination, by modern archaeology, again on behalf of the ideals of Hellenism.

visitor b: So Greece was colonized by its own past?

visitor a: By a certain version of its past, I guess. And then the classical ideals be-came even more important to the Greek national self-image.

bench ii: Weren’t you talking about benches?

visitor a: Well, yes I guess, but...

bench ii: (mockingly) But...

11

ralph esty griswold

In the spring of 1940 the excavation was suspended due to the outbreak of World War II. In 1946 work was resumed on special permission from the Greek admin-istration. Three years later it was decided that the Stoa of Attalos was to be recon-structed to house the museum, offices and archives of the Agora Excavation. On June 19, 1953 Homer A. Thompson, who had been appointed to the position of Field Director in 1947, wrote to the already famous landscape architect Ralph Esty Griswold of Pittsburgh, Ohio: “I hope that you are still disposed to take an interest in the landscaping of the Athenian Agora”,8 and went on to ask him if he or someone from his office could come to Athens and make a survey for the landscaping of the soon to be completed excavation. Thompson and Griswold had been in contact since the fall of 1950, and Griswold having: “[...] wide experience and unusual skill, combined with [...] warm interest in Greece and Greek culture, [was] particularly well fitted for the important and difficult task of landscaping the Agora Park.”9 For Griswold there were obvious links between his work at home and abroad. In an article he compared working around the remains of the colonial forts found in Pittsburgh’s Point Park, which he was landscaping, and the antiqui-ties of the Athenian Agora: “A comparrison of these two enterprises presents an interesting study in the progress of civilization. The Agora Excavation has brought to light the physical evidence of man’s highest cultural achievement up to the time it was destroyed seventeen centuries ago. Now, the Point Park excavation is bring-ing to light the physical structures where men fought seventeen centuries after the destruction of the Agora to revive the ancient culture in undeveloped country.”10

E. The entry of King Otto in Athens by Peter von Hess, 1839, Neue Pinakothek, München

12

iii

(the visitors are sitting on bench ii watching other visitors walk up and down the Pana-thenaic Way)

visitor b: Tourists are quite the spectacle, hurrying through rows of rocks and museum galleries, aren’t they,?

visitor a: (holding up notebook to shade eyes from the sun) This is what he did, you know, the landscape achitect Ralph E. Griswold, when he was laying out the locations for paths and benches: He watched visitors move around between the ruins.

visitor b: So he believed that the visitors already knew where to go?

visitor a: I guess he considered it the scientific approach. Observe, analyse and then do the planning.11 He just did it very fast. For the plantings he researched both on site and in archives, to find whatever traces he could of the plants that would have been here in antiquity. He wanted the plants and paths to guide and help guests find their way to the most important ruins and antiquities. He was an efficient man; he came over here in August of 1953, and on October 15, 1953 he completed his Preliminary Report for the Landscape Development.

visitor b: But a park like this will always be a construct, an image! Choices are made as to which parts are to be buried and which are to remain visible.

visitor a: Of course, kind of like writing a book. I don’t think that they were unaware of this, but they wanted it to be a construct that represented a certain moment in antiquity, focusing on what we talked about before: freedom, de-mocracy, and the free market. Argyro Loukaki defines the concept of landscap-ing archaeological sites quite well I think. (flipping through the pages of a notebook) Here it is: (reading aloud) “Archeological landscaping has the task of redefining a monuments place in modern society and of managing the inherent contra-diction between the ‘exceptionality’ – the eternity of the ancient monuments – and the ‘normality’ – the mortality of the rest of the urban fabric.”12

visitor b: The trashcans, guard sheds and benches look a bit out of place then.

13

F. bench ii. Marble bench end. Meander pattern. Designed by R. E. Griswold. 1955.

G. Marble bench end with volute and wing. Designed by Gorham P. Stevens. 1955.

H. Limestone (poros). Standard design by R. E. Griswold. 1955

14

visitor a: Not to forget the fences... Those are all exceptions to the rule. Griswold wanted all of it to do nothing, but protect and provide access to the Agora.13 Still there are concerns and cultural differences that come out when designing and choosing these objects. It is interesting that Griswold, when he had to come up with a design for the park benches, looked to the heart of modern Athens, Syntagma Square, and developed his design based on the benches there.14 The one we are sitting on here is a prototype, and another was designed at the same time, by the School’s honorary architect Gorham P. Stevens, for comparison of appearance, comfort and cost. Griswold refers to Stevens’ bench as Hellenistic,15 but it also has some quality to it that reminds me of 1950s American design, with its soft curves, volutes and wings.

visitor b: Let’s go and have a look at it.

visitor a: Sure it’s right up here.

