Timber framing
Encyclopedia
Timber framing or half-timbering, also called in North America
"post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs (larger versions of the mortise and tenon
joints in furniture). It is commonplace in large barns. The methodology comes from making things out of logs and tree trunks without modern high tech
saws to cut lumber
from the starting material stock. Using axes, adze
s and draw knives, hand powered auger
drill bit
s (bit and brace), and laborious woodworking
, artisans or farmers could gradually assemble a building capable of bearing heavy weight without excessive use of interior space given over to vertical support posts.
In architectural terminology it can be defined as:
(1775–1851), who employed it in her book The Lady of the Manor, published in several volumes from 1823 to 1829. She uses the term picturesquely:
Perversely, Sherwood does not use it equally for all timber-framed buildings, for elsewhere she writes:
By 1842, the term "half-timbered" had found its way into The Encyclopedia of Architecture by Joseph Gwilt
(1784–1863).
Timber framing is the method of creating framed structures of heavy timber jointed together with various joints, but most commonly originally with lap jointing, and then later pegged mortise and tenon
joints. Diagonal bracing is used to prevent "racking", or movement of structural vertical beams or posts.
Originally, German (and other) master carpenters would peg the joints with allowance of approximately an inch (25 mm), enough room for the wood to move as it seasoned, then cut the pegs and drive the beam home fully into its socket.
To cope with variable sizes and shapes of hewn (by adze
or axe
) and sawn timbers, two main carpentry methods were employed: scribe carpentry and square rule carpentry.
Scribing was used throughout Europe
, especially from the 12th century to the 19th century and subsequently imported to North America
where it was common into the early 19th century. In a scribe frame, timber sockets are fashioned or "tailor-made" to fit their corresponding timbers; thus each timber piece must be numbered (or "scribed").
Square-rule carpentry was developed in New England
in the 18th century. It used housed joints in main timbers to allow for interchangeable braces and girts. Today, standardised timber sizing mean that timber framing can be incorporated into mass-production methods as per the joinery industry, especially where timber is cut by precision computer numerical control
(CNC) machinery.
To finish the walls, the spaces between the timbers (in German called Fächer) were often infill
ed with wattle and daub
, loam
, brick
, or rubble. Plastered faces on the exterior and interior were often “ceiled” with wainscoting for insulation
and warmth.
This juxtaposition of exposed timbered beams and infilled spaces created the distinctive "half-timbered", or occasionally termed "Tudor", style.
ed horizontal beam called a jetty bressummer to bear the weight of the new wall, projecting outward from the preceding floor or storey
.
In an era when houses were taxed with respect to ground-floor area (square footage) extensive jettying was employed to create higher storey
s of greater area.
In the city of York
in the United Kingdom
, the famous street known as The Shambles exemplifies this, where jettied houses seem to almost touch above the street.
ing axe
and then surface-finished with a broadaxe
. If required, smaller timbers were ripsawn from the hewn baulks using pitsaws or frame saws. Today it is more common for timbers to be bandsawn, and the timbers may sometimes be machine-planed
on all four sides.
The vertical timbers include:
The horizontal timbers include:
When jettying, horizontal elements can include: the dragon-beam which runs diagonally from one corner to another, and supports the corner posts above and supported by the corner posts below.
the jetty beams or joist
s which conform floor dimensions above but are at right angles to the jetty-plates that conform to the shorter dimensions of "roof" of the floor below. Jetty beams are morticed at 45° into the sides of the dragon beams. They are the main constituents of the cantilever system and determine how far the jetty projects
the jetty-plates, designed to carry the jetty beams. The jetty plates themselves are supported by the corner posts of the recessed floor below.
The sloping timbers include:
In the United States
and Canada
, timber-frame construction has been revived since the 1970s and is now experiencing a thriving renaissance of the ancient skills. This is largely due to such practitioners as Steve Chappell, Jack Sobon, and Tedd Benson, who studied old plans and techniques and revived a long-neglected technique. Once a handcrafted skill passed down, timber-frame construction has now been modernized with the help of modern industrial tools such as the CNC machines. These machines and mass-production techniques have assisted growth and made for more affordable frames and shorter lead-times for projects.
Timber-framed structures differ from conventional wood-framed buildings in several ways. Timber framing uses fewer, larger wooden members, commonly timbers in the range of 15 to 30 cm (6" to 12"), while common wood framing uses many more timbers with dimensions usually in the 5 to 25 cm (2" to 10") range. The methods of fastening the frame members also differ. In conventional framing, the members are joined using nails or other mechanical fasteners, whereas timber framing uses the traditional mortice and tenon or more complex joints that are usually fastened using only wooden pegs. Modern complex structures and timber trusses often incorporate steel joinery such as gusset plates, for both structural and architectural purposes.
Recently, it has become common practice to entirely surround the timber structure in manufactured panels, such as SIPs (Structural Insulated Panels
). This method has benefits: the timbers can only be seen from inside the building, but is less complex to build and provides more efficient insulation. Structural Insulated Panels are commonly two rigid composite materials usually wood-based like OSB
or plywood with a foamed insulation material innard, between either gluing billets as in EPS (Expanded Polystyrene) or formed in place with foaming polyurethane
. Another advantage is less of a dependency on extraneous bracing and auxiliary members, minor joists and rafter
s, as the panels can span considerable distances and add greater rigidity to the basic timber frame.
An alternate construction method is with concrete flooring with extensive use of glass. This allows a very solid construction combined with open architecture. Some firms have specialized in industrial prefabrication of such residential and light commercial structures such as Huf Haus
as Low-energy house
s or – dependent on location – Zero-energy buildings.
Straw-bale construction
is another alternative where straw bales are stacked for non-loadbearing infill with various finishes applied to the interior and exterior such as stucco and plaster. This appeals to the traditionalist and the environmentalist as this is using "found" materials to build.
The techniques used in timber framing date back to Neolithic
times, and have been used in many parts of the world during various periods such as ancient Japan
, continental Europe as well as Neolithic Denmark
, England
, France
, Germany
parts of the Roman Empire
and Scotland
.
Half-timbered construction in the Northern European vernacular building style is characteristic of medieval and early modern Denmark
, England, Germany
and parts of France
and Switzerland
where timber was in good supply yet stone and associated skills to dress the stonework were in short supply. In half-timbered construction timbers that were riven in half provided the complete skeletal framing of the building.
Some Roman carpentry preserved in anoxic
layers of clay
at Romano-British
villa
sites demonstrate that sophisticated Roman carpentry
had all the necessary techniques for this construction. The earliest surviving (French) half-timbered buildings date from the 12th century.
Some of the earliest known timber houses in Europe have been found in Scotland
and England
, dating to Neolithic
times; Balbridie
and Fengate are some of the rare examples of these constructions.
Molded plaster ornamentation, pargetting further enriched some English Tudor architecture
houses. Half-timbering is characteristic of English vernacular architecture
in East Anglia, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Herefordshire, Shropshirehttp://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/346586, and Cheshire, where one of the most elaborate surviving English examples of half-timbered construction is Little Moreton Hall.
In South Yorkshire
, the oldest timber house in Sheffield
, the "Bishops' House
" (c. 1500), shows traditional half-timbered construction.
In the Weald
of Kent
and Sussex, the half-timbered structure of the Wealden hall house
, consisted of an open hall
with bays on either side and often jettied upper floors.
Half-timbered construction traveled with British colonists to North America
in the early 17th century but was soon abandoned in New England
and the mid-Atlantic colonies for clapboard facings (an East Anglia
tradition). The original English colonial settlements, such as Plymouth, Massachusetts and Jamestown, Virginia
had timber-framed buildings, rather than the log cabin
s often associated with the American frontier. Living history
programs demonstrating the building technique are available at both these locations.
