somewhere in muntenia, on the doamnei river valley, about halfway between curtea de arges and campulung, in the domnesti commune, there is a discreet property that, with its exposed brick pillars, brown wooden shutters and large flagstone paving, reminds a little of tuscan houses. those that, like this one, grow young trees in oversized pots, have terrace furniture of an essentialized rustic and trellises with red flowers, in our case geraniums. the river stone fence ensures the property has privacy.
the house belonged to dr. teja papahagi, an exceptional doctor and outstanding personality of the time, a man with a vast culture, full of initiative and organizational spirit. he gave his heart to the commune he loved and served throughout his life. teja papahagi was the son of pericle papahagi, 〞born from the aromanian nobility, but also from the princely lineage of the bessarabians, being the one who founded, in domneşti, a modern hospital with city utilities, a cultural society aimed at bringing the princely history back into focus〞. the street on which the house is located bears his name, and opposite is the hospital where he served his entire career.
the house is on one level, having an almost imperceptibly raised foundation and a low roof supported by brick pillars. it is set back from the street and surrounded by ornamental trees and shrubs, contorted, wild, overgrown with ivy and an untamed vegetation that creates an atmosphere of vague solitude and interiorization. the house itself confirms the hypothesis - the libraries and the pieces of art that dominate the rooms determine the intensity of the natral light; there’s need for control because on the shelves there are old books of specialized literature in aromanian, romanian and french, plus writings and manuscripts of the owner’s father, the aromanian linguist, philologist and folklorist pericle papahagi, the author of the first thorough studies on the romanian megleno group .
in fact, the house, built of brick in 1959 to impeccable standards even today, has an office where the globe, carefully chosen decorative ceramics, lighting fixtures, the pipe resting on the leather map, the watercolors on the walls and the collection of rocks are elements that speak of the existence of an intellectual who sometimes slept here, surrounded by his passions. the living room still seems to carry the echo of the last conversations around the jewel-stove, made of tiles spectacularly decorated with lapis lazuli. the bedrooms have a sober air, softened by the carved wood of the furniture pieces such as the mirror or the wardrobe, or by the lively motifs of the fabrics - carpets, curtains, duvets and pillows. the kitchen keeps a wonderful old cooking machine with a hood between the walls paneled in the chocolate wood of the house. from the back terrace of the house one enters a small room full of books, a perfect place where one can retire to read in the summer. in the generous yard behind the house, there are outbuildings built in the same period.
the attention to detail is overwhelming and visible right from the entrance - the door is made of wood, with a forged iron model like a broken embroidery, and the door knob is also a small artistic object, everything being perfectly integrated into the concept of the house. heating is done with terracotta stoves; the property has running water from its own source, sewerage and electricity while street water and gas can be accessed from the street points.