(the visitors get up and continue up the hill. They stop for a while to look at the bench (G) designed by Stevens. They talk and gesticulate but the dialogue is inaudible. They then leave the Panathenaic Way and walk west along the path that runs alongside the ancient drain)

15

landscaping

In 1953 the reconstruction of the Stoa of Attalos began, and landscaping work commenced in November 1954. Skilled stone workers were hired and facilities for stone cutting were set up in the area to accommodate the Stoa reconstruction work. This meant that the stone bench ends could be manufactured on site by skilled craftsmen, and the first sample bench was set up in February 1955. On May 21, 1955 Ralph E. Griswold and the landscape crew could dance and celebrate their accomplishments in the park.16 The opening ceremony for the reerected Stoa took place on on the 75th anniversary of the American School, September 3, 1956.

G.

J. This page: Park bench as set up on slope of Kolonos Agoraios on April 2, 1955. Ends made of grey limestone (poros); seat and back of cypress. Image: ASCSA

I. Opposite page: Socle for iron fence along West side of Agora. Park bench. Drawing by R. E. Griswold, Aug. 30, 1953. Image: ASCSA

16

iv

(the visitors are standing by the side of a path, looking down into a ditch. In the shade of a tree a group of young tourists are discussing their encounter with the refugee crisis on the Greek islands. The discussion is heard as a faint murmur under the visitors’ con-versation. Sometimes fragments such as: “We weren’t allowed to help!”,“It was awful!”, or “Why would they force them to walk all the way?”, are heard)

visitor a: This is where it has it from.

visitor b: This is where what has what from?

visitor a: It – the first bench – said “I am the boundary of the Agora”. This is an ancient boundary stone, and that’s what is written on it: “I am the boundary of the Agora”, they would let objects speak in first person like that – as subjects.

visitor b: So the stone says that?

visitor a: Yes.

visitor b: Who is it talking to?

visitor a: (reading from small booklet) “The limits of the square had to be well marked for two reasons. First, people who were underage or who had been convicted of certain crimes [...] were not allowed into the Agora. Second, mark-ers were needed to define what was public land, to prevent encroachment by private buildings.”17 (puts booklet away) This area was the heart of it all – democ-racy, trade, culture.

visitor b: So everyone else were allowed in here and could vote then?

visitor a: No, only male citizens who had completed military service could partic-ipate in the democratic process. This meant that the majority were not allowed to vote: slaves, freed slaves, children, women and foreigners resident in Athens.

visitor b: I would have disliked those democrats.

17

visitor a: Sure, not everyone could participate in the democracy of that time. Peo-ple who were deemed unworthy of the political sphere, either because of their origin or sex or because they posed a threat to democracy could not take part. The latter category included people who became to powerful in the eyes of the majority. It was possible to call a vote for ostracism of someone if there was a suspicion that this person might aspire to become a tyrant.

visitor b: So they would vote and kick people out of the city?

visitor a: Yes, the votes were anonymous. Everyone would write on a piece of pottery the name of the person who they thought aspired to become a tyrant, and the person with more votes would get kicked out. This must have backfired quite often – the accuser getting kicked out instead of the accused. But that’s Utopia for you, you need a walled perimeter for it to work.

K. Poros stone bench end with ques-tion mark grafitto.

18

the other landscape

When Griswold wrote his Preliminary Report in 1953 he emphazised that the park was the first of its kind in Greece.18 But while funds were raised for the Agora park another landscaping project was initiated. Dimitris Pikionis and his students designed an architectural landscape for the area around the Acropolis and the Philopappos Hill. It was a considerable undertaking, laying out walkways, benches and plantings in much the same way that Griswold did in the Agora. But while Griswold insisted on a scientific approach, Pikionis followed his intuition while working on site, composing patterns in walkways and designing benches. He used remains of neoclassical buildings to blend in with paving stones and concrete elements for the walkways. His benches vary greatly in design, some even seem unfinished (K). This work went on from May 1954 to February 1958. The two men were very different; the scientist and the artist working right next to each other. They would have had so much to talk about, but apparently they never met. The two landscapes attract different visitors to this day; the Agora is mostly visited by foreign tourists while the walkways around Philopappos Hill is mostly frequented by Athenians.19