Many of the surviving streets lined with almost touching houses are known as The Shambles and are very popular tourist attractions.
, Box Frame. From the box frame, more complex framed buildings such as the Wealden House and Jettied house developed
The cruck frame design is amongst the earliest, and was in use by the early 13th century, with its use continuing
to the present day, although rarely post 18th century. Since the 18th century however, many existing cruck structures have been modified, with the original cruck framework becoming hidden.
English construction became influenced by the general deforestation of the island. Longer, straight beams became unavailable and more small pieces had to be used.
, Troyes
, Rouen
, Thiers
, Dinan
, Rennes
and many other cities, except in Provence
and Corsica
. Timber framing in French is known colloquially as pan de bois or technically: colombage.
The Normandy tradition features two techniques: frameworks were built of four evenly spaced regularly hewn timbers set into the ground (poteau en terre) or into a continuous wooden sill (poteau du sole) and mortised at the top into the plate. The openings were filled with many materials including mud and straw, wattle and daub, or horsehair and gypsum.
Some of the more prominent towns (among many) include: Quedlinburg
, a UNESCO
listed town, which has over 1200 half-timbered houses spanning 5 centuries; Goslar
, another UNESCO listed town; Hanau-Steinheim
(the city of the Brothers Grimm
); Bad Urach
; Eppingen
("Romance city" with a half-timbered church dating from 1320); Mosbach
; Vaihingen an der Enz with a UNESCO
-listed Celtic abbey and monastery; Schorndorf
(birthplace of Gottlieb Daimler
); Calw
; Celle
; and Biberach an der Riß with both the largest medieval complex, the Holy Spirit Hospital and the oldest Southern German building, now the Museum of Weavers, dated to 1318.
The best are to be seen along the Deutsche Fachwerkstraße (“German Timber Framing Road”).
German fachwerk building styles are extremely varied with a huge number of carpentry techniques which are highly regionalised. German planning laws for the preservation of buildings and regional architecture preservation dictate that a half-timbered house must be authentic to regional or even city-specific designs before being accepted.
A brief overview of styles follows, as a full inclusion of all styles is impossible.
In general the northern states have fachwerk very similar to that of nearby Holland and England
while the more southerly states (most notably Bavaria
and Switzerland
) have more decoration using timber because of greater forest reserves in those areas.
The German fachwerkhaus usually has a foundation of stone, or sometimes brick, perhaps up to several feet (a couple of metres) high, which the timber framework is mortised into or, more rarely, supports an irregular wooden sill.
The three main forms may divided geographically:
The most characteristic feature is the spacing between the posts and the high placement of windows. Panels are enclosed by sill
, post
and plate and are crossed by two rails between which the windows are placed—like "two eyes peering out".
In addition there is a myriad of regional scrollwork and fretwork designs of the non-loadbearing large timbers (braces) peculiar to particularly wealthy towns or cities.
The German Half-Timbered House Road (Deutsche Fachwerkstraße) is a tourist route that links places containing picturesque half-timbered buildings. It is more than 2 000 km long and stretches across the states of Lower Saxony
, Saxony-Anhalt
, Hesse
, Thuringia
, Bavaria
and Baden-Württemberg
.
of Limburg
, Liège
and Luxemburg
. In urban areas, one used to build the ground floor in stone and the upper floors in timber framing. Also, as timber framing was seen as a cheaper way of building, often the visible structures of noble houses were in stone and bricks, and the invisible or lateral walls in timber framing. The open air museums of Bokrijk
and Fourneau Saint-Michel show many examples of belgian timber framing. Many post and beam houses subsists in cities and villages, but, unlike France, the United Kingdom and Germany, there are few fully timber framed cityscapes.
Contràriament a altres països, no hi ha gaire conjunts complets.
is often overlooked for its timbered houses, yet many exist, including windmills. It was in North Holland
where the import of cheaper timber, combined with the Dutch innovation of windmill
-powered sawmill
s, allowed economically viable widespread use of protective wood covering over framework. In the late 17th century the Dutch introduced vertical cladding
also known in Eastern England as clasp board and in western England as weatherboard, then as more wood was available more cheaply, horizontal cladding in the 17th century. Perhaps owing to economic considerations, vertical cladding returned to fashion.
and Rio Grande do Sul
, Brazil
, where Germans settled in the Southern Brazilian states. Later, they chose more suitable building materials for local conditions (most likely because of the great problem of tropical termites.)
as well other areas of Canada was half-timbered construction with infilled stone and rubble. The style had its origins in Normandy and was brought to Canada by very early Norman settlers. The Men's House at Lower Fort Garry
is a good example of colombage pierroté. The walls of such buildings were often covered over with clapboards to protect the infill from erosion. Naturally, this required frequent maintenance and the style was abandoned as a building method in the 18th century in Québec. For the same reasons, half-timbering in New England, which was originally employed by the English settlers, fell out of favour soon after the colonies had become established.
Consequently this gave rise to the poteaux sur solle style in which wood is used both for the frame and infill; for this reason it may be incorrect to call it "half-timbering". This technique proved better suited to the harsh climates of Québec and Acadia, which at the same time had abundant wood. It became very popular throughout New France, as far afield as southern Louisiana.
Nevertheless, despite the rising preference for poteaux sur solle, the colombage pierroté technique survived well into the 19th century in the Prairies, being employed by French-Canadian carpenters at outposts of the Hudson's Bay Company
, as well as on the Red River Colony
.
When half-timbering regained popularity in Britain after 1860 in the various revival styles, such as the Queen Anne style
houses by Richard Norman Shaw
and others, it was often used to evoke a "Tudor" atmosphere (see Tudorbethan), though in Tudor times half-timbering had begun to look rustic and was increasingly limited to village houses (illustration, above left).
In 1912, Allen W. Jackson published The Half-Timber House: Its Origin, Design, Modern Plan, and Construction, and rambling half-timbered beach houses appeared on dune-front properties in Rhode Island
or under palm-lined drives of Beverly Hills. During the 1920s increasingly minimal gestures towards some half-timbering in commercial speculative house-building saw the fashion diminish.
In the revival styles, such as Tudorbethan (Mock Tudor), the half-timbered appearance is superimposed on the brickwork or other material as an outside decorative façade
rather than forming the main frame that supports the structure.
In modern construction timber-frame structure offers many benefits:
In North America, heavy timber construction is classified Building Code Type IV: a special class reserved for timber framing which recognizes the inherent fire resistance of large timber and its ability to retain structural capacity in fire situations. In many cases this classification can eliminate the need and expense of fire sprinklers in public buildings.
Additionally, in such nations as Germany where energy efficiency is highly regulated, the renovated building may be required to meet modern energy efficiencies, if it is to be used as a residential or commercial structure (museums and significant historic buildings have no semi-permanent habitation are exempt). Many framework houses of significance are treated merely to preserve, rather than render inhabitable — most especially as the required heavy insecticidal fumigation is highly poisonous.
In some cases, it is more economical to build anew using authentic techniques and correct period materials than restore. One major problem with older structures is the phenomenon known as mechano-sorptive creep or slanting: where wood beams absorb moisture whilst under compression
or tension strains and deform, shift position or both. This is a major structural issue as the house may deviate several degrees from perpendicular to its foundations (in the x-axis, y-axis and even z-axis) and thus be unsafe and unstable or so out of square it is extremely costly to remedy.
