DAI - Archive

Profile

The archive is in charge of all documents created and acquired by the Athens Department, specifically the directorate lobby rooms, the administration, the editorial office, the photo archive, the library, and the excavation and field projects. These include historical collections gathered or acquired at the department as well as compilations of images, maps, and drawings that formerly served as research supports. Acquired documents also include private and academic bequests and heritages of particular relevance to the department's field of work, its scientific profile, and past activities. Some inventories formerly had registry functions.
The archive at the Athens Department contains documents dating chiefly to the period since its beginnings in 1874, although some earlier ones are also stored there. Through official records, academic and private bequests, image and excavation records it furnishes primary sources on the history and research-related accomplishments, not only of the department itself, but also of its members and other scholars of antiquity. Today the archive is split into the following repository groups: the former registry/institute files, the drawing and plan archive, the map collection, the aerial photo archive, the positive print collection, the bequests, and the excavations and project archives. The documents are stored, indexed, and partly digitised according to current international standards so as to secure their long-term availability for research. Already digitised assets can be consulted online at iDAI.objects.

Address & Contact

Fidiou 1
10678 Athens
Greece
+30 (0)210 3307405
archiv.athen@dainst.de

Terms of Use

Prior registration is required to use the archive.

Telephone: +30 (0)210 3307400
Fax: +30 (0)210 3814762
E-mail: archiv.athen@dainst.de

Excavations And Project Archives

The main part of the Athens archives consists of the excavation and project archives. These are the written, drawn, and photographic records of excavations and fieldwork. They include both completed (e.g. Kabeirion near Thebes) and ongoing projects. They contain the archives of the department's historical and cross-generational excavations at Olympia, Tiryns, Kalapodi, the Kerameikos, and the Heraion of Samos.

Institute Files/Old Registry

The institute's files/old registry chiefly comprises archived documents of its administration since the early days. With its 150 boxes, the old registry forms one of the largest components of the department's archive and encompasses eleven, theme-related sub-categories: correspondence, administration, instructions, reports, institute history, daily filing, courses, scholarships, library, photo archive , and editorial office. Each sub-category is conceived as a fonds and classified according to chronology and subject.

Bequest Archive

This archive features the research and (partially) the private bequests of the department's former personnel, travel grant fellows, associated archaeologists and associated scholars, chiefly from the classical studies. It furthermore comprises numerous, more or less important records from earlier excavations and fieldwork from a total of about 55 bequests of varying scales, contents, and chronological timespans dating back to 1840. This inventory group is continuously expanding.

The Aerial Photo Archive

The aerial photo archive comprises about 4,700 photographs taken during WWII and separates in two different fonds. The first consists of Greek, mostly oblique photographs (GLB fonds; approx. 950 prints; from around 1940) of various places in Greece, whilst the second is composed of images produced by assignment of the Reichsluftfahrtministerium (ministry of aviation; fonds RLB; 3,754 prints). The latter were taken in 1941/1942 with the aim to record ancient sites over large areas of Greece. The project was set up by the Referat Kunstschutz under the auspices of the Luftbildwesen des Reichsluftfahrtministeriums, and was supervised by the DAI Athens. Both groups separate in larger units according to region and topography.

The Drawing And Plan Archive

The drawing and plan archive hosts approx. 2,300 drawings and plans in various formats and designs. They consist of various drawings, sketches, coloured photos, and other image material produced ever since the founding of the Athens Department. They include documents for the most created in early research projects (excavations, field and architecture surveys) or in early editorial work at the Athens institute. A smaller part includes plans and sketches of the institute premises, the planned but never implemented new building in Rigilis street, and the old excavation house at Olympia.

The Map Collection

The map collection comprises approx. 2,200 geographical and hydrographic maps prepared in scales between 1 : 5,000 and 1 : 750,000. The earliest map templates date back to 1820. The map collection is sorted according to country and geographical region with a focus on Greece (approx. 1,700 map templates), the Aegean Sea, and adjacent areas.

The Positive Print Collection

The positive print collection accounts for about 50,000 photo prints, mainly of ancient works of art and archaeological objects in museums and collections worldwide. It also comprises photos of ancient monuments and various excavation sites and landscapes of Greece, Türkiye, Italy, and other subject-related regions. Most were purchased from well-known photographers and purveyors of archaeological photography of the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries, including the Alinari brothers, Adolphe Giraudon, Guillaume Gustav Berggren, Jules De Laurière, Carlo Naya, and Pietro Poppi.