L. Bench on Philopappos Hill. The back is not attached to the seat.

19

M. Marble bench end with volute, from Syntagma Square bench.

N. Marble bench end with volute, from Syntagma Square bench. After a riot.

20

v

(the visitors walk past the remains of the Tholos, and up the stairs that wind their way up the hill like a goat trail. They stop halfway up the trail to sit on bench iii (O) and take in the view)

visitor b: So what is the thesis that you have conjured up from all this? I mean, what is the deal with studying these benches?

visitor a: I find that the benches are meant to have a dual function in here. They signify public space; this is a park! And at the same time by being distinctly different from the surroundings they tell us that this public space is a model, an image, an idealised space; something out of time that we can study. When ancient remains are left outside the fences people interact with them; there is a lot of very intimate interaction going on just outside here after dark.

visitor b: So benches are signifiers of a space where all kinds of people can coexist – if there are benches there is a real democratic public sphere?

visitor a: Well, new seating arrangements in public space is sometimes the contra-ry. Benches with divisions so that the user cannot lie down are used as anti bum technologies. Boulders and stone slabs are being set up instead of benches in areas close to centers of power or commerce, always too uncomfortable or too cold to rest on for long. Sometimes they double as public sculptures and – in the name of anti terrorism – as bollards in front of buildings.

visitor b: So these are very democratic benches except there’s a fence around them…

visitor a: They are park benches, but they are inspired by the benches (M), (N) in a very real and vibrant public space: Syntagma Square. I think there is a rea-son for choosing that. Griswold’s benches become physical links between the democracy of classical times and the democracy of the contemporary Western state. There are remains of stone benches in the Agora, but Griswold insists on wooden seats. For two of the big memorials in the park stone benches where chosen, to recall classical seating arrangements, but Griswold wanted the park benches to be as comfortable as possible. As I told you earlier, he wanted the benches and all other contemporary elements to underline and facilitate the

21

educational purpose of the park. He was a bit worried that some would com-plain that his landscape design was somehow not strict enough, or that there was a lack of lawns and exotic plants in the park. Listen to this: (takes out notebook from pocket and reads aloud) “The design must satisfy the archaeologists, historians, horticulturalists, artists and economists”. “It will not be possible to create the kind of park that the public enjoys”. “This will primarily be an educational park and I hope that the public will not be led to expect the conventional type of recreational park”.20

visitor b: For a place that the public cannot enjoy it draws quite a lot of visitors.

visitor a: Yes, and it is nice in here isn’t it, away from the busy streets and all. Gris-wold and Thompson preferred Greek park goers to Americans, by the way.21

visitor b: (has gotten up while visitor a was talking, and is inspecting the writing on the end of the bench) The inscription is very difficult to read.

bench iii: Margaret MacVeagh – 1917–1947 – Lincoln MacVeagh. (in Greek) MNHMHΣ ENEKA

visitor b: (to bench iii) Well thank you, that was very helpful. (to visitor a) Do you know what that last part means?

visitor a: (gets up and joins visitor b at the end of the bench) Yes I had someone22 translate it for me, it says something along the lines of: ‘With reason to be hon-ored’. It is a mix of old and new Greek and is supposed to mean ‘In memory of ’. There was quite a lot of discussion about dedications in the park. The Ameri-cans were used to a tradition in which donors, friends and staff would be com-memorated around the park, on benches for instance. They had already made some promises when the Greek authorities told them that this wasn’t allowed in the archaeological sites. In the end they reached a compromise, and this is an example of that compromise.23 Most inscriptions in the park are memorials to ASCSA staff, but I don’t think that Margaret here was part of the staff.

(the visitors continue up the hill)

22

maintenance

The museum and park was handed over to the Greek government on June 6, 1957. Griswold left maps and maintenance manuals to make sure that plants were kept in the best possible way and that sight lines remained unobstructed according to his plans. He visited Athens again in 1966 and 1967 to give advice on pruning and new plantings.