A summary of problems with Fachwerkhäuser or half-timbered houses includes the following, though many can be avoided by intelligent design and application of suitable paints and surface treatments and routine maintenance. Often, though when dealing with a structure of a century or more old, it is too late.
poor prevention of capillary movement of water within any exposed timber, leading to afore-described creep, or rot
eaves that are too narrow or non-existent (thus allowing total exposure to rain and snow)
too much exterior detailing that does not allow adequate rainwater run-off
timber ends, joints and corners poorly protected through coatings, shape or position
non-bevelled vertical beams (posts and clapboards) allow water absorption and retention through capillary action.
surface point or coatings allowed to deteriorate
traditional gypsum, or wattle and daub containing organic materials (animal hair, straw, manure) which then decompose.
in both porteaux en terre and porteaux du sole" insect, fungus or bacterial decomposition.
rot
including dry rot
.
infestation of xylophagous pest organisms such as (very common in Europe) the Anobiidae
family particularly the common furniture beetle
, termite
s, cockroach
es powderpost beetle
s, mice
and rat
s (quite famously so in many children's stories).
Noise from footsteps in adjacent rooms above, below, and on the same floor in such buildings can be quite audible. This is often resolved with built-up floor systems involving clever sound-isolation and absorption techniques, and at the same time providing passage space for plumbing, wiring and even heating and cooling equipment.
Other fungi
that are non-destructive to the wood, but are harmful to humans such as black mold
. These fungi may also thrive on many "modern" building materials.
Wood burns
more readily than some other materials, making timber-frame buildings somewhat more susceptible to fire damage, although this idea is not universally accepted: Since the cross-sectional dimensions of many structural members exceed 15 cm × 15 cm (6" × 6"), timber-frame structures benefit from the unique properties of large timbers, which char on the outside forming an insulated layer that protects the rest of the beam from burning.
prior flood
or soil subsidence
damage
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
"post-and-beam" construction, is the method of creating structures using heavy squared off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large wooden pegs (larger versions of the mortise and tenon
Mortise and tenon
The mortise and tenon joint has been used for thousands of years by woodworkers around the world to join pieces of wood, mainly when the adjoining pieces connect at an angle of 90°. In its basic form it is both simple and strong. Although there are many joint variations, the basic mortise and tenon...
joints in furniture). It is commonplace in large barns. The methodology comes from making things out of logs and tree trunks without modern high tech
High tech
High tech is technology that is at the cutting edge: the most advanced technology currently available. It is often used in reference to micro-electronics, rather than other technologies. The adjective form is hyphenated: high-tech or high-technology...
saws to cut lumber
Lumber
Lumber or timber is wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production....
from the starting material stock. Using axes, adze
Adze
An adze is a tool used for smoothing or carving rough-cut wood in hand woodworking. Generally, the user stands astride a board or log and swings the adze downwards towards his feet, chipping off pieces of wood, moving backwards as they go and leaving a relatively smooth surface behind...
s and draw knives, hand powered auger
Auger
An auger is a drilling device, or drill bit, that usually includes a rotating helical screw blade called a "flighting" to act as a screw conveyor to remove the drilled out material...
drill bit
Drill bit
Drill bits are cutting tools used to create cylindrical holes. Bits are held in a tool called a drill, which rotates them and provides torque and axial force to create the hole. Specialized bits are also available for non-cylindrical-shaped holes....
s (bit and brace), and laborious woodworking
Woodworking
Woodworking is the process of building, making or carving something using wood.-History:Along with stone, mud, and animal parts, wood was one of the first materials worked by early humans. Microwear analysis of the Mousterian stone tools used by the Neanderthals show that many were used to work wood...
, artisans or farmers could gradually assemble a building capable of bearing heavy weight without excessive use of interior space given over to vertical support posts.
In architectural terminology it can be defined as:
a lattice of panels filled with a non-loadbearing material or "nogging" of brickBrickA brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...
, clayClayClay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
or plasterPlasterPlaster is a building material used for coating walls and ceilings. Plaster starts as a dry powder similar to mortar or cement and like those materials it is mixed with water to form a paste which liberates heat and then hardens. Unlike mortar and cement, plaster remains quite soft after setting,...
, the frame is often exposed on the outside of the building
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Naming
One of the first people to use the term half-timbered was Mary Martha SherwoodMary Martha Sherwood
Mary Martha Sherwood was a prolific and influential writer of children's literature in 19th-century Britain...
(1775–1851), who employed it in her book The Lady of the Manor, published in several volumes from 1823 to 1829. She uses the term picturesquely:
Perversely, Sherwood does not use it equally for all timber-framed buildings, for elsewhere she writes:
By 1842, the term "half-timbered" had found its way into The Encyclopedia of Architecture by Joseph Gwilt
Joseph Gwilt
Joseph Gwilt was an English architect and writer.He was the son of George Gwilt, architect surveyor to the county of Surrey, and was born at Southwark...
(1784–1863).
Structure
Mortise and tenon
The mortise and tenon joint has been used for thousands of years by woodworkers around the world to join pieces of wood, mainly when the adjoining pieces connect at an angle of 90°. In its basic form it is both simple and strong. Although there are many joint variations, the basic mortise and tenon...
joints. Diagonal bracing is used to prevent "racking", or movement of structural vertical beams or posts.
Originally, German (and other) master carpenters would peg the joints with allowance of approximately an inch (25 mm), enough room for the wood to move as it seasoned, then cut the pegs and drive the beam home fully into its socket.
To cope with variable sizes and shapes of hewn (by adze
Adze
An adze is a tool used for smoothing or carving rough-cut wood in hand woodworking. Generally, the user stands astride a board or log and swings the adze downwards towards his feet, chipping off pieces of wood, moving backwards as they go and leaving a relatively smooth surface behind...
or axe
Axe
The axe, or ax, is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood; to harvest timber; as a weapon; and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol...
) and sawn timbers, two main carpentry methods were employed: scribe carpentry and square rule carpentry.
Scribing was used throughout Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, especially from the 12th century to the 19th century and subsequently imported to North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
where it was common into the early 19th century. In a scribe frame, timber sockets are fashioned or "tailor-made" to fit their corresponding timbers; thus each timber piece must be numbered (or "scribed").
Square-rule carpentry was developed in New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
in the 18th century. It used housed joints in main timbers to allow for interchangeable braces and girts. Today, standardised timber sizing mean that timber framing can be incorporated into mass-production methods as per the joinery industry, especially where timber is cut by precision computer numerical control
Numerical control
Numerical control refers to the automation of machine tools that are operated by abstractly programmed commands encoded on a storage medium, as opposed to controlled manually via handwheels or levers, or mechanically automated via cams alone...
(CNC) machinery.
To finish the walls, the spaces between the timbers (in German called Fächer) were often infill
Infill
Infill in its broadest meaning is material that fills in an otherwise unoccupied space. The term is commonly used in association with construction techniques such as wattle and daub, and civil engineering activities such as land reclamation.-Construction:...
ed with wattle and daub
Wattle and daub
Wattle and daub is a composite building material used for making walls, in which a woven lattice of wooden strips called wattle is daubed with a sticky material usually made of some combination of wet soil, clay, sand, animal dung and straw...
, loam
Loam
Loam is soil composed of sand, silt, and clay in relatively even concentration . Loam soils generally contain more nutrients and humus than sandy soils, have better infiltration and drainage than silty soils, and are easier to till than clay soils...
, brick
Brick
A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...
, or rubble. Plastered faces on the exterior and interior were often “ceiled” with wainscoting for insulation
Thermal insulation
Thermal insulation is the reduction of the effects of the various processes of heat transfer between objects in thermal contact or in range of radiative influence. Heat transfer is the transfer of thermal energy between objects of differing temperature...
and warmth.
This juxtaposition of exposed timbered beams and infilled spaces created the distinctive "half-timbered", or occasionally termed "Tudor", style.
