About Ernst Ziller
Lived 1837 – 1923 (aged 86). Ernst Ziller was a German and Greek architect, art historian, archaeologist, architectural historian, university teacher and building researcher.
Ernst Ziller's plan for the extension to the ballroom of the crown prince's palace in Athens (Presidential Mansion).
Ernst Moritz Theodor Ziller (; , Ernestos Tsiller ; 22 June 1837 – 4 November 1923) was a German-born university teacher and architect who later became a Greek national. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, he was a major designer of royal and municipal buildings in Athens, Patras, and other Greek cities.
Biography Ziller was born in the rural community of Serkowitz in the district of Radebeul in the Kingdom of Saxony. After graduating from the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts in 1858, he went to work for Danish architect Theophilus Hansen. In 1861, Hansen sent him to Athens. In 1872 he was appointed a professor at the Royal School of Arts, now National Technical University of Athens.
He was married to a Greek wife, Sofia Doudou. His daughter Iosifina Dimas-Ziller (1885-1965) was an impressionist painter.
In 1885, he designed a three-story mansion where his family resided until 1912. Now known as the Ziller mansion, the residence was later acquired by Greek banker Dionysios P. Loverdos (1878–1934). Ziller died in Athens and was buried at the First Cemetery of Athens.
List of buildings
Transfiguration of Jesus (Metamorfosis Sotiros) Church in Vilia, West Attica.
Below is a list of buildings designed by Ernst Ziller.
Athens Andreas Syngros mansion (now Ministry of Foreign Affairs) Church of Saint Luke Hotels "Megas Alexandros" and "Bakeion", Omonoia Square Iliou Melathron (now Numismatic Museum of Athens) Mela Megaron National Chemistry Institute of Greece (at the University of Athens) National Theatre of Greece Old building of the Hellenic Military Academy Old headquarters building of the National Bank of Greece Peloponnese Railway Station Presidential Mansion Stathatos Mansion Thon mansion (destroyed during the Dekemvriana) Church of Agios Nikolaos Thon, the only surviving building from the Thon Estate Villa Atlantis Loverdos Museum (former Ziller mansion, Academy Street 58a)
Attica Transfiguration of Jesus church in Vilia, West Attica Royal palace in Tatoi
Aigio Archaeological Museum of Aigion (old Municipal market) Cathedral Church of Panagia Faneromeni Church of Esodia of Theotokos Church of St. Andrew
Argos Municipal Market of Argos
Gytheio City Hall of Gytheio Parthenagogeio (Girls School) of Gytheio
Patras Apollon Theatre (Patras) Perivolaropoulos mansion
Piraeus Metaxa Mansion
Pyrgos Archaeological Museum of Pyrgos (old Municipal Market) Municipal Theater of Pyrgos Old City Hall Railway station of Pyrgos
Syros Ermoupolis City Hall
Thessaloniki Greek consulate in Thessaloniki (today the Museum for the Macedonian Struggle) Metropolitan Church of St. Gregory Palamas Metropolis building Theageneio Hospital
Others Archaeological Museum of Milos Court House of Tripoli Church of Sainte Marina, Velo, Corinthia Metropolitan Theater of Zakynthos Railway station of Olympia Former City Hall of Kea Former Primary School of Kea (now town hall) Marble fountain of 1872 at Syntagma Square
Architectural supervision Academy of Athens National Archaeological Museum of Athens National Library of Greece Panathinaiko Stadium, renovation
Gallery
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Important facts
People in Ernst Ziller's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Ernst Ziller's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Ernst Ziller?
German architect, active in Greece
When was Ernst Ziller born?
Ernst Ziller was born on 22 June 1837 in Serkowitz.
When did Ernst Ziller die?
Ernst Ziller died on 4 November 1923 in Athens.
What was Ernst Ziller's occupation?
Ernst Ziller was an architect, art historian, archaeologist, architectural historian, university teacher and building researcher.
What nationality was Ernst Ziller?
Ernst Ziller was German and Greek.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Ernst Ziller. https://biography.guide/ernst-ziller/
MLA: "Ernst Ziller." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/ernst-ziller/.
Chicago: "Ernst Ziller." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/ernst-ziller/.
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