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Left to descendants mercy...

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alexander stefanatos

Premium (Pro), thessaloniki

Left to descendants mercy...

Greece. Village of Ambelakia.
The village flourished at the end of 17th century and beginning of 19th, because of a cotton industry. The cotton was spindled, dyed and then exported to central Europe, especially Vienna.The workers became rich, built beautifully decorated houses and they also formed a cooperative, the first in Turkish occupied territory. The...ghosts of these houses can still be seen in the village,the most famous of those the one seen in the picture, named as "The house of Swartz" after the name of it's owner.
The tragedy is that the majority of these houses have ended as heritage to descendants that consider them rather a..curse than bliss, paying a considerable tax but not getting the least of state help to restore and preserve them. On top, some of them are considered historic sites so the government doesn't permit the owners even to demolish them and exploit the land!...
In the picture, "The house of Swartz", one of the lucky ones to be restored by the government and preserved as a museum.

Comments 3

SINA 14/04/2014 8:19
Ich hätte einen anderen Ort vermutetet Makkedonien
sicher ähneln Plätze einander
eindringlich und gut fotografiert lieber Alexander
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Harold Thompson 13/04/2014 9:25
Good detail from the low viewpoint pity its left to go
:-)) Harold
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Sue Thompson 13/04/2014 8:45
I supose we annot preserve every old and beautiful building......but it is so very sad when they are simply left to crumble away....unloved and unwanted. This must once have been a very beautiful building as well as someones home...their 'castle'
As you may well know, we have such old buildings here to, often taken care of by English Herritage or the National Trust....but even they struggle with the upkeep.

A superb shot and your point of view gives this old place a feeling of dominance. Great tones

:))
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