Jetties
A jetty is an upper floor which requires a structural cantileverCantilever
A cantilever is a beam anchored at only one end. The beam carries the load to the support where it is resisted by moment and shear stress. Cantilever construction allows for overhanging structures without external bracing. Cantilevers can also be constructed with trusses or slabs.This is in...
ed horizontal beam called a jetty bressummer to bear the weight of the new wall, projecting outward from the preceding floor or storey
Storey
A storey or story is any level part of a building that could be used by people...
.
In an era when houses were taxed with respect to ground-floor area (square footage) extensive jettying was employed to create higher storey
Storey
A storey or story is any level part of a building that could be used by people...
s of greater area.
In the city of York
York
York is a walled city, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. The city has a rich heritage and has provided the backdrop to major political events throughout much of its two millennia of existence...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, the famous street known as The Shambles exemplifies this, where jettied houses seem to almost touch above the street.
Timbers
Historically, the timbers would have been hewn square using a fellFell
“Fell” is a word used to refer to mountains, or certain types of mountainous landscape, in Scandinavia, the Isle of Man, and parts of northern England.- Etymology :...
ing axe
Axe
The axe, or ax, is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood; to harvest timber; as a weapon; and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol...
and then surface-finished with a broadaxe
Broadaxe
A broadaxe is a large-headed axe. There were two types of broadaxes both used for shaping logs by hand hewing. On one type, one side is flat and the other side beveled, a basilled edge, this is a hewing broadaxe...
. If required, smaller timbers were ripsawn from the hewn baulks using pitsaws or frame saws. Today it is more common for timbers to be bandsawn, and the timbers may sometimes be machine-planed
Plane (tool)
A hand plane is a tool for shaping wood. When powered by electricity, the tool may be called a planer. Planes are used to flatten, reduce the thickness of, and impart a smooth surface to a rough piece of lumber or timber. Planing is used to produce horizontal, vertical, or inclined flat surfaces on...
on all four sides.
The vertical timbers include:
- postColumnA column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a vertical structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. For the purpose of wind or earthquake engineering, columns may be designed to resist lateral forces...
s (main supports at corners and other major uprights), - Wall studWall studA wall stud is a vertical member in the light frame construction techniques called balloon framing and platform framing of a building's wall.-Purpose:...
s (subsidiary upright limbs in framed walls), for example, close studdingClose studdingClose studding is a form of timber work used in timber-framed buildings in which vertical timbers are set close together, dividing the wall into narrow panels...
.
The horizontal timbers include:
- sill-beams (also called ground-sills or sole-pieces, at the bottom of a wall into which posts and studs are fitted using tenons),
- noggin-pieces (the horizontal timbers forming the tops and bottoms of the frames of infill panels),
- wall-plates (at the top of timber-framed walls that support the trussTrussIn architecture and structural engineering, a truss is a structure comprising one or more triangular units constructed with straight members whose ends are connected at joints referred to as nodes. External forces and reactions to those forces are considered to act only at the nodes and result in...
es and joistJoistA joist, in architecture and engineering, is one of the horizontal supporting members that run from wall to wall, wall to beam, or beam to beam to support a ceiling, roof, or floor. It may be made of wood, steel, or concrete. Typically, a beam is bigger than, and is thus distinguished from, a joist...
s of the roof).
When jettying, horizontal elements can include:
- the jetty bressummer (or breastsummer): the main sillSill plateA sill plate or sole plate in construction and architecture is the bottom horizontal member of a wall or building to which vertical members are attached. Sill plates are usually composed of lumber. It usually comes in sizes of 2×4, 2×6, 2×8, and 2×10. In the platform framing method the sill plate...
(horizontal piece) on which the projecting wall above rests and which stretches across the whole width of the jetty wall. The bressummer is itself
Joist
A joist, in architecture and engineering, is one of the horizontal supporting members that run from wall to wall, wall to beam, or beam to beam to support a ceiling, roof, or floor. It may be made of wood, steel, or concrete. Typically, a beam is bigger than, and is thus distinguished from, a joist...
s which conform floor dimensions above but are at right angles to the
The sloping timbers include:
- trussTrussIn architecture and structural engineering, a truss is a structure comprising one or more triangular units constructed with straight members whose ends are connected at joints referred to as nodes. External forces and reactions to those forces are considered to act only at the nodes and result in...
es (the slanting timbers forming the triangular framework at gableGableA gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
s and roofRoofA roof is the covering on the uppermost part of a building. A roof protects the building and its contents from the effects of weather. Structures that require roofs range from a letter box to a cathedral or stadium, dwellings being the most numerous....
), - braces (slanting beams giving extra support between horizontal or vertical members of the timber frame),
- herringboneHerringboneHerringbone can refer to:*A layout of airline seating – see Herringbone seating*A bonding pattern of brickwork, also known as opus spicatum*A weaving pattern of tweed or twill cloth – see Herringbone *A cross-stitch pattern...
bracing (a decorative and supporting style of frame, usually at 45° to the upright and horizontal directions of the frame).
Modern features
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, timber-frame construction has been revived since the 1970s and is now experiencing a thriving renaissance of the ancient skills. This is largely due to such practitioners as Steve Chappell, Jack Sobon, and Tedd Benson, who studied old plans and techniques and revived a long-neglected technique. Once a handcrafted skill passed down, timber-frame construction has now been modernized with the help of modern industrial tools such as the CNC machines. These machines and mass-production techniques have assisted growth and made for more affordable frames and shorter lead-times for projects.
Timber-framed structures differ from conventional wood-framed buildings in several ways. Timber framing uses fewer, larger wooden members, commonly timbers in the range of 15 to 30 cm (6" to 12"), while common wood framing uses many more timbers with dimensions usually in the 5 to 25 cm (2" to 10") range. The methods of fastening the frame members also differ. In conventional framing, the members are joined using nails or other mechanical fasteners, whereas timber framing uses the traditional mortice and tenon or more complex joints that are usually fastened using only wooden pegs. Modern complex structures and timber trusses often incorporate steel joinery such as gusset plates, for both structural and architectural purposes.
Recently, it has become common practice to entirely surround the timber structure in manufactured panels, such as SIPs (Structural Insulated Panels
Structural insulated panel
Structural insulated panels , SIPs, are a composite building material. They consist of an insulating layer of rigid polymer foam sandwiched between two layers of structural board...
). This method has benefits: the timbers can only be seen from inside the building, but is less complex to build and provides more efficient insulation. Structural Insulated Panels are commonly two rigid composite materials usually wood-based like OSB
Oriented strand board
Oriented strand board, also known as OSB and SmartPly , is an engineered wood product formed by layering strands of wood in specific orientations. In appearance, it may have a rough and variegated surface with the individual strips Oriented strand board, also known as OSB (UK) and SmartPly (UK &...
or plywood with a foamed insulation material innard, between either gluing billets as in EPS (Expanded Polystyrene) or formed in place with foaming polyurethane
Polyurethane
A polyurethane is any polymer composed of a chain of organic units joined by carbamate links. Polyurethane polymers are formed through step-growth polymerization, by reacting a monomer with another monomer in the presence of a catalyst.Polyurethanes are...
. Another advantage is less of a dependency on extraneous bracing and auxiliary members, minor joists and rafter
Rafter
A rafter is one of a series of sloped structural members , that extend from the ridge or hip to the downslope perimeter or eave, designed to support the roof deck and its associated loads.-Design:...
s, as the panels can span considerable distances and add greater rigidity to the basic timber frame.
