19th century manor of Dunin-Raetskys restored by Belarusian family

An ancient manor house of the Dunin-Raetsky family is an architectural monument of the 19th century. The manor was removed from the list of historical and cultural value in 2007. 10 years ago the house was bought by a family of Minsk artists at an auction for one basic unit. It was about $10 at the time. By that time, the old mansion had been abandoned for several years.

A classic specimen with columns and a veranda. At different times it was owned by representatives of different clans and families. At one time Adam Mickiewicz was a frequent guest here as he visited his beloved Marila Vereschako. The house belonged to her brother, Jozef. After a certain period of time, the owner of the estate was Count Puttkammer.

The Dunin-Raetsky’s estate was first mentioned in Lithuanian metrics in the early 16th century. At the time, it occupied 200 hectares. Today, of course, the territory is much smaller. The property of the modern owners is a manor house and an ancient park.

The history of the estate was restored by the new owners according to archival documents. For this purpose, they had to travel to both Krakow and Warsaw. The research work went in parallel with the restoration of the house. The main task was to create a museum of straw. It's not officially registered. One of the halls was given as a home museum exposition. The hostess is a master of straw weaving. Her works are kept in the museums in Great Britain, USA, Russia.