The name of the building ?Drakoni? was given in honour of the family that built it and is in its possession for more than six generations and is directly connected with the structure of the house that is entirely built from the local hard stone ?Akoni?.

The project by Doriza Design consists of the restoration of a stone-built building of 1864 located in the proposed traditional settlement of Pines in Elounda, Crete. The village was first inhabited in 1400-1550 AD by the Venetians. The pointed arch located inside the building dates back to that time. This arc was found in 1864 by Mavrogiorgis Drakonakis (six generations behind the current owner) a stock and land farmer and built his house on the basis of it. It firstly contained one room and a courtyard, and later was shaped over the years into a house until 1920. Since 1920, the house has not been re-inhabited and remained for years as a stable for animals. Photography by George Sfakianakis.
.
The design strategy is based on the idea of restoring and reusing the building into a holiday house, giving continuity to the history of the building through its functional adaptation and adjustment to the contemporary domestic needs and requirements. In the external envelope, the least possible construction interventions were made, mainly focusing on the restoration and reinforcement of the stone masonry and the reconstruction of the parts that had collapsed. The main intervention implemented...