Huf Haus
Huf Haus is a German company based in Hartenfels in the Westerwald region that manufactures prefabricated houses. Huf Haus is the world's leading company in selling houses in the Bauhaus tradition based on german Fachwerk. The construction allows individual floor plans, including for office buildings...
as Low-energy house
Low-energy house
A low-energy house is any type of house that from design, technologies and building products uses less energy, from any source, than a traditional or average contemporary house...
s or – dependent on location – Zero-energy buildings.
Straw-bale construction
Straw-bale construction
Straw-bale construction is a building method that uses bales of straw as structural elements, building insulation, or both...
is another alternative where straw bales are stacked for non-loadbearing infill with various finishes applied to the interior and exterior such as stucco and plaster. This appeals to the traditionalist and the environmentalist as this is using "found" materials to build.
History and traditions
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
times, and have been used in many parts of the world during various periods such as ancient Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, continental Europe as well as Neolithic Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
parts of the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
Half-timbered construction in the Northern European vernacular building style is characteristic of medieval and early modern Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, England, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and parts of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
where timber was in good supply yet stone and associated skills to dress the stonework were in short supply. In half-timbered construction timbers that were riven in half provided the complete skeletal framing of the building.
Some Roman carpentry preserved in anoxic
Anoxic event
Oceanic anoxic events or anoxic events occur when the Earth's oceans become completely depleted of oxygen below the surface levels. Although anoxic events have not happened for millions of years, the geological record shows that they happened many times in the past. Anoxic events may have caused...
layers of clay
Clay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
at Romano-British
Romano-British
Romano-British culture describes the culture that arose in Britain under the Roman Empire following the Roman conquest of AD 43 and the creation of the province of Britannia. It arose as a fusion of the imported Roman culture with that of the indigenous Britons, a people of Celtic language and...
villa
Villa
A villa was originally an ancient Roman upper-class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became small farming compounds, which were increasingly fortified in Late Antiquity,...
sites demonstrate that sophisticated Roman carpentry
Carpentry
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
had all the necessary techniques for this construction. The earliest surviving (French) half-timbered buildings date from the 12th century.
English tradition
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, dating to Neolithic
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
times; Balbridie
Balbridie
Balbridie is the site of a Neolithic timberhouse in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, situated in the south Deeside near the B9077 road. This archaeological site is one of the earliest known permanent neolithic settlements in Scotland, dating to 3400 to 4000 BC...
and Fengate are some of the rare examples of these constructions.
Molded plaster ornamentation, pargetting further enriched some English Tudor architecture
Tudor architecture
The Tudor architectural style is the final development of medieval architecture during the Tudor period and even beyond, for conservative college patrons...
houses. Half-timbering is characteristic of English vernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture
Vernacular architecture is a term used to categorize methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs and circumstances. Vernacular architecture tends to evolve over time to reflect the environmental, cultural and historical context in which it...
in East Anglia, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, Herefordshire, Shropshirehttp://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/346586, and Cheshire, where one of the most elaborate surviving English examples of half-timbered construction is Little Moreton Hall.
In South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It has a population of 1.29 million. It consists of four metropolitan boroughs: Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham, and City of Sheffield...
, the oldest timber house in Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
, the "Bishops' House
Bishops' House
Bishops' House is a half-timbered house in the Norton Lees district of the City of Sheffield, England. It was built c. 1500 and is located at , on the southern tip of Meersbrook Park...
" (c. 1500), shows traditional half-timbered construction.
In the Weald
Weald
The Weald is the name given to an area in South East England situated between the parallel chalk escarpments of the North and the South Downs. It should be regarded as three separate parts: the sandstone "High Weald" in the centre; the clay "Low Weald" periphery; and the Greensand Ridge which...
of Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
and Sussex, the half-timbered structure of the Wealden hall house
Wealden hall house
The Wealden hall house is a type of vernacular medieval timber-framed yeoman's house traditional in the south east of England. It is most common in Kent and the east of Sussex but has also been built elsewhere...
, consisted of an open hall
Hall
In architecture, a hall is fundamentally a relatively large space enclosed by a roof and walls. In the Iron Age, a mead hall was such a simple building and was the residence of a lord and his retainers...
with bays on either side and often jettied upper floors.
Half-timbered construction traveled with British colonists to North America
British colonization of the Americas
British colonization of the Americas began in 1607 in Jamestown, Virginia and reached its peak when colonies had been established throughout the Americas...
in the early 17th century but was soon abandoned in New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
and the mid-Atlantic colonies for clapboard facings (an East Anglia
East Anglia
East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
tradition). The original English colonial settlements, such as Plymouth, Massachusetts and Jamestown, Virginia
Jamestown, Virginia
Jamestown was a settlement in the Colony of Virginia. Established by the Virginia Company of London as "James Fort" on May 14, 1607 , it was the first permanent English settlement in what is now the United States, following several earlier failed attempts, including the Lost Colony of Roanoke...
had timber-framed buildings, rather than the log cabin
Log cabin
A log cabin is a house built from logs. It is a fairly simple type of log house. A distinction should be drawn between the traditional meanings of "log cabin" and "log house." Historically most "Log cabins" were a simple one- or 1½-story structures, somewhat impermanent, and less finished or less...
s often associated with the American frontier. Living history
Living history
Living history is an activity that incorporates historical tools, activities and dress into an interactive presentation that seeks to give observers and participants a sense of stepping back in time. Although it does not necessarily seek to reenact a specific event in history, living history is...
programs demonstrating the building technique are available at both these locations.
Many of the surviving streets lined with almost touching houses are known as The Shambles and are very popular tourist attractions.
English Styles
Timber frame construction in England (and the rest of the United Kingdom) showed regional variation and as houses were modified to cope with changing demands there can be a combination of styles within a single timer frame construction However, the major types in England appear to have been the 'cruck frame'Cruck
A cruck or crook frame is a curved timber, one of a pair, which supports the roof of a building, used particularly in England. This type of timber framing consists of long, generally bent, timber beams that lean inwards and form the ridge of the roof. These posts are then generally secured by a...
, Box Frame. From the box frame, more complex framed buildings such as the Wealden House and Jettied house developed
The cruck frame design is amongst the earliest, and was in use by the early 13th century, with its use continuing
to the present day, although rarely post 18th century. Since the 18th century however, many existing cruck structures have been modified, with the original cruck framework becoming hidden.
English construction became influenced by the general deforestation of the island. Longer, straight beams became unavailable and more small pieces had to be used.
French tradition
Elaborately half-timbered houses of the 13th, 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th centuries still remain in BourgesBourges
Bourges is a city in central France on the Yèvre river. It is the capital of the department of Cher and also was the capital of the former province of Berry.-History:...
, Troyes
Troyes
Troyes is a commune and the capital of the Aube department in north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about southeast of Paris. Many half-timbered houses survive in the old town...
, Rouen
Rouen
Rouen , in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe , it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages...
, Thiers
Thiers, Puy-de-Dôme
Thiers is a commune in the Puy-de-Dôme department in Auvergne in central France. Thiers is twinned with Bridgnorth, England and Schrobenhausen, Germany.Thiers is built upon a hillside along the Durolle river valley...
, Dinan
Dinan
Dinan is a walled Breton town and a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in northwestern France.-Geography:Its geographical setting is exceptional. Instead of nestling on the valley floor like Morlaix, most urban development has been on the hillside, overlooking the river Rance...
, Rennes
Rennes
Rennes is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.-History:...
and many other cities, except in Provence
Provence
Provence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
and Corsica
Corsica
Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
. Timber framing in French is known colloquially as pan de bois or technically: colombage.
The Normandy tradition features two techniques: frameworks were built of four evenly spaced regularly hewn timbers set into the ground (poteau en terre) or into a continuous wooden sill (poteau du sole) and mortised at the top into the plate. The openings were filled with many materials including mud and straw, wattle and daub, or horsehair and gypsum.
