The architectural complex “Cheshitska mahala” is located in one of the quarters of the town of Smolyan – in the district of. It is located in the village of Smolyan, in the village of Dolno Raykovo. The complex consists of three nuclei. It bears the name of the Cheshite family, who built some of the most representative houses in Dolno Raykovo at the end of the 19th century. The most notable are the Brothers’ Cheshit House, the Milon Cheshit House, the Gyordzhev House and the Cheshit Fountain.
They are built of stone on clay mortar. The exceptions are the bay windows on the upper floors, which are made of a wooden skeleton filled with a hedge plastered with clay. The ground floor of the typical house is a courtyard built with stone walls and used for the storage of livestock and wood. The staircase to the floors starts from the courtyard. It is almost always closed with a shutter. The upper floor is always projecting bay windows above the first floor due to the small and steep plots.
Double fraternal houses are also widespread. They are two houses united by a common dividing wall, with no functional connection between them. The double house is representative and monumental. It was used by craftsmen and merchants to display their family wealth. The interior decoration of the houses is made with wooden ceilings, built-in dormers, minders, shelves, wooden baskets on the hearths, wooden railings on the stairs.
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