O. bench iii: Margaret MacVeagh memorial bench. Inscription: Margaret MacVeagh – 1917–1947 – Lincoln MacVeagh – MNHMHΣ ENEKA

Wikipedia on Lincoln MacVeagh: “On November 12, 1943, President Roosevelt […] sent him to Cairo to act as the ambassador to the governments-in-exile of Greece and Yugoslavia [...] After the liberation of Greece, MacVeagh transferred the embassy back to Athens on October 27, 1944. […] In 1947, he gave secret testimony to the Congress on the danger of Soviet-supported extreme leftist move-ments in the Balkans. This testimony was considered an important factor in formulating what became known as the Truman Doctrine [...] MacVeagh pressed the post-war Greek Government to pursue a democratic policy. While he was in Greece, MacVeagh conducted excavations beneath the Acropolis and made archeological contributions to the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. […] His wife died while they were in Athens. He left Athens on October 11, 1947.”

23

vi

(the visitors walk past the Belvedere towards the Hephaisteion, enjoying the view to the East)

visitor a: (pointing to a spot just below the Hephaisteion) The first of the limestone benches must have been set up on this slope here.24 But either it has been moved or it has disappeared between the trees and bushes.

visitor b: So the park isn’t completely static.

visitor a: No, and they are still excavating an area on the other side of Hadrian Street. A park is a living organism of sorts. As the plants and trees grew some of the benches had to be moved.25 If you look at this one over here (points to a bench behind them) it used to be a sightseeing bench with a view of the Acropolis and the Stoa of Attalos, but now the bushes block the view completely.

visitor b: Why don’t they cut them down?

visitor a: I don’t know, but it is very unpopular to cut down trees in Athens, even pruning bushes can be problematic.

visitor b: Well, we all love trees don’t we.

visitor a: It would be unbearable in here without the shade of the trees on a day like this. But it is getting a bit colder now isn’t it? (holds out a hand as if measuring the temperature of the air)

(visitor b shruggs)

visitor a: The archaeologists here seem to have just as diverse opinions on these matters as everyone else. Some would like the original park design to be more visible. Others would prefer to have more of the area covered with lawns and leave only the vertical structures for visitors to look at. The site is registered and photographed already and the archaeologists work mostly in their offices, only rarely on site. (trying to sound like an archaeologist) “Who wants to look at founda-tions anyway?” (waits for a response, then continues) I enjoy the overgrown bits in

24

here myself, that some paths are very narrow and that the bushes hide stuff. That reminds me that we should go and look at something down here...

visitor b: Could we pass by the temple on the way at least?

visitor a: Okay, sorry for hurrying you through.

P. bench iv, Standard poros stone bench with a view to the Acropolis. A tree has been cut down to preserve the view.

25

vii

(On the way to the Hephaisteion the visitors witness an exchange between bench iv (P) and tourist i. bench iv is set at one of the best view points in the park)

tourist i: It is really quiet here... (he says to the smartphone at the end of his selfie-stick, turning slowly, filming himself against the changing background of trees, tourists and attractions)

bench iv: (shouting at tourist i) Come on! Sit down! Enjoy the scenery for a while!

Tourist i: (still turning) Hahaha, except for talking benches that is.

bench iv: So that’s funny is it?

(the visitors walk on between the revolving tourist i and bench iv, which is still attempting to get the former’s attention)

visitor a: Famous European Philhellenes26 who fought in the Greek War of Inde-pendence were burried here under the Hephaisteion.

visitor b: (ignoring visitor a) It is beautiful!

(the visitors observe tourist ii working doggedly, clearing a frame for a picture of the Hephaisteion without ‘foreign’ elements. A monstrous camera is resting on a tripod which is planted in the tracks of innumerable tripods that came before it. He moves back and forward removing small pieces of trash, even pulling up a weed or two that doesn’t look sufficiently Mediterranean. He then positions himself in front of the temple with his luxmeter and meas-ures the light. Finally he gets behind the camera, and after staring a couple of guests out of his frame he pushes the button on his remote shutter release. the visitors walk around the temple and back onto the path overlooking the park)

visitor b: That is a lot of work just to take the exact same image as all the other camera enthusiasts.

visitor a: Yes, the number of recorded images have exploded since they started talking about excavating this place. Griswold was given a series of photos of

26

the area which he manipulated with watercolors to visualize his ideas. He was very skilled at this work, and a number of examples of these photomontages (Q) can be found in the archive.27 He continued a tradition from the earliest photography of classical ruins and antiquities; the attempt to present the remains out of time. These early photographic records were made in the same period as modern archaeology and tourism came into being. The three have been tightly connected ever since.28 (pauses to enjoy the view) Hey let’s see what images Goog-le comes up with if you search for: Ancient Agora of Athens.

visitor b: I thought my phone was ruining your guided tour...

