Nesnovna kulturna dediščina

THE ART OF WOOD CONSTRUCTION

območje : Podkarpackie
kategorija : practices concerning nature
The Carpathians are not very rich in natural resources - there is no fertile chernozem, no deposits of gold or silver and even stone is of little use. For centuries, however, vast forests provided game, mushrooms and herbs as well as and wood of a very good quality. For that reason wood became the primary building material of the region and the buildings constructed here deserve being put onto the UNESCO World Heritage List. There are also dozens of other monuments of wooden architecture in the area. They form one of the most popular hiking trails in Poland - tourists will find here Latin churches, Orthodox and Greek Catholic churches, wooden manor houses and wooden peasants cottages and even wooden Carpathian resorts.
But the most important fact is that the tradition of building with wood, which for almost one hundred years has been pushed to the margins and has almost been forgotten, seems to be experiencing a true Renaissance now. The material that was despised half a century ago, is today a synonym for sophisticated taste (people appreciate the beauty enchanted in wood), for a high level of cultural awareness ( people understand that wood is the building material integrated with the tradition of the region) and ... for wealth. Today, wood - once a cheap material, chosen by those who could not afford to buy stone - is a sign of financial status.

No wonder that the tradition of building with wood, the knowledge inherited from generation to generation and architectural know-how, becomes again a valuable element of cultural heritage. It is characteristic of most of the Carpathian regions, but the revitalization of this heritage is most evident in the Polish Carpathians. There is an increasing number of wooden inns, taverns or private houses in this region; the more traditionally constructed, the more admiration they get. Of course, wood was and is still used now in Western Europe, too. But the technique is different. First of all, the wood is hardly ever used as the only material. It is usually combined with stone or brick, used to form a structural framework (so-called frame construction) typical for the Dutch or the German (Prussian wall).

The main feature that distinguishes the Carpathian wooden architecture from Western Europe is a log construction. In this method beams are organized horizontally and attached by the means of special notches on the corners. They form a precise structural system. The foundation as well as other elements exposed to moisture , such as mouldings or door and window frames, are made of the most resistant wood (oak or larch). The whole structure was placed on the foundation, traditionally made of cobble stone, combined by limestone mortar. The largest stones were used in cornerstone (the foundation stone). In the nineteenth century, the foundations were often made of brick and in the twentieth century, of concrete, but this approach is not a traditional one.

The earliest designs were so precise that buildings didn’t have any nails (and they have been preserved to this day), which is nowadays an ideal for architects and builders of wooden houses. Builders in the past used straw or dried moss in order to caulk the construction, which in combination with 50-60cm logs was an adequate thermal insulation of the building. This technique is used today in constructions without additional insulation. According to the currently applicable national requirements you don’t need additional insulation if the thickness of the beams exceeds 29 cm.

Buildings erected in this way attract tourists’ attention and are desired by fans of wooden houses. Unfortunately, only the richest people can afford to build their houses or restaurants out of such thick beams. Therefore contemporary wooden architecture offers substitutes - objects whose components are made of prefabricated wood and lightweight frame constructions, the so-called Canadian construction. This solution is , though, not in the taste of tradition lovers, who if cannot afford to build a new wooden house will move and reconstruct old houses.

Master carpenters of the region, however, pride themselves especially on commercial buildings, constructed with solid beams and appreciated by customer for the whole Europe. Many of the designs have also become a mark of the region that attracts crowds of tourists, especially that the beauty of architecture is always accompanied by remarkable cuisine and unique atmosphere.
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