We recently arranged for ourselves a short and not far trip to the Krasnogorsk region, to the waterfalls of the village of Pilno. (You can read about this trip in the article “If you don’t go to Gorny Altai…”).
The waterfall is quite picturesque, and, of course, made an impression. And not far from this waterfall, on the very outskirts of the once large and rich village, there is an uninhabited whitewashed log house with blue shutters and a solid iron roof.
Doors — wide open … The front garden is overgrown with nettles so that even the windows are hidden. My husband and I decided to go into the house, since the doors are open …
Entering the door, you find yourself on a covered high porch, then — in the canopy. There is a pantry in the hallway. In the pantry on the left there is a large chest (for flour or grain), on the right there is a real wooden chest (scroll through the gallery).
Large, almost one and a half meters high, a chest for grain or flour.
Iron-lined chest. Large, almost one and a half meters high, a chest for grain or flour.
We pass into the house … From the passage we get immediately into the kitchen. There is a Russian oven in the kitchen. Curtains are still hanging on it, though they are already dirty, dirty. A tank for heating water is mounted in the oven — very rational. Water heating pipes run around the house from the stove. Someone has already removed the stove from the stove.
Russian stove in an abandoned house.
There is a bench on the stove, where you could climb up the ladder. Russian stove in an abandoned house.
There is also a sideboard in the kitchen. This or similar could be seen in every village house 30-40 years ago. Handmade! Only it would be better if he remained without paint. But there was once such a stupid fashion — to paint everything with blue oil paint … (there are two photos in the gallery).
Handmade sideboard.
Handmade sideboard.
From the kitchen we get into the «hall». The room itself is very bright and spacious, just now the shutters are half closed.
There is still a sofa bed and trellis. In principle, such interiors could be seen in almost every village house twenty years ago. And for very old grandparents, perhaps, the situation is still about the same.
In the picture on the right below you can see an amateur landscape painted with paints on a piece of chipboard. There are several similar paintings in the house. Perhaps this owner was fond of painting … Yes, these are far from masterpieces, but the person painted with enthusiasm …
Remains of the furnishings of the «hall» in an uninhabited house. Remains of the furnishings of the «hall» in an uninhabited house.
And also in the house there were several good quality photographs of an elderly man. The photos are “ceremonial”, relatively recent, taken on a bright February or March day. I think this is the former owner of the abandoned house …
This is probably the former owner of the house … This is probably the former owner of the house …
Most likely, the person is no longer alive. Otherwise, his photographs and paintings would not have been abandoned. If grandfather had been taken by relatives, probably, the photo would have been taken away too.
In addition to the hall, the house has two more rooms. In each of them there was an iron bed. And in one of the bedrooms there is a large factory-made wardrobe of the 50-60s of the last century and a chest of drawers. In the chiffonier, by the way, a black men’s jacket is still hanging, very neat, not worn …
Remains of furniture in an abandoned house. Remains of furniture in an abandoned house.
Curtains still hang on the windows… The walls are plastered with clay and whitewashed. The floor is hardwood blocks. Strong, already ringing … The interior doors are also in place, double-leaf, low, paneled, made by a good carpenter from an array. An array, most likely, pines. Under a thick layer of oil paint (of course, blue!) can not be disassembled. Although, perhaps, cedar …
In general, the house gives the impression that it was left not so long ago, a year or two ago, no more … And the former owner was a solid, tidy man, loved his house and kept it in order … Probably, the house was clean, warm and comfortable. There must have been homespun striped «paths» on the floor, like the ones I found from an overzealous relative. Or maybe woolen «paths» have already replaced synthetic rugs …
If you dream, it would be great to turn this house into a hotel for visitors, because in recent years the village of Pilno has become very popular, thanks to its waterfalls and picturesque lake. And to decorate the hotel just in the rustic style of the middle of the 20th century.
In the courtyard there is a bathhouse that has grown into the ground, which is no longer functioning (there is all rubbish inside, there is no stove), a firewood shed and a latrine. Here is the last building is very popular among the guests of the village who come to admire the waterfalls. And is still active.
Maybe it makes sense to turn the house into a museum of rural life? I was even tempted to do it myself, but I live too far …
Looking into the abandoned house, I felt as if I had returned several decades ago, looked out of the corner of my eye into someone’s life that had already slipped away …
