Private Zoğrafyon Greek High School
Changes After Construction:
- According to official records, in 1845 there were two wooden buildings on the site of the present building, representing its historical roots.
- The current structure was built in 1893 in place of the deteriorated wooden mansions.
- In 1962, the building underwent a comprehensive restoration, during which one additional floor and a mezzanine level were added.
- In 2025, restoration and seismic strengthening works were carried out.
Prominent Features:
- The educational roots of the institution, known today as Zoğrafyon Greek High School, date back to the Panagia School founded in 1851.
- The primary school section, the oldest Greek school established in the Beyoğlu district, was closed in the 1973–1974 academic year.
- Hristaki Zografos, after whom the school is named, was a Galata banker and was known as the personal jeweler of Sultan Murad V.
- The sphinx, a symbolic element of the building designed in the Greek style, was proposed by the school’s first principal, Mihail Kefalas of Chios.
- Among the school’s alumni, which graduated its first class in 1899, is Patriarch Bartholomew I.