German tradition or
Fachwerkhäuser Probably the greatest number of half-timbered buildings are to be found in Germany and in Alsace (France). There are many small towns which escaped both war damage and modernisation and consist mainly, or even entirely, of half-timbered houses.Some of the more prominent towns (among many) include: Quedlinburg
Quedlinburg
Quedlinburg is a town located north of the Harz mountains, in the district of Harz in the west of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. In 1994 the medieval court and the old town was set on the UNESCO world heritage list....
, a UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
listed town, which has over 1200 half-timbered houses spanning 5 centuries; Goslar
Goslar
Goslar is a historic town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the administrative centre of the district of Goslar and located on the northwestern slopes of the Harz mountain range. The Old Town of Goslar and the Mines of Rammelsberg are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.-Geography:Goslar is situated at the...
, another UNESCO listed town; Hanau-Steinheim
Hanau
Hanau is a town in the Main-Kinzig-Kreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is located 25 km east of Frankfurt am Main. Its station is a major railway junction.- Geography :...
(the city of the Brothers Grimm
Brothers Grimm
The Brothers Grimm , Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm , were German academics, linguists, cultural researchers, and authors who collected folklore and published several collections of it as Grimm's Fairy Tales, which became very popular...
); Bad Urach
Bad Urach
Bad Urach is a town in the district of Reutlingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated 14 km east of Reutlingen, at the foot of the Swabian Alb, and is known for its spa and therapeutic bath.-History:...
; Eppingen
Eppingen
Eppingen is a town in the district of Heilbronn in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The town has the second-largest population in the district....
("Romance city" with a half-timbered church dating from 1320); Mosbach
Mosbach
Mosbach is the capital of the Neckar-Odenwald district in the north of Baden-Württemberg, Germany, about 58 km east of Heidelberg. Its geographical position is 49.21'N 9.9'E....
; Vaihingen an der Enz with a UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
-listed Celtic abbey and monastery; Schorndorf
Schorndorf
Schorndorf is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located c. 26 km east of Stuttgart. Its station is a the terminus of line S2 of the Stuttgart S-Bahn....
(birthplace of Gottlieb Daimler
Gottlieb Daimler
Gottlieb Daimler was an engineer, industrial designer and industrialist born in Schorndorf , in what is now Germany. He was a pioneer of internal-combustion engines and automobile development...
); Calw
Calw
Calw is a municipality in the middle of Baden-Württemberg in the south of Germany, capital of the district Calw. It is located in the northern Black Forest.-History:...
; Celle
Celle
Celle is a town and capital of the district of Celle, in Lower Saxony, Germany. The town is situated on the banks of the River Aller, a tributary of the Weser and has a population of about 71,000...
; and Biberach an der Riß with both the largest medieval complex, the Holy Spirit Hospital and the oldest Southern German building, now the Museum of Weavers, dated to 1318.
The best are to be seen along the Deutsche Fachwerkstraße (“German Timber Framing Road”).
German fachwerk building styles are extremely varied with a huge number of carpentry techniques which are highly regionalised. German planning laws for the preservation of buildings and regional architecture preservation dictate that a half-timbered house must be authentic to regional or even city-specific designs before being accepted.
A brief overview of styles follows, as a full inclusion of all styles is impossible.
In general the northern states have fachwerk very similar to that of nearby Holland and England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
while the more southerly states (most notably Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
) have more decoration using timber because of greater forest reserves in those areas.
The German fachwerkhaus usually has a foundation of stone, or sometimes brick, perhaps up to several feet (a couple of metres) high, which the timber framework is mortised into or, more rarely, supports an irregular wooden sill.
The three main forms may divided geographically:
- West Central Germany and FranconiaFranconiaFranconia is a region of Germany comprising the northern parts of the modern state of Bavaria, a small part of southern Thuringia, and a region in northeastern Baden-Württemberg called Tauberfranken...
:- In West Central German and Franconian timber-work houses (particularly in the Central Rhine and Moselle): the windows most commonly lie between the rails of the sillsSill plateA sill plate or sole plate in construction and architecture is the bottom horizontal member of a wall or building to which vertical members are attached. Sill plates are usually composed of lumber. It usually comes in sizes of 2×4, 2×6, 2×8, and 2×10. In the platform framing method the sill plate...
and lintels.
- In West Central German and Franconian timber-work houses (particularly in the Central Rhine and Moselle): the windows most commonly lie between the rails of the sills
- Northern Germany and East Central Germany (also very similar style to PolandPolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
):- In SaxonySaxonyThe Free State of Saxony is a landlocked state of Germany, contingent with Brandenburg, Saxony Anhalt, Thuringia, Bavaria, the Czech Republic and Poland. It is the tenth-largest German state in area, with of Germany's sixteen states....
and around the HarzHarzThe Harz is the highest mountain range in northern Germany and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. The name Harz derives from the Middle High German word Hardt or Hart , latinized as Hercynia. The legendary Brocken is the highest summit in the Harz...
foothills, angle braces often form fully extended triangles. - Lower Saxon houses have a joistJoistA joist, in architecture and engineering, is one of the horizontal supporting members that run from wall to wall, wall to beam, or beam to beam to support a ceiling, roof, or floor. It may be made of wood, steel, or concrete. Typically, a beam is bigger than, and is thus distinguished from, a joist...
for every post. - Holstein fachwerk houses are famed for their massive 12-inch (30 cm) beams.
- In Saxony
- Southern Germany including the Black and Bohemian Forests
- In SwabiaSwabiaSwabia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany.-Geography:Like many cultural regions of Europe, Swabia's borders are not clearly defined...
, WürttembergWürttembergWürttemberg , formerly known as Wirtemberg or Wurtemberg, is an area and a former state in southwestern Germany, including parts of the regions Swabia and Franconia....
, AlsaceAlsaceAlsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²...
, and SwitzerlandSwitzerlandSwitzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, the use of the lap-joint is thought to be the earliest method of connecting the wall plates and tie beams and is particularly identified with Swabia. A later innovation (also pioneered in Swabia) was the use of tenonsMortise and tenonThe mortise and tenon joint has been used for thousands of years by woodworkers around the world to join pieces of wood, mainly when the adjoining pieces connect at an angle of 90°. In its basic form it is both simple and strong. Although there are many joint variations, the basic mortise and tenon...
— builders left timbers to season which were held in place by wooden pegs (i.e., tenons). The timbers were initially placed with the tenons left an inch or two out of intended position and later driven home after becoming fully seasoned.
- In Swabia
The most characteristic feature is the spacing between the posts and the high placement of windows. Panels are enclosed by sill
Sill
Sill may refer to:* Sill , a subhorizontal sheet intrusion of molten or solidified magma* Sill plate, a construction element*Window sill, a more specific construction element than above...
, post
Post
-Mail:* Mail, the postal system, especially in Commonwealth of Nations countries* Post, an entry in a blog or internet forum - see posting style-Newspapers and magazines:* New York Post, USA* The Washington Post, USA...
and plate and are crossed by two rails between which the windows are placed—like "two eyes peering out".
In addition there is a myriad of regional scrollwork and fretwork designs of the non-loadbearing large timbers (braces) peculiar to particularly wealthy towns or cities.
The German Half-Timbered House Road (Deutsche Fachwerkstraße) is a tourist route that links places containing picturesque half-timbered buildings. It is more than 2 000 km long and stretches across the states of Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony is a German state situated in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen states of Germany...
, Saxony-Anhalt
Saxony-Anhalt
Saxony-Anhalt is a landlocked state of Germany. Its capital is Magdeburg and it is surrounded by the German states of Lower Saxony, Brandenburg, Saxony, and Thuringia.Saxony-Anhalt covers an area of...