(the visitors laugh and take turn pointing at the images, that Google presents them with. bench iv has noticed what they are doing and is shouting to get their attention)

visitor b: (looking at bench iv, but talking to visitor a) It’s weird how few people there are in these images. Almost all of them portray only ruins, antiquities and plants.

viii

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visitor a: Somehow we, as guests, seem to keep producing the same kind of im-ages, as the first photographers who visited here in the 1830s.

bench iv: (still shouting) Except of course for all the ‘family in front of …’ images and selfies.

visitor b: That’s true, why don’t those images show up in the search? (pauses) Also, the area must have changed a lot, even since the 1960s, I mean.

visitor a: Yes, and when planting and pruning was taken over by the Greek state some of the original sightlines that Griswold had planned disappeared. In some places invasive plants – I think it is a kind of sumac – seem to have taken over from the native Attic species. Griswold had also hoped to keep palmtrees and exotic plants out of the area, but they found their way in through donations.29

visitor b: It’s getting kind of cold now. You wanted to show me one more thing?

28

(the visitors are standing in the middle of a shrubbery)

visitor a: I think these are pretty interesting. (pointing to two moulds on the ground covered in moss and leaves (R)) They are copies of the poros stone bench ends, but cast in concrete.

visitor b: (shruggs) So they are replacing broken ones with concrete substitutes?

visitor a: I don’t know, I think that they have added to the total amount of bench-es. There are more now than in Griswold’s original plan. They set up 25 back then,30 but I counted 33. It was when I saw these moulds I decided to read up on the benches. I guess I like them for their sculptural qualities or something like that. Someone has poured the concrete but never taken them out of the molds.

visitor b: Maybe they had enough benches already?

visitor a: Yes, probably they were made just before the Olympic Games in 2004. They somehow conjure up the whole feel of that event, and some of the crises that were to follow, I think. The whole city had a make over, including the ar-chaeological parks, but it was done in a hurry and a lot of the structures of the Games are now deserted. They are the new ruins of Athens, and they have found their way in here as well.

visitor b: Could you be over analysing this a bit?

visitor a: Maybe or... no, I don’t think so. Everything in here is up for interpreta-tion, not just the remains of Athens of the classical period. In my opinion the way areas like this is dealt with and presented now tells us as much about the state of contemporary Western democracy as the ancient ruins does.

(It has started raining a little and the visitors climb out through the hole in the bushes and walk towards the exit in silence. On the way out they pass bench i)

bench i: I am the boundary of the Agora!

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R. This page: Silicone and styro-foam moulds for making new concrete bench ends. A finished pair of ends have been left in the moulds.

Q. Page 26 and 27: Work desk in the Agora Excavations Archive. To the right; a selection of reproductions of Griswold’s photomontages.

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1 The American School of Classical Studies at Athens. (n.d.). Overview: The Notebooks. Retrieved from http://www.agathe.gr/overview/the_notebooks.html.

2 See: Loukaki, Argyro, in: Living Ruins, Value Conflicts. The chapter: Two Landscapings for the Acropolis: A Comparison, Pp. 251–280. Ashgate Publishing, 2008.

3 See: Hamilakis, Yannis, Double Colonization: The Story of the Excavations of the Athenian Agora (1924-1931). Hesperia – The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, Volume 82: number 1 January–March 2013. Pp. 153–177, ASCSA.

4 “The form on which we have finally settled has ends cut from Piraeus limestone of a warm tan color which blends nicely with the setting. After making a couple with marble ends we came to realize that the marble was much to conspicuous and that it invited scribbling.” Homer A. Thompson in letter to Mr. Lincoln MacVeagh about the memorial bench for Mrs. MacVeagh. December 21, 1955. Folder 18, Capps Memorial – Correspondence, drawings, etc. on proposal 1954–56. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

5 Griswold, Ralph E. in: Progress Report no. 7, adressed to Mr. Eugene Vanderpool. December 27, 1954. Folder 6, Progress Reports 1954–55. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

6 “[R]ather than treating the archive purely and merely as a source of information I attempt to view it also as an apparatus for the production of facts, as a subject as well as an object.” Hamilakis, Yannis, in: Double Colonization: The Story of the Excavations of the Athenian Agora (1924–1931). Hesperia – The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, Volume 82: number 1 January–March 2013. P. 156, ASCSA.

