The settlement of Trikala, Corinthia, as depicted in Google earth.
Τhe façade had small openings, which became smaller as they reached the highest levels. Only the top floor. which had a wooden open balcony -in Notaras mansion- opened outward (collapsed in 1981), while the rest of the house remained enclosed. A distinctive trait of these mansions was the differentiation of the external walls of the body of the house (the ground and first floor) from the top floor, which was of white washed çatma (light structure composed of wooden vertical and horizontal beams, mortar and other connective materials) with large, numerous openings. The biggest and most interesting mansion was the one belonging to the noted Notaras family, as its history is directly connected to the historic evolution of the area -Corinthia. The mansion was originally enclosed by a wall for defensive purposes and inside it outbuildings were found. Its façade consisted of the ground floor and two upper storeys, while its rear part, because of a difference in ground elevation, had only a ground floor. The entrance is traced on the interior wing of the U plan, although now this wing has collapsed.
The ground floor plan of Dasiou mansion, architectural survey plans Αndroulidaki Αmalia, «Το Αρχοντικό Δασίου στα Τρίκαλα Κορινθίας. Μελέτη Αποτύπωσης και Αρχιτεκτονικής Αποκατάστασης», Διπλωματική εργασία στο Τμήμα Αρχιτεκτόνων Μηχανικών ΕΜΠ.The storage spaces were on the ground floor and originally the only openings there were small embrasures. On the middle floor (metzopatoma), the spaces for residence and storage were situated. The family mainly resided at the top floor, which was flooded with light. It consisted of one large space, the “sala”, with an excellent view. All the rooms in the house, the “ondades” (odalar in Turkish), communicated one with the other through this space.A characteristic feature of this mansion is that a special space was constructed on its middle floor and used as a hiding place. It could be entered only by a trapdoor on the top floor and once inside it, one could survey the surroundings to a great distance.
The austerity and spareness that dominated its exterior form were also found in the interior: the only decorated colored feature in the house was the ceilings, which displayed bright color combinations. They were made either of panels surrounded by a grid of wooden strips, where the center of the room was stressed, or more rarely. Receding levels in relief where depth was stressed boards and stripping were the most common structure in all the houses. Unfortunately these examples of woodcut ceiling art have been damaged as the wall collapsed. The furniture was bought in various places, mainly in Europe.
The Dasiou mansion was constructed in the beginning of the 19th c. at Ano Trikala, as a plaque found above the main entrance door signified the date of its construction, -“May 1806”, as well as on a cornerstone (“1806 Μαΐου 1, ΑΡΧΙΤΕΚΤΟΝΟΣ ΚΩΝΣΤΑΝΤΙΝΟΥ ΣΩΛΙΩΤΗ ΟΥΤΟΣ Ο ΟΙΚΟΣ ΕΚΤΙΣΘΗ”). The noted family’s mansion followed an L shape plan.
The building was damaged by a fire in 1946 and only a few remaining walls evidenced its former existence.
The remaining walls of Dasiou mansion, architectural survey plan, Αndroulidaki Αmalia, «Το Αρχοντικό Δασίου στα Τρίκαλα Κορινθίας. Μελέτη Αποτύπωσης και Αρχιτεκτονικής Αποκατάστασης», Διπλωματική εργασία στο Τμήμα Αρχιτεκτόνων Μηχανικών ΕΜΠ.
Dasiou mansion as depicted in an old photograph before its destruction.Notaras’ mansion
Inscriptions that were traced in the facades of Dasiou mansion.lnscriptions that were traced in the facades of Dasiou mansion.