Lake Ohrid is one of Europe’s oldest and deepest lakes, its shores lined with settlements with rich Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman history. The town of Ohrid, the principal settlement, became a major religious and cultural centre during the medieval period and was once said to contain 365 churches—earning it the nickname “Jerusalem of the Balkans.”
The town’s architecture reflects this long continuity. Ottoman-era houses, like this one, typically feature solid stone ground floors and timber-framed upper storeys that project outward in jetties. This not only maximised internal space without expanding the building footprint, but also shaped Ohrid’s distinctive, winding streetscapes.