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KVA

Left: Pack
animals
were used
to transport
tobacco.
Up: Drying
tobacco leaves.
Down: Women
processing the
tobacco leaves.
Αριστερά: Τον
καπνό μετέ-
φεραν υπο-
ζύγια. Πάνω:
Αποξήρανση
καπνού. Κάτω:
Επεξεργασία
καπνού από
γυναίκες.

as the Great Clubhouse) is a wonderful example of Austrian “tobacco cities”. Later, the Great Depression
baroque and neoclassicism, while the Tokou Mansion, former of 1929 and, of course, the Greek default of
residence of tobacco merchant Dimitrios Tokos, brilliantly 1932 rendered manual work “unprofitable”,
combines Ottoman neoclassicism with baroque, romanticism redirecting the focus of tobacco merchants
with eclecticism. The Wix Mansion, former residence of to the use of pressing machines and the
Baron Adolf Wix, features a plethora of neo-gothic elements, employment of more women: the machinery
while the unique Town Hall is reminiscent of the illustrious would replace the workforce while employing
Austro-Hungarian imperium. The clearly eclectic architectural women drastically reduced salaries –the
style of the Municipal Tobacco Warehouse and the Herzog gender pay gap is indeed a mighty old story.
Tobacco Warehouse with its characteristic industrial style are With tobacco unions living a heyday,
also magnificent pieces of architecture. The town used to have a trade union representative was placed in
many cinemas and cafes, 150 tailor’s shops and a tennis club for each processing centre. As early as 1908,
the ruling elite near the tobacco retailers. Back then the nights “Eudemonia,” the first tobacco union, was
in Kavala staged performances of Parisian dance groups, while founded and eventually achieved a reduction
balls and masked balls were the talk of the town. of working hours from 12 to 9. The expulsion
After 1922 and the population exchange, tobacco also of the Bulgarian army from the city in 1918
contributed to the smoother integration of refugees in the and the reinforcement of the workforce by

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