, Hesse
Hesse
Hesse or Hessia is both a cultural region of Germany and the name of an individual German state.* The cultural region of Hesse includes both the State of Hesse and the area known as Rhenish Hesse in the neighbouring Rhineland-Palatinate state...
, Thuringia
Thuringia
The Free State of Thuringia is a state of Germany, located in the central part of the country.It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen states....
, Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
and Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
.
Belgium
Nowadays, timber framing mostly subsists in the provincesProvinces of Belgium
Belgium is divided into three regions, two of them are subdivided into five provinces each.The division into provinces is fixed by Article 5 of the Belgian Constitution...
of Limburg
Limburg (Belgium)
Limburg is the easternmost province of modern Flanders, which is one of the three main political and cultural sub-divisions of modern Belgium. It is located west of the river Meuse . It borders on the Dutch provinces of North Brabant and Limburg and the Belgian provinces of Liège, Flemish Brabant...
, Liège
Liège (province)
Liège is the easternmost province of Belgium and belongs to the Walloon Region. It is an area of French and German ethnicity. It borders on the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, and in Belgium the provinces of Luxembourg, Namur, Walloon Brabant , and those of Flemish Brabant and Limburg . Its...
and Luxemburg
Luxembourg (Belgium)
Luxembourg is the southernmost province of Wallonia and of Belgium. It borders on the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, France, and the Belgian provinces of Namur and Liège. Its capital is Arlon, in the south-east of the province.It has an area of 4,443 km², making it the largest Belgian province...
. In urban areas, one used to build the ground floor in stone and the upper floors in timber framing. Also, as timber framing was seen as a cheaper way of building, often the visible structures of noble houses were in stone and bricks, and the invisible or lateral walls in timber framing. The open air museums of Bokrijk
Bokrijk
Bokrijk is a provincial domain in Limburg, Belgium, situated near the city of Genk. It is mainly known for its open air museum. The domain is 5.5 square kilometres in area and hosts an important botanical garden and Flanders' largest open air playground.-History:Early sources until the French...
and Fourneau Saint-Michel show many examples of belgian timber framing. Many post and beam houses subsists in cities and villages, but, unlike France, the United Kingdom and Germany, there are few fully timber framed cityscapes.
Contràriament a altres països, no hi ha gaire conjunts complets.
Netherlands
The NetherlandsNetherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
is often overlooked for its timbered houses, yet many exist, including windmills. It was in North Holland
North Holland
North Holland |West Frisian]]: Noard-Holland) is a province situated on the North Sea in the northwest part of the Netherlands. The provincial capital is Haarlem and its largest city is Amsterdam.-Geography:...
where the import of cheaper timber, combined with the Dutch innovation of windmill
Windmill
A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. Originally windmills were developed for milling grain for food production. In the course of history the windmill was adapted to many other industrial uses. An important...
-powered sawmill
Sawmill
A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....
s, allowed economically viable widespread use of protective wood covering over framework. In the late 17th century the Dutch introduced vertical cladding
Cladding (construction)
Cladding is the application of one material over another to provide a skin or layer intended to control the infiltration of weather elements, or for aesthetic purposes....
also known in Eastern England as clasp board and in western England as weatherboard, then as more wood was available more cheaply, horizontal cladding in the 17th century. Perhaps owing to economic considerations, vertical cladding returned to fashion.
Americas
Most "haft-timbered" houses existing in Missouri, Pennsylvania (the Amish are actually ethnically German) and Texas were built by German settlers. Many are still present in Santa CatarinaSanta Catarina (state)
Santa Catarina is a state in southern Brazil with one of the highest standards of living in Latin America. Its capital is Florianópolis, which mostly lies on the Santa Catarina Island. Neighbouring states are Rio Grande do Sul to the south and Paraná to the north. It is bounded on the east by...
and Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul
Rio Grande do Sul is the southernmost state in Brazil, and the state with the fifth highest Human Development Index in the country. In this state is located the southernmost city in the country, Chuí, on the border with Uruguay. In the region of Bento Gonçalves and Caxias do Sul, the largest wine...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, where Germans settled in the Southern Brazilian states. Later, they chose more suitable building materials for local conditions (most likely because of the great problem of tropical termites.)
Canadian tradition
The style called colombage pierroté in QuebecQuebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
as well other areas of Canada was half-timbered construction with infilled stone and rubble. The style had its origins in Normandy and was brought to Canada by very early Norman settlers. The Men's House at Lower Fort Garry
Lower Fort Garry
Lower Fort Garry was built in 1830 by the Hudson's Bay Company on the western bank of the Red River, north of the original Fort Garry, which is now in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Treaty 1 was signed there....
is a good example of colombage pierroté. The walls of such buildings were often covered over with clapboards to protect the infill from erosion. Naturally, this required frequent maintenance and the style was abandoned as a building method in the 18th century in Québec. For the same reasons, half-timbering in New England, which was originally employed by the English settlers, fell out of favour soon after the colonies had become established.
Consequently this gave rise to the poteaux sur solle style in which wood is used both for the frame and infill; for this reason it may be incorrect to call it "half-timbering". This technique proved better suited to the harsh climates of Québec and Acadia, which at the same time had abundant wood. It became very popular throughout New France, as far afield as southern Louisiana.
Nevertheless, despite the rising preference for poteaux sur solle, the colombage pierroté technique survived well into the 19th century in the Prairies, being employed by French-Canadian carpenters at outposts of the Hudson's Bay Company
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company , abbreviated HBC, or "The Bay" is the oldest commercial corporation in North America and one of the oldest in the world. A fur trading business for much of its existence, today Hudson's Bay Company owns and operates retail stores throughout Canada...
, as well as on the Red River Colony
Red River Colony
The Red River Colony was a colonization project set up by Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk in 1811 on of land granted to him by the Hudson's Bay Company under what is referred to as the Selkirk Concession. The colony along the Red River of the North was never very successful...
.
Revival styles in later centuries
Queen Anne Style architecture
The Queen Anne Style in Britain means either the English Baroque architectural style roughly of the reign of Queen Anne , or a revived form that was popular in the last quarter of the 19th century and the early decades of the 20th century...
houses by Richard Norman Shaw
Richard Norman Shaw
Richard Norman Shaw RA , was an influential Scottish architect from the 1870s to the 1900s, known for his country houses and for commercial buildings.-Life:...
and others, it was often used to evoke a "Tudor" atmosphere (see Tudorbethan), though in Tudor times half-timbering had begun to look rustic and was increasingly limited to village houses (illustration, above left).
In 1912, Allen W. Jackson published The Half-Timber House: Its Origin, Design, Modern Plan, and Construction, and rambling half-timbered beach houses appeared on dune-front properties in Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
or under palm-lined drives of Beverly Hills. During the 1920s increasingly minimal gestures towards some half-timbering in commercial speculative house-building saw the fashion diminish.
In the revival styles, such as Tudorbethan (Mock Tudor), the half-timbered appearance is superimposed on the brickwork or other material as an outside decorative façade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
rather than forming the main frame that supports the structure.
Advantages
The use of timber framing in buildings offers various aesthetic and structural benefits, as the timber frame lends itself to open plan designs and allows for complete enclosure in effective insulation for energy efficiency.In modern construction timber-frame structure offers many benefits:
- it is rapidly erected
- it lends itself well to prefabrication, modular construction and mass-production.
