Zprávy památkové péče 2019, 79(3):329-340 | DOI: 10.56112/zpp.2019.3.11

Half-timbered house in the northern Plzeňsko area on the example of building No. 1 from Popovice near Chrančovice

Karel Foud, Stanislav Plešmíd

NPÚ ÚOP v Plzni

The fund of historic houses in the northern Plzeň region, represented by a number of buildings featuring folk architecture, is a remarkable example of several architectural styles and constructions. In addition to timbered houses, one can also observe masonry buildings (stone, unburned and ceramic brick), and, to a limited extent, half-timbered buildings as well. Half-timbered buildings are preserved in the district of Plzeň-sever in Rabštejn nad Střelou and especially in the small town of Úterý. Several other buildings have also survived around Úněšov. One of these buildings is homestead No. 1 in Popovice near Chrančovice (Plzeň region, Plzeň-sever district). The house bears a classic three-part layout, in this case with a shed type. The ground floor is stone (the living room was probably timbered in the past) while the upper floor is completely half-timbered. The courtyard side of the floor is interrupted by a gallery, covered by a roof overhang and extended from the hall to the edge of the northern gable. The skeleton of the half-timbering is a standard frame, with only the gables bearing a more accentuated creativity. In addition to these elements, the builder also added profiled wooden ledges and decorative elements above the windows. The columns of the gallery are also decorated. The preserved style fillings of the building's openings are also remarkable, particularly the windows of the dwellings above the living room; it probably dates from when the building was constructed, with details typical for Baroque windows. The building, constructed in the first half of the 1790s according to dendrochronological dating, fell into a bad state during the last third of the 20th century. In 2016, a general overhaul was launched. House no. 1 in Popovice from the north of Plzeň is a unique example of the use of half-timber framing in a region where the construction of such structures was suppressed in the last two-thirds of the 20th century; such structures were typical for the linguistic boundary areas of Czech and German culture (Popovice included), and they also provided a mark of exceptionality.

Keywords: northern Plzeň, folk architecture, general survey of rural settlements, half-timbered house, 18th-19th century, historical fillings of building openings

Published: September 1, 2019  Show citation