Agushevi konatsi, 19th-century estate complex in Mogilitsa, Bulgaria
Agushevi konatsi is a 19th-century estate in Mogilitsa, Bulgaria, made of two large residential buildings and farm structures forming three separate courtyards divided by inner walls. The whole complex has 221 windows, 86 doors and 24 chimneys. A tower in the southeast resembles a lighthouse, painted with murals outside and finished inside in pine, walnut and cherry.
The estate was built by Bulgarian craftsmen between 1820 and 1840 for an Ottoman feudal lord and his three sons. It became the largest family castle in the Rhodopes region during this period of Ottoman rule.
The konaks take their name from Agush Aga, the Pomak Ottoman feudal who had them built for himself and his three sons Hüseyin, Salih and Arif; "konak" means a palatial residence. The complex once held one of the largest private libraries in the Balkans, founded by his grandson hadji Salih Sami efendi, who died in 1921. Its roughly 400 volumes, including 94 manuscripts and documents in Arabic and Turkish, are now mostly kept in the Ivan Vazov National Library in Plovdiv.
The complex operates today as an ethnographic museum, with guided tours available through the preserved interior spaces. Visitors can explore traditional architectural features and domestic rooms to understand daily life during the 19th century.
A library once held about 400 volumes, including 94 manuscripts in Arabic and Turkish, founded by haci Salih Sami efendi, grandson of Agush Aga; most of it is now kept at the Ivan Vazov National Library in Plovdiv.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,477 contributors worldwide.