One of the surviving landmarks from the cosmopolitan era of Alexandria,is the villa and garden of Antoniadis at the Semouha district .The villa with its magnificent garden was originally owned by Sir John Antoniadis,a wealthy Alexandrian of Greek origins .The Villa is listed as historical monument number 1,250 in the governorate conservation registry,however,it deserves to be listed among the world heritage sites . The Antoniadis Villa and its park were constructed in the 19th century as a miniature version of the Palace of Versaille. The Villa garden house a collection of statues sculpted in the Greek style [ featuring personalities from the Greek mythology ],in addition to statues of famous historical figures and. There are also several archeological remains in the gardens, including a Roman tomb and a cistern.
The tomb on the grounds, because of its setting in such a paradise-like setting and because of the Agathodaimon (god snake) that decorated its kline chamber, is popularly known as the "Tomb of Adam and Eve." During Sir John Antoniadis lifetime, the villa and its garden was a gathering place for the social elite. However, in 1917, Antonis Antoniadis, the son of Sir JohnAntoniadis, donated the family mansion, grounds and gardens to the Alexandria Town Council. In 2004, General Abdel Salam El Mahgoub, the governor of Alexandria, donated the Villa Antoniadis and its gardens to the New Library of Alexandria, Bibliotheca Alexandria, including its furniture and other items. As part of this arrangement, the Villa is to be restored, and its content will be exhibited as part of the the Sir John Antoniadis collection
The garden also house a collection of rare plant species,making it one of the few scientifically based botanical gardens in Egypt
Presented below are some photos of the villa and its garden,some photos were photographed by me in 2000,others were adopted from
http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/antoniadis.htm
The accompanning music is that of an old Greek song from the mid 30s, [Rita Abadzi – Mime stelis mana anastin Ameriki ]
1.Palace of Antoniadis [3 photos]
2.Cycas revoluta [Cycadaceae] tree
3.Spherically shaped Ficus nitida [Moraceae] plants
4.A Greek style statue [Venus] [2 photos]
5.Another Greek style female figure [2 photos]
6.Araucaria bedwilii [Araucariaceae] tree,a very rare tree in Egypt.
7.A Greek style statue on an elevation [2 photos]
8.Statue of Vasco Da Gama
9.A Greek style statue
10.Statue of Ferdinand Magelan
11.Statue of Nelson
12.Statue of Christofer Columbus
13.View of some locations in the garden [2 photos]
14.Statue of Venus
15.Roman tomb [drawing]
16.Statue of Nelson
17.Some scenes from the garden [3 photos]
18. Greek style male statue [Hermes]