An archive of incalculable value

The Cavafy archive – comprising with the correlated Singopoulo archive – consists of more than 2,000 archival items that include manuscripts, photographs and personal effects of the celebrated poet. The digital reproduction of all original archival materials was completed in 2017 (a total of 11,086 images). That same year, 158 microfilms storing the 1,963 photographic documentation of the archive – undertaken by the leading Modern Greek literature scholar, G. P. Savvidis – were also digitized (a total of 4,741 images). It is now the policy of the Archive to make these digitized items openly available and accessible in their entirety, in accordance with internationally recognized standards. The complete description and documentation of the archival materials allows for optimal searching and navigation through the digital archive, and for the application of new technologies.

An archive of incalculable value

Amongst the archival items are manuscripts of Cavafy’s poems, hand-compiled printed editions, prose literary works, articles, studies and notes by the poet. There are also translations of poems and notes of both a literary and a personal nature, not least the poet’s personal archive, rich in correspondence, texts that read like diary entries, photographs, and more. The Alekos and Rica Singopoulo archive – made up of materials relating to the poet collected by Alekos and Rica Singopoulo – forms a distinct archival unit containing materials regarding the literary and art journal "Alexandrini Techni", edited by A.G. Symeonidis and Rica Singopoulo under the frequent guidance of C. P. Cavafy.

The core of the archive was bequeathed by C. P. Cavafy to Alekos Singopoulo in 1933; the poet left no literary will indicating how he wanted his estate to be managed. Singopoulo initially managed the archive together with his first wife, Rica Singopoulo (née Agallianou); after his death, he bequeathed the archive to his second wife, Kyveli Singopoulo (née Trechantzaki). In 1948, the Cavafy scholar Michael Peridis attested the existence of the archive in his book "The Life and Work of Constantine Cavafy".

In 1969, control of the archive passed to G. P. Savvidis, a leading Modern Greek literature scholar who restored its unity to a large extent, retrieving manuscripts and other materials that had been separated from the collection. G. P. Savvidis undertook the gradual publication of the material with the help of other scholars (he had already set about photographing the archive in 1963, in collaboration with V. P. Panayiotopoulos). From 1995 onwards, the archive was managed by Manolis Savvidis, who incorporated it into the collections of the Center for Neo-Hellenic Studies and enriched it with both print and digital publications.

The Onassis Foundation’s vision for the Cavafy Archive

The Cavafy Archive supports a range of educational programmes directed at the Greek and international academic community, and the general public, with an emphasis on young people. Since 2017, the International Cavafy Summer School – the first annual program dedicated exclusively to C. P. Cavafy and his work, and open to both Greek and international scholars – has formed an important part of this initiative. To date, research seminars, educational events for adults, and workshops for secondary school pupils (the “Cavafy Goes to School” initiative) have all been organized as part of this same drive.