- lends well to pre-fitting the frame usually in bentBent (structural)A bent is a framework composed of several structural members that defines the cross-section of a timber frame building or supports a trestle. The term bent is probably an archaic past tense of the verb to bind, referring to the way the timbers of a bent are joined together...
or wall-sections that are aligned with jigJigThe Jig is a form of lively folk dance, as well as the accompanying dance tune, originating in England in the 16th century and today most associated with Irish dance music and Scottish country dance music...
. This allows faster erection on site and more precise alignments. Such pre-fitting in the shop is independent of a machine or hand-cut production line. Valley and hip timbers are not typically pre-fitted. - an "average"-sized timber-frame home can be erected within 2 to 3 days.
- the frame can be encased with SIPs for the drying in: that is, ready for windows, mechanical systems, and roofing.
- it can be tailored to suit customer tastes and creativity such as carvings or incorporation of heirloom structures such as barns etc.
- it can use recycled or otherwise discarded timbers.
- it offers some structural benefits as the timber frame, if properly engineered, lends itself to better seismic survivability. Consequentially, there are lots of old half-timbered houses which still stand despite the foundation having partially caved in over the centuries.
- The generally larger spaces between the frames enable greater flexibility in placing and re-locating windows and doors during and after construction, with less concern over structural implications and the need for heavy lintels.
In North America, heavy timber construction is classified Building Code Type IV: a special class reserved for timber framing which recognizes the inherent fire resistance of large timber and its ability to retain structural capacity in fire situations. In many cases this classification can eliminate the need and expense of fire sprinklers in public buildings.
Traditional or historic structures
In terms of the traditional half-timber or fachwerkhaus there are maybe more disadvantages than advantages today. Such houses are notoriously expensive to maintain let alone renovate and restore, most commonly owing to local regulations that do not allow divergence from the original, modification or incorporation of modern materials.Additionally, in such nations as Germany where energy efficiency is highly regulated, the renovated building may be required to meet modern energy efficiencies, if it is to be used as a residential or commercial structure (museums and significant historic buildings have no semi-permanent habitation are exempt). Many framework houses of significance are treated merely to preserve, rather than render inhabitable — most especially as the required heavy insecticidal fumigation is highly poisonous.
In some cases, it is more economical to build anew using authentic techniques and correct period materials than restore. One major problem with older structures is the phenomenon known as mechano-sorptive creep or slanting: where wood beams absorb moisture whilst under compression
Physical compression
Physical compression is the result of the subjection of a material to compressive stress, which results in reduction of volume as compared to an uncompressed but otherwise identical state. The opposite of compression in a solid is tension. In any medium transmitting waves, the opposite of...
or tension strains and deform, shift position or both. This is a major structural issue as the house may deviate several degrees from perpendicular to its foundations (in the x-axis, y-axis and even z-axis) and thus be unsafe and unstable or so out of square it is extremely costly to remedy.
A summary of problems with Fachwerkhäuser or half-timbered houses includes the following, though many can be avoided by intelligent design and application of suitable paints and surface treatments and routine maintenance. Often, though when dealing with a structure of a century or more old, it is too late.
- "slanting"-
Decomposition
Decomposition is the process by which organic material is broken down into simpler forms of matter. The process is essential for recycling the finite matter that occupies physical space in the biome. Bodies of living organisms begin to decompose shortly after death...
including dry rot
Dry rot
Dry rot refers to a type of wood decay caused by certain types of fungi, also known as True Dry Rot, that digests parts of the wood which give the wood strength and stiffness...
.
Anobiidae
Anobiidae is a family of beetles. The larvae of a number of species tend to bore into wood, earning them the name "woodworm" or "wood borer". A few species are pests, causing damage to wooden furniture and house structures, notably the death watch beetle, Xestobium rufovillosum, and the common...
family particularly the common furniture beetle
Common furniture beetle
The common furniture beetle or common house borer is a woodboring beetle. In the larval stage it bores in wood and feeds upon it. Adult Anobium punctatum measure 2.7–4.5 mm in length. They have brown ellipsodial bodies with a pronotum resembling a monk's cowl .-Life cycle:Adults do not...
, termite
Termite
Termites are a group of eusocial insects that, until recently, were classified at the taxonomic rank of order Isoptera , but are now accepted as the epifamily Termitoidae, of the cockroach order Blattodea...
s, cockroach
Cockroach
Cockroaches are insects of the order Blattaria or Blattodea, of which about 30 species out of 4,500 total are associated with human habitations...
es powderpost beetle
Powderpost beetle
Powderpost beetles are a group of seventy species of woodboring beetles classified in the insect subfamily Lyctinae. These beetles, along with spider beetles, death watch beetles, common furniture beetles, skin beetles, and others, make up the superfamily Bostrichoidea. While most woodborers have a...
s, mice
Mouse
A mouse is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse . It is also a popular pet. In some places, certain kinds of field mice are also common. This rodent is eaten by large birds such as hawks and eagles...
and rat
Rat
Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. "True rats" are members of the genus Rattus, the most important of which to humans are the black rat, Rattus rattus, and the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus...
s (quite famously so in many children's stories).
Fungus
A fungus is a member of a large group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds , as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, Fungi, which is separate from plants, animals, and bacteria...
that are non-destructive to the wood, but are harmful to humans such as black mold
Aspergillus niger
Aspergillus niger is a fungus and one of the most common species of the genus Aspergillus. It causes a disease called black mold on certain fruits and vegetables such as grapes, onions, and peanuts, and is a common contaminant of food...
. These fungi may also thrive on many "modern" building materials.
Combustion
Combustion or burning is the sequence of exothermic chemical reactions between a fuel and an oxidant accompanied by the production of heat and conversion of chemical species. The release of heat can result in the production of light in the form of either glowing or a flame...
more readily than some other materials, making timber-frame buildings somewhat more susceptible to fire damage, although this idea is not universally accepted: Since the cross-sectional dimensions of many structural members exceed 15 cm × 15 cm (6" × 6"), timber-frame structures benefit from the unique properties of large timbers, which char on the outside forming an insulated layer that protects the rest of the beam from burning.
Flood
A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land. The EU Floods directive defines a flood as a temporary covering by water of land not normally covered by water...
or soil subsidence
Subsidence
Subsidence is the motion of a surface as it shifts downward relative to a datum such as sea-level. The opposite of subsidence is uplift, which results in an increase in elevation...
damage
See also
- Norman architectureNorman architectureAbout|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
- German Framework RoadGerman Framework RoadThe German Timber-Frame Road is a German tourist route leading from the river Elbe in the north to Lake Constance in the south. Along the road you can find nearly 100 cities and towns with remarkable timber-framed houses...
- WeatherboardingWeatherboardingWeatherboarding is the cladding or ‘siding’ of a house consisting of long thin timber boards that overlap one another, either vertically or horizontally on the outside of the wall. They are usually of rectangular section with parallel sides...
- Framing (construction)Framing (construction)Framing, in construction known as light-frame construction, is a building technique based around structural members, usually called studs, which provide a stable frame to which interior and exterior wall coverings are attached, and covered by a roof comprising horizontal ceiling joists and sloping...
- Platform framing
- Balloon framing
- CarpentryCarpentryA carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
External links
- The Timber Framers Guild (TFG). Professional/Enthusiast membership association, primarily North American, with membership worldwide.
- The Carpenters Fellowship (UKCF). Professional/Enthusiast membership association, UK-based.
- Buffalo (New York) as an architectural museum: Half-timber in a variety of North American revival styles
- History & Construction of Medieval Timber-framed Houses in England & Wales A comprehensive outline with many pictures and links
- Timber Engineering Reference
- Glossary of Timber Framing Terms
- Carpenters from Europe and Beyond Carpenters at work in Europe and examples of wood architecture, such as timber-frame houses.
- Timber Frame Magazine The timber frame home building process is outlined.