Cultural heritage

Ukshin Hoti Museum House, Krushë e Madhe

Shtëpia Muze e Ukshin Hotit, Krushë e Madhe

The “Ukshin Hoti” Museum House is located about 770 m to the right (east) of the Prizren–Gjakova main road in the village of Krushë e Madhe, Municipality of Rahovec.
The house was built in 1987 in the rural architecture of the time. It is L-shaped and raised 60 cm above ground level, with the entrance hall and bathroom in the centre and a room on each side. The building was constructed with load-bearing walls of clay blocks and continuous mortar as the binding material. The columns were of reinforced concrete, while the slab was built using the semi-prefabricated “fert” system. During the last war (1999) the building was burned down completely, and it was rebuilt and adapted in 2013.
The reconstruction and adaptation of the building into a museum was carried out by the Municipality of Rahovec, preserving the original form, size, volume and architecture it had before 1999. During the reconstruction, one part of the house was preserved in the state in which it was damaged by the 1999 war, and it is now part of the history of the Hoti family. Thus, since 2013 the house has functioned as a museum presenting materials and various objects related to the personality of Ukshin Hoti. The original part of the house damaged during the 1999 war is also part of the museum. The house was rebuilt with similar construction materials, namely clay blocks (walls) and reinforced concrete (foundations, columns and beams). It was plastered with continuous lime mortar inside and out, and the floors were laid with laminate, except for the bathroom, which has ceramic tiles. The original part of the house on the eastern side has been preserved in its damaged state, where the broken blocks, damaged plaster and plank floor can be seen.
The Ukshin Hoti museum house holds important historical and social values for the Albanian people in general and for the state of Kosovo in particular. Considering the personality of Ukshin Hoti as an important figure in the modern history of Kosovo, it is of national interest to present comprehensively his activity, the conditions and circumstances in which he lived and worked, as well as the objects and artefacts directly or indirectly connected with his personality.
The “Ukshin Hoti” museum house, with two single-storey buildings adapted with exhibition spaces and a yard of 40 ares, constitutes the historic centre of collective memory and of human sacrifice for freedom and national rights. This centre carries universal historical and social values and is classified as cultural heritage of national importance, which must be preserved, protected and cultivated by present and future generations.
In the interior, several display cases and shelves have been placed, as well as photographs hung on the walls, presenting the life and activity of Ukshin Hoti. The conversion of the house into a museum has some shortcomings, and the organisation and presentation of the exhibits and the setting as a whole needed to be corrected or re-conceived.
The museum has a fairly large yard, part of which is paved with concrete slabs, while the bust of Ukshin Hoti stands in front of the building.