7 Hamilakis, Yannis, in: Double Colonization: The Story of the Excavations of the Athenian Agora (1924–1931). Hesperia – The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, Volume 82: number 1 January–March 2013. P. 173, ASCSA.

8 Homer A. Thompson in letter to Ralph E. Griswold. June 19, 1953. Folder 7, Correspondence 1953–56, R.Griswold – H. Thompson. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

9 Document titled: Ralph E. Griswold, Landscape Architect. Dated: Dec. 14, 1954. Unsigned. Folder 7, Correspondence 1953–56, R.Griswold – H. Thompson. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

10 Griswold, Ralph E. in: Landscaping the Athenian Agora, copy of article send to Homer A. Thompson before publication in Carnegie Museum Magazine, April 1956. P. 3, Folder 16, Griswold Articles Published. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

11 “More valuable than almost any other aspect of my study was the opportunity of observing from the balcony of the office which I shared with Mr. Thompson, the hundreds of visitors who swarmed through the Agora daily. One day I joined the regular Wednesday tours […] and I checked these routes with Mr. Thompson. By this process the proposed path system which forms the skeleton of the landscape scheme was developed. It is the natural route for visitors to follow and very close to the route followed by Pausanias about the year 150 A.D.” Ralph E. Griswold, Foreword, Preliminary Report for the Landscape Development. P. 1, October 15, 1953. Preliminary Report folder. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

12 Loukaki, Argyro, in: Living Ruins, Value Conflicts. P. 126, Ashgate Publishing, 200813 “Likewise, all other elements [than plants] of the landscape such as fences, walls, walks, steps and

benches serve the sole purpose of protecting and providing access to the Agora and its adjacent areas.” Griswold, Ralph E., Preliminary Report for the Landscape Development. P. 3, October 15, 1953. Preliminary Report folder. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

14 “Twenty-five locations for comfortable benches are shown on the plan in the central area. These benches will consist of simple marble ends supporting comfortable, unpainted, wooden-slat seats and backs similar in design to benches in Constitution [Greek: Syntagma] Square Park.” Griswold, Ralph E., Preliminary Report for the Landscape Development. P. 13. October 15, 1953. Preliminary Report folder. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

15 Griswold, Ralph E. in: Progress Report no. 7, adressed to Mr. Eugene Vanderpool. December 27, 1954. Folder 6, Progress Reports 1954–55. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

16 See: Mauzy, Craig A., Agora Excavations 1931–2006 – A Pictorial History, The American

notes

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School of Classical Studies at Athens, 2006, P. 105.17 Camp II, John McK., The Athenian Agora – A short Guide to the Excavations, Agora Picture

Books No. 16, The American School of Classical Studies at Athens, 2003. 18 “Among all the excavations of ancient sites in Greece there is no precedent for the proposed systematic

landscape of the Athenian Agora. This is a pioneer undertaking. It is as unique as the Agora was in its historical signifigance and will add new interest to its ancient traditions.” Griswold, Ralph E., Foreword, Preliminary Report for the Landscape Development. P. 1, October 15, 1953. Preliminary Report folder. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

19 For a comparison of the two landscaping projects see: Loukaki, Argyro, in: Living Ruins, Value Conflicts. The chapter: Two Landscapings for the Acropolis: A Comparison, Pp. 251–280. Ashgate Publishing, 2008.

20 Letter from Ralph E. Griswold to Gorham P. Stevens in which Ralph E. Griswold recounts his remarks, to the Committee at their meeting on November 18, 1954, by memory. Letter dated November 19, 1954. Folder 17, Memorials. Quotes in original. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

21 “Your observation that the Greek park goer is more orderly than the American is borne out by my experience. Americans are definitely more messy.” In letter from Ralph E. Griswold to Homer A. Thompson. August 1, 1955. Folder 22, Griswold Agora Correspondence sent from Pittsburgh.

