Buildings of traditional architecture in Old Xanthi

This route is about 1 km, about 50 minutes and of moderate difficulty. Starting from the heart of the Old Town and ending at Lefkou Pyrgou Street, the visitor will get to know the houses and mansions of the old Xanthi built according to the principles of traditional architecture.

They can be distinguished by their structural materials, such as stone, wood and the so-called "tsatma" (mixture of clay and straw on braided reeds, wood). A key element of traditional architecture is the "sachnisi", the wooden or metal corbels that supported the projections of the floor, etc.

Many morphological elements are similar to those of houses in Epirus and Macedonia, a fact that is explained by the well-known mobility of building groups, from Epirus and Western Macedonia to the whole of northern Greece. Especially after the earthquakes of 1829, which leveled Xanthi, the well-known stonemasons from these areas are considered to have come and rebuilt the city.

Points Expand/Collapse

57. Vardalis House

Brief documentation:

This building belongs to the old Xanthi family Vardalis and its construction took place around 1870.
According to testimonies during the Bulgarian occupation, the building was requisitioned to accommodate the Bulgarian Mayor of the city, who left in 1919 trying to escape with the family's furniture but was arrested.
It is a large, folk traditional architecture building with an extensive sachnisi on the first floor, on Orfeos Street and in the lane. The ground floor consists of stonework, a solid and robust construction, with intermediate wooden frames that help the antiseismicity of the building, while the first floor is made of wooden construction (tsatma). There are windows on the ground floor, with guardrails, and on the first floor, with simple wooden frames. These are two consecutive residences with entrances on Orfeos Street and the lane. In the corner, the characteristic detachment of the building, the beveled corner, is formed to protect the wall from carriages.
Decorated ceilings are observed inside the building.

Category of thematic interest: ARCHITECTURAL / HISTORICAL INTEREST

History:

The building belongs to the old Xanthi Vardalis family and its construction dates back to around 1870.
According to testimonies during the Bulgarian occupation, the building was requisitioned to accommodate the Bulgarian Mayor of the city, who left in 1919 tryinh to escape with the family's furniture but was arrested.

Elements of architecture:

It is a large, folk traditional architecture building with an extensive sachnisi on the first floor, on Orfeos Street and in the lane. The ground floor consists of stonework, a solid and robust construction, with intermediate wooden frames that help the antiseismicity of the building, while the first floor is made of wooden construction (tsatma). There are windows on the ground floor, with guardrails, and on the first floor, with simple wooden frames. These are two consecutive residences with entrances on Orfeos Street and the lane. In the corner, the characteristic detachment of the building, the beveled corner, is formed to protect the wall from carriages.

Description of other elements:

Decorated ceilings are observed inside the building. A member of the family was on the committee of the Taxiarchs Monastery, while Miltiadis Vardalis was among the distinguished Xanthians taken by the Bulgarians fleeing as hostages after the end of the 1st Bulgarian occupation of Xanthi (November 1912 – July 1913), for reasons of their personal safety. During the 1920s, a Greek athlete from Xanthi is recorded with the surname Vardalis.

Purpose - Use: Residence

Characterization: Preservable, Institution of the Ministry of Culture, Decision DILAP/C/108/5352, Government Gazette 91/90

Dating (period): Second half of the 19th century

Year of construction: Second half of the 19th century

Location of the monument: 41.14383, 24.88851

Bibliographic references:

• D. Mavridis (ed.). Xanthi, the city with a thousand colors. Xanthi, PAKETHRA 2008

Address: Orfeos 40-42

Visitable: No