The Goat Hair Processing Household from Musculești-Petrești, Gorj County

The goat hair processing household from Musculești-Petrești, Gorj County, illustrates a traditional practice specific to this region. Built towards the end of the 19th century, the house showcases archaic Gorj architecture, featuring a single level, two rooms, and a side porch. At the entrance, the gateposts are carved with anthropomorphic motifs, meant to protect the household from negative influences, while the wooden shingle roof ends with ciocârlani (or larks), decorative elements meant to ward off evil spirits.

The first room, called tinda, was equipped with an open hearth, which was used both for cooking and for heating the blind stove in the best room. Here, textiles made from goat hair— which is a coarse fiber—were crafted into bags, rugs, saddlebags, and ropes. The best room houses the most beautiful wool textiles in the household, a dowry chest decorated with solar and floral motifs, as well as a traditional Gorj costume.

The simple furniture, including a low table with small stools, reflects the rigorous lifestyle of past rural communities, where most of the time was dedicated to fieldwork and tending to livestock.