bg Varna

Krastyu Petkov House

- Pirot Street 20 -
The current residential building was built in 1909 by a project that came from the hand of the Italian architect . It was built for the Bulgarian merchant, public figure, and revolutionary Krastyu Petkov Marmarev, who was born on August 6, 1874, in , then the Ottoman Empire, nowadays Peplos, in the family of Petko Marmarev. The building was built on the site of Krastyu's uncle, the Bulgarian revolutionary , better known as Captain Petko Voivoda, who lived there from 1880 until 1900.

Krastyu Petkov is engaged in trade in Varna and is one of the organizers of the Thracian emigrant society called Strandzha. He actively supports the Internal Macedonian-Edrina Revolutionary Organization () and was involved in the preparation of the Ilinden–Preobrazhenie in 1903. After the death of Petko Kiryakov and at his behest, he married Lyuba Krasteva Marmarova, the niece of Petko's wife, Rada Kravkova. Together with Lyuba, he got a total of five children. Krastyu Petkov died on February 16, 1956, at the age of 82, in , where he was interned by the communist authorities. Krastyu and Lyuba are both buried in the Botevgrad cemetery.

The building has been upgraded and renovated over the years, and during the renovation that took place in 2021, which changed its color from red to green, the building regained its former glory.
The project of the Italian architect Dimitar Radelia
At the top corner of the Art Nouveau building, just below the segmental , you can see a richly decorated . The balcony door leading to the only existing balcony is surrounded by crowned with a Doric . The balcony is secured with a beautifully decorated wrought iron railing and is supported by two , which are adorned with . The same wrought iron railing is used to secure the roof terrace, which is located on the northeastern corner. The drainage of the roof terrace has been enhanced with a , which was added during the 2021 renovation. The , which can be admired underneath the attic and second floor windows, are adorned with even more guttae, as well as circles. Even more, guttae are used in the window frames, which are also adorned with . Some of the second floor windows are flanked with fragments that are decorated with bowls of fruit, floral ornamentation, and . The building features one small that contains a total of five .
The building before the 2021 renovation