Old House, Pirot

Old House
Native name Serbian: Stara kuća - Hristin konak
Location	Museum Old House, Nikole Pašića 49, 18300 Pirot, Serbia
Coordinates	43°9′42.8345″N 22°35′19.023″E / 43.161898472°N 22.58861750°E / 43.161898472; 22.58861750Coordinates: 43°9′42.8345″N 22°35′19.023″E / 43.161898472°N 22.58861750°E / 43.161898472; 22.58861750
Built	1848
Type	Cultural
State Party	Serbia
Type	Monument of Culture of Exceptional Importance

The Old House is the house of Hristić family which is located at Nikole Pašića 49, Tijabara, Pirot,^[1] built in 1848. and in 1953. it was protected by the state of Serbia, and in 1979 it becomes the monument of culture of exceptional Importance of Serbia.^[2] After that Old house became a museum. It represents the best preserved monument of traditional architecture from the mid-19th century in Pirot. It belonged to a respectable trader Hrista Jovanović.

History

According to tradition, construction time lasted two years and the house was completed in 5. April 1848. This is confirmed with a text engraved on the floor of the house. For building the house, Mali Rista as he was called, needed a permission from the Turkish authorities, because he was going to build a big house with floors. Thus, on the outskirts of Pirot, was built one of the most luxurious houses that was not Turkish but Christian, at that time. Unfortunately, there is no information anywhere about the craftsmen who built it. And to this day it remains an enigma, who came up with the idea to build such a house - whether the Mali Rista who traveling the Ottoman Empire for its trading operations or extraordinary craftsmen who built into her blend of fantasy and architectural experience.
In this house lived Hrista Jovanović with his family, and later his successors, whose last name was Jovanović, overturned in Hristic. After World War II, the house changed its purpose because the Municipality of Pirot awarded the newly created National Museum in Pirot. ^[3]

Construction

House was built in the Balkan Oriental style, with all details in the house tell us. Characterised by the harmony of interior space and the luxury of the facade and roof at the same time. Half-timbering construction and master skills grants its astonishing ease, in other words its very light house in one hand and very big in other hand. It's basically symmetrical building type that almost square shaped, with cross-shaped hall. It consists of a basement, ground floor and first floor. The crown of the building makes it a unique solution to the gazebo roof construction. On the bright white facade main decorative elements are wooden window frames and wall corners are covered with decorated molded bars. From the porch to the ground floor hall is a main entrance, where on the left and right side are rooms for sleeping. In addition to the hall is a fireplace and behind it is a storage for flour and wood.^[4] Wooden steps lead to the second floor which leads into the spacious living room on the first floor, which is divided into:

1. a central section with shelves and a fireplace
2. veranda of the men's room,
3. women's room.

Around the hall rooms are arranged one after another, each with interesting name and different purpose: bedrooms, Kandil room, great room, safe room, and sar'k room. The ground floor was used for the daily life of residents and upper first floor for the reception of prominent guests. From the second floor lead stairs to the platform which rises the view from the lookout on the roof. Roof has wide eaves, which are rimmed with shingles consisted of a wreath of tympanum above each window. The roof is covered with tiles. Unique solution for the roof makes the house special even for the Balkan region.

The interior is decorated with waterwheel engraved in wood. The best production quality of waterwheel is placed in the ground floor and it is assumed that it is work of masters from the famous Debar school.^[3]

Trivia

Filmed movies

Due to the fact that the house of Hrista Jovanović maintained the authentic look and atmosphere of the Serbian patriarchal home, it served to the film crew, with filming the movie "Zona Zamfirova", as a recording space. A good part of the movie was filmed in the old house for the reason that in the movie hadzi Zamfir lived there and the shooting had to be done there in a good part of the film. Also, in that house another cilt movie was filmed and its name is "Ivkova slava", where almost the entire course of the film takes place in the house and around the house in the courtyard.

Hrista Jovanović - Mali Rista

Hrista Jovanović better known as Čučuk Rista or Mali Rasta, in his lifetime was a prominent merchant in Pirot and throughout the Ottoman Empire. It was originally settled in the Zavoj village, submerged in the second half of the 19th century, and later he came down from the village and settled near Pirot in 1830. In the period when he lived in the Zavoj village, he was not a merchant but he became a merchant when he settled near Pirot and his progres and success in that was very fast. Based on his resourcefulness in that business he became Kalauz which means that his duty was to collect taxes in cattle and butter for Vidin pasha, and he became all that only after the proposal of the Çorbacı and Turkish authorities from Pirot in 1840. He worked for some time for Usein pasha on the area of Pirot district and after that he became independent. At that time, he gained an enviable wealth from commerce via Ottoman Empire. He traveled to Niš, Leskovac, Vidin, Sofia, Carigrad with purpose to sell his goods. In 1845. he gets a permission to buil a house and construction works was finished after 3 years in 1848. After that, this house was known as a quarters of Mali Rista, later better known as Old House. However, he vas voracious and sell over and over the same stuff to the Turkish army, and because of that he was expelled from Pirot by Sadrezam pasha. Exile was the final chapter of Mali Rista's life, and then was finished a story of respectable merchant Hrista Jovanović.^[3]

Mali Rista's room

In Pirot, an that time, Bulgarians were forced to obey to the Turkish authorities and so, Mali Rista decided to make some changes about that. He came to some idea to force Turkish authorities to obey to him, but how you asking? Mali Rista was a short man, in other hand like a dwarf, so he made one room in the Old house, just for him, with very low ceiling. In that room, where he was sleeping and receiving guests, the Turkish authorities, which was very tall, must to bend down and obay if they want to enter the room. On the question of the authorities "What is this all about", Mali Rista simply answered "I'm a short man, so my room is smaller, it is made only for me", so they can not arrest him for disrespect. In that way, he made to force Turkish authorities to obay to him, which in that time was unthinkable.^[3]

See also

• Monument of Culture of Exceptional Importance
• Tourism in Serbia

References

External links

• Old house like tourist destination
• Museum Old house in Pirot
• Museum Old house official Facebook site