The old crafts of Plovdiv carry the city's history — written not in ink, but with hammers, needles, and clay. For centuries, they were the backbone of the local economy and culture, but today most of them have vanished from daily life, with their traces remaining only in museums, architecture, and the memories of the remaining masters.
Leatherworking
In the old days of Plovdiv, leatherworking was not just a craft but an art that required patience, knowledge, and respect for the material. The leather workers — known as sarachi (who processed leather) and debardzhii (who made belts and straps) — were organized into guilds with clear, orally transmitted rules. Their workshops were most often located around the Dzhumaya Mosque area. They used entirely natural dyes to color the leather — from walnut leaves, pomegranate peels, and even snail secretions. From their hands came belts, boots, weapon cases, and saddles for Turkish beys and Bulgarian merchants.
After the Liberation in 1878, leatherworking in Bulgaria began to modernize and industrialize. The production of leather goods — including clothing, shoes, accessories, and furniture — expanded and became an important economic sector.
During the communist period (1944–1989), leatherworking became part of the country’s industrial base, with many leather factories opening in various cities. This era is also connected to the modernization and mass production of leather items.
After the fall of communism in the 1990s, Bulgarian leatherworking underwent a period of restructuring and change.
Coppersmithing and Braid-making
Coppersmithing was one of the loudest crafts in the city — quite literally. The workshops of the coppersmiths, most often situated in the southern part of Kapana, rang with the rhythmic clanging of hammers on copper sheets. The craftsmen made cauldrons, mugs, jugs, and trays, which were not only practical but also intricately engraved. They were known for their so-called "suns" — stylized rosettes and solar symbols on the lids.
Braid-making — a more delicate craft — thrived alongside it. Plovdiv was a center for the production of gaitans (colorful woolen cords), used in embroidery and traditional costumes. The most renowned braid-makers worked with a special loom called a chark. Such a braid-weaving machine using water power, similar to watermills, can be seen today in the special "Braid-making" hall in the Regional Ethnographic Museum.
Weaving
In every Plovdiv home — especially in the districts of Bunardzhika and Marasha — the loom was honored. Women began weaving from a young age, taught by their mothers and grandmothers. Rugs, carpets, dowry cloths, towels, and table linens — each piece bore a unique “signature”. The ornaments were geometric, floral, and animal-themed. The materials which were used included wool, cotton, linen, silk, and hemp. Most commonly, they used animal-derived materials, and the colors were also symbolic — red symbolized health, blue - protection, and black represented remembrance.
Weaving was also a social activity — on autumn evenings, women gathered at sedenki and they sang as the thread spun on "the spindle of fate". This artisanal magic gradually faded with the arrival of industrial textiles, but it still lives on in museums and in the memories of the elders.
Tinsmiths, Knife-makers, and Potters
The tinsmiths — those nomadic masters who roamed the streets shouting “Kalaay!” — were like healers of household utensils. With tin strips, lead, and flames, they breathed new life into old pots and pans. Each tinsmith knew by heart the composition of different alloys and worked with primitive bellows, like a chemist before a prehistoric fire.
Knife-makers — masters of blades — were especially respected. In their hands were born knives passed down through generations. Engraved handles and even Damascus steel blades showcased their admirable skill.
Pottery — so deeply tied to Bulgarian life and culture — was among the oldest crafts, dating back to the dawn of human culture. Clay vessels replaced stone ones and have coexisted with wooden containers to this day. Plovdiv's potters used clay from the banks of the Maritsa River to make jugs, casseroles, and bowls. Every design on a vessel told a story — of fertility, family comfort, and the cycle of life.
Today, these crafts have almost disappeared from the urban landscape, but there are a few places where the tradition continues to live on — in workshops around Kapana, in the Ethnographic Museum, on the artisan street “Stramna”, where masters welcome tourists and locals, or during rare craft exhibitions such as the Crafts Festival in the Old Town.
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