22 This translation was suggested by Anders Olesen.23 “We further agree that names, but of deceased persons only, may be inscribed in an inconspicuous place

on the park benches.” Letter from the Ministry of Education to the ASCSA, signed: The Minister P. Levantis. August 2, 1956. Marked: Translation. Folder 18, Capps Memorial. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

24 “Sample poros bench has been been set adjacent to the Northeast path from the Hephaisteion to the Agora; half way up the slope.” Griswold, Ralph E. in: Progress Report No. 21: Adressed to: Mr. Homer Thompson. April 2, 1955. Folder 15, Griswold Financial Statements 1955–1956. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

25 Homer A. Thompson and Ralph E. Griswold kept track of the of the benches on a map. Some seem to have been moved several times in 1956 and 1957 from their original 1955 positions. The map titled ‘Agora Drawing: DA 4778: Preliminary Landscape Plan’ can be found in the Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA and online at: http://ascsa.net/id/agora/drawing/da%204778?q=bench%20positions&t=&v=list&sort=&s=1.

26 Philhellene: An admirer of Greece and Greek culture. Philhellenism was prominent mostly at the turn of the 19th century. Many philhellenes supported the Greek War of Independence and some took up arms to join the Greek revolutionaries. The text on the Edward Capps Memorial Lectern at the Belvedere in the Agora Park reads: Edward Capps // 1866–1950 // Scholar . Philhellene // Chairman of the Commission for the Excavation of the Athenian Agora.

27 And reproduced in: Mauzy, Craig A., Agora Excavations 1931–2006 – A Pictorial History, The American School of Classical Studies at Athens, 2006, Pp. 96-101. As well as at http://ascsa.net (search for ‘Griswold’).

28 For further reading on the links between photography, archaeology and tourism see: Hamilakis, Yannis and Ifantidis, Fotis. The Photographic and the Archaeological: The other Acropolis. Pp. 133–157. In: Camera Graeca: Photographs, Narratives, Materialities, eds: Carabott, Hamilakis and Papargyrio, Ashgate Publishing Ltd, 2015.

29 “On the surrounding slopes I planted other indigenous plants but no exotics. This policy became difficult to follow when prominent individuals offered gifts of exotic plants. In a few cases I compromised for strategic reasons trusting that nature would take its course.” Griswold, Ralph E. in: Landscaping the Athenian Agora, copy of article send to Homer A. Thompson before publication in Carnegie Museum Magazine, April 1956. P.4. Folder 16, Griswold Articles Published. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

30 “Limestone-end benches have proved to be the most appropriate in appearance and the cheapest. 22 have been authorised in addition to the two sample marble and one limestone benches that have been finished.” Griswold, Ralph E. in: Progress Report No. 22, adressed to Mr. Homer Thompson, April 9, 1955. Folder 6, Progress Reports 1954–55. Athenian Agora Excavations Archives, ASCSA.

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further reading

Eds: Carabott, Hamilakis and Papargyrio, Camera Graeca: Photographs, Narratives, Materialities, Ashgate Publishing Ltd, 2015

Hamilakis,Yannis, The Nation and its Ruins: Antiquity, Archaeology, and National Imagination in Greece, Oxford University Press, Oxford 2007

Hesperia – The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, Volume 82: number 1 January–March 2013. P. 173, ASCSA

Lord, Louis E., A History of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens: 1882-1942, ASCSA, 1947

Loukaki, Argyro, Living Ruins, Value Conflicts, Ashgate Publishing, 2008

Mauzy, Craig A., Agora Excavations 1931-2006: A Pictorial History. With con-tributions by John McK. Camp II, The American School of Classical Studies at Athens, 2006

McK. Camp II, John, The Athenian Agora – A short Guide to the Excavations, Picture Book No.16, ASCSA, 2003

Thompson, Dorothy Burr and Griswold, Ralph E., Garden Lore of Ancient Ath-ens, Picture Book No. 8, ASCSA, 1963

websites

The American School of Classical Studies at Athens: http://www.ascsa.edu.gr/

The Other Acropolis: http://theotheracropolis.com/

i would like to thank:

craig mauzy and the rest of the ascsa staff at the archives of

the athenian agora excavations

former director, rune frederik-sen and the staff at the danish

institute at athens

the staff at the nordic library at athens

eleni tzirtzilaki and christina thomopoulos and the activists

at embros

the staff at hald hovedgaard

anders olesen

liv nimand duvå

^^CC- - .~ISBN: 978-87-996577-1-1