Conquer of the town of Peshta by the Ottomans 2
The town of Peshta supplied water from the springs nearby the Monastery of St. Elias (Sv. Ilija), 10-15 km. distant; water from the springs was diverted to the town through water-pipes.
As the older tell some Ottoman tribe came wanting to enter the town of Peshta. But it could not, because the gates were closed and the walls were high more than 3 meters. They tried to enter to skip the walls with ladders and scaffolding, but did not succeed, because the Peshta inhabitants were pushing them. In the location called Bajvorka they were beating an old man to tell them where the water supply to Peshta was. Then an old woman was passing by, living in the lower part of the town, and she told them how to discover the water supply. She told them that there was a line, greenery. She advised to close a mule for 2-3 days, to give to it salt and after that to leave the mule at the place of the greenery; the mule would start digging in and it would get to the water-pipes, so they would discover the water supply and stop the water to the town of Peshta. When it happened, the residents of Peshta, in order to rescue themselves, made drums beating on wind and put horse-hoes back, therefore they mislead the Ottomans that there were still residents in the town because the traces were showing that movement leads to the town, not outside of it. After some time, when the Ottomans entered the town of Peshta, the residents were not there.
Narrator: Stefan Kovacheski 71, from the village of Gradesnica, noted by Igor Tasevski January 2014.
Expert report on the natural/historical monuments in the municipality of Novaci
Subject: TRADITION AND LIFE in the MARIOVO PART OF MUNICIPALITY OF NOVACI
Prepared by: Igor Tasevski,
April 2014
