Oda house
The oda house is one of the most characteristic and widespread forms of vernacular architecture in Georgia. The oda house is widespread in north west Adjara, Guria, Mingrelia, Abkhazia, Lechkhumi, Racha, Imereti and along the Kartli, Imereti border. Despite the widespread distribution of the oda house it looks nearly the same in all the regions it is present. It has a uniform appearance almost always including a front facing balcony and a simple rectangular layout. In this post i will also detail some of the outer buildings present on rural farmsteads in these areas as well as the different house types.
1) Guria, Samegrelo, Imereti + Southern Abkhazia
The distribution of this subgroup roughly corresponds with the colchis lowlands. These houses hardly change with the differences being small and insignificant. The oda houses in these areas are built using this format. A stone foundation or instead simple wooden/stone supports. Usually there is no basement or if there is it is constructed of wooden planks or stone. A wooden plank first floor with a protruding balcony at the front of the house. And finally a roof constructed with clay tiles or wooden shingles. The oda house in Guria is the smallest whilst the Imeretian and Mingrelia are larger on average. The Oda houses in Guria, Mingrelia and western Imereti have the unique feature of elaborate stone staircases that enter on to the front facing balconies. Examples of these staircases can be seen on the illustrations below of a house from Baghdadi village, in Guria, and an two houses from the town of Zugdidi in Mingrelia. The decorations of the oda houses in all these regions are the same. The Balconies on oda houses have a balustrade made either of simple wooden planks, fret worked planks or individual, carved wooden balusters. The wooden pillars supporting the roof above the balcony are sometimes carved. The doors and shutters on oda houses are sometimes decorated with wooden applique. Oda houses in these areas sometimes include ceiling features (similar features exist in the Southern Balkans, Anatolia and other regions in Georgia and the Caucasus) made with wooden applique that is fitted into the ceiling of the main "living area". The outer buildings on farmsteads in these regions are not notable other than the unique food storage barns in SW Guria.
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| An house from Chanchati village, Guria |
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| A house from Abasha village, Mingrelia |
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| A house from Chkhorotskhu village, Mingrelia |
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| A house from Chkhorotskhu village, Mingrelia |
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| A house from Kontuati village, Imereti |
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| A house from Skhliti village, Imereti |
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| Plan of a house from Ozurgeti, Guria |
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| A food storage barn built on small stone supports. Askana village, Guria |
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| Plan of a house from Baghdadi village, Guria |
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| Plan of a house from Mazandara village, Mingrelia (Note the ceiling detail is shown in the center) |
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| Plan of a house from Jgali village, Mingrelia |
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| Details from a house in Jgali village, Mingrelia |
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| Plans of two houses from Zugdidi, Mingrelia |
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| Plan of a house from Kutoli village, Abkhazia |
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| Plan of a house from Kinchkha village, Imereti |
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| Plan of a house from Zodi village, Imereti |
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| Plan of a house from Kldeeti village, Imereti |
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| Plan of a house Kldeeti village, Imereti |
2) Racha + Lechkhumi
The oda house in Racha and Lechkhumi appears very similar to some of the oda house varieties in the colchis lowlands. Especially the varieties of oda houses in Imereti and Mingrelia. However Rachian and Lechkhumi oda houses more often have a first and second floor and use stone foundations rather than simple wooden or stone pillars. They also sometimes feature a more prominent balcony that wraps around the front and sides of the house and can be two storied. The roofs are usually constructed with wooden shingles. The decorative features of these are the same as the oda houses in the colchis lowlands. Rachian and Lechkhumi oda houses are laid out in a similar way to the oda houses in the colchis lowlands. A unique feature of Rachian villages is incorporating the food storage unit into the gate of a farmstead.
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| A house from Orbeli village, Lechkhumi |
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| A house from Orbeli village, Lechkhumi |
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| A house from Gogolati village, Racha |
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| A house from Gogolati village, Racha |
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| A house from Abari village, Racha |
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| A house from Abari village, Racha |
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Plan of a house from Derchi village, Lechkhumi
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| A food storage structure from Kvashkhieti village, Racha |
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| Plan of a house form Skhieri village, Racha |
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| Plan of some gates from Zvareti village, Racha |
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| Plan of a house from Korta |
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| Plan of a house from Bokva village, Racha |
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| Plan of a house from Bokva village, Racha |
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| Plan of a house from Bokva village, Racha |
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| A barn from Bokva village, Racha |
3)
Northern Abkhazia
Oda houses in Northern Abkhazia are quite unique and divergent from those in south Abkhazia. Due to the hilly landscape of north Abkhazia the oda houses here often have a stone foundation rather than simple stone or wooden supports, like in the colchis lowlands. These houses often have a basement that is constructed from wooden planks, bricks or stone. oda houses in northern Abkhazia have front facing balconies that are sometimes two stories high. The balconies are decorated with fretwork. Wooden shingles are used for the roof. Whitewashing is also sometimes common on the stone or brick basement.
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| A house from Tsebelda village, Abkhazia |
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| A house from Achandara village, Abkhazia |
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| Plan of a house from Duripshi village, Abkhazia |
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| Plan of a house from Blaburkhva village, Abkhazia |
Sources:
Illustrations - From the books "ქართული ხალხური ხუროთმოძღვრება : წიგნი II" & "ქართული ხით ხუროთმოძღვრება"
Photos - Various posts on websites. Some of the watermarks show the source. I do not take credit for any of these photos. All credit goes to the websites and authors.
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