Evolution wooden house construction. Can modern houses last forever?
Not so long ago, the population of planet Earth “went crazy” from fast food, synthetic clothing, energy drinks and artificial materials, but all this had too serious an impact on human health, and the “rebellion of artificial things” gradually gave way to a love for everything natural and healthy.
This trend has affected all areas of society, from food to the homes in which people spend half their lives. The first building material that representatives of the “new generation” remembered was wood (,). Indeed, what product could be more environmentally friendly and comfortable for building your own home?
However, a number of questions arose - so that it serves faithfully long years? After all, remembering the houses located in villages and occupied by grandmothers and great-grandmothers, one involuntarily wants to abandon this idea - black boards, the smell of dampness, excessive humidity - all this hardly contributes to improving health.
It's not about the wood at all, but about how it was cared for and how it was built from. So let's look at the main mistakes that our ancestors made in the construction and operation of houses.
How were houses made of wood used to be built?
What technologies were used in the past? It is difficult to give a definite answer to this question - after all, the concept of technology was not used at that time. However, the architects had their own secrets that helped them build high-quality structures.
Required tools:
The main tool of any architect was an axe. It was strictly forbidden to use a saw, as it would tear the wood fibers, which would expose the material to water and thereby deteriorate it. consumer properties. Nails were also banned, as they deteriorated the quality of construction. Indeed, if you trace the process of wood rotting, the area around the nails is the first to suffer.
Base and fasteners:
Without the modern technologies that humanity has now, building a wooden house was quite a labor-intensive task.
Everyone knows the expression “cutting down a hut”; it is associated both with the use of an ax - the only tool in the construction of houses, and with the name of the base - interconnected logs that form a quadrangle. Large boulders served as the foundation, which helped reduce rotting and also conserve heat.
The types of log houses depended on the domestic purpose of a particular building:
1. Cut it. The logs were stacked on top of each other, often without the use of fasteners. Since buildings of this type did not have any thermal insulation as such and allowed the wind to blow through the room, they were used exclusively for economic purposes.
2. In the paw. The end of each log was combed and attached to the structure. Buildings of this type looked aesthetically pleasing, since the wood was adjusted to size and the logs did not extend beyond the corners. However, aesthetics affected the quality, thermal insulation decreased and in the cold season the cracks allowed air to pass through.
3. In the region This type of log house was considered the most reliable. The logs were attached to each other using special spikes and extended beyond the walls, which made the building warm and durable. For the purpose of insulation, moss was placed tightly between the logs, and upon completion of construction, all cracks were caulked with flax tow.
Roof:
Like all the buildings of the Russian architect, the roof was made entirely without nails. When the construction of the building was completed, the logs became smaller and were covered with longitudinal poles. With the help of thin tree trunks inserted into poles, a hollowed out structure was supported, which collected the flowing water. On top of the entire structure they laid out solid boards, resting against the prepared hole in the log, paying Special attention the top joint of the boards.
There were many materials for covering the roof, but they did not cope very well with the protective functions: straw, shingles, turf with birch bark. The most popular roofing was tes (special boards).
Why modern wooden houses will they last for many years?
The modern world amazes with the variety of materials that help to build and properly operate wooden houses. Let's consider the main “helpers” of modern builders:
Tools:
Construction stores offer a huge number of tools, it all depends on what specific work is planned to be carried out during construction, whether there will be a drawing, how the boards will be laid, etc. Workers use an electric saw (there are currently a large number of anti-rotting products, making the saw the main tool in the work), which makes the process of preparing for construction quite quick. In addition, when purchasing wood, the consumer receives a finished hewn product. The following tools will also be useful: a hacksaw, an axe, a hammer, a nail puller, tape measures, a level, brushes, a slice.
Base and fasteners:
Currently, there are several types of foundations - the choice depends on the type of soil and the intended structure. There are 3 main types:
1. Columnar (dense soil)
2. Pile (capricious soil)
3. Tape (most dense)
In modern construction, various ready-made fasteners of open and closed types are used, which guarantees tight joining, as well as using special thermal insulation coatings, reliable protection from dampness and cold.
Roof:
Modern roofs have high quality characteristics, have the functions of heat and waterproofing, sound insulation, and are resistant to environment and very wear-resistant. The most popular materials for making roofing can be identified:
2. Ondulin
3. Ceramic tiles
4. Welded materials
5. Bitumen mastic.
To summarize, it is worth noting that the imperfection of houses built in Rus' is caused by the lack quality materials and modern instruments. Using, you don’t have to worry about darkening the wood or the possibility of rotting. A house built in accordance with all standards and requirements will serve more than one generation of owners, but it is important to remember that beauty requires constant care.
Alexander Nikolaevich, wood is an original Russian construction material; our country has rich traditions of wooden architecture and the largest reserves of timber. And yet Russia cannot boast big amount quality wooden houses. What is the reason for this: has the tradition been stopped or is there a lack of demand?
It is more expensive to use wood that grows in Russia in construction than imported wood - we do not yet have a full cycle of harvesting “commercial” wood in sufficient volumes. And if European forests were not subject to such customs duties, we could compete in prices with affordable housing programs.
Let's debunk the myths that the tree is often associated with. For example, today many people still consider wood to be a fire hazardous material. There is also an opinion that wood requires a long period of shrinkage - up to 3 years. Is it so?
Regarding the shrinkage of wooden houses. For example, laminated veneer lumber technology: glued together from well-dried and sorted parts (lamellas), laminated veneer lumber has high strength and durability. Houses made of laminated timber do not shrink at all and cracks will not appear in it in the future. This happens because all parts of the structure shrink in different directions.
Regarding fire hazards, we are located in Russia, where there are certain rules and regulations related to fire safety regulations, the operation of electrical equipment, etc. As a company that operates in Russia, we comply with all the necessary rules and regulations. In particular, our designs have passed all the necessary certifications from state regulatory authorities.
By the way, about myths. Wooden houses are no more fire hazardous than buildings made of other materials. Moreover, a wooden house burns slower than any other. From building codes and the rules know that long-span structures in non-wooden buildings are still made of wood. The burning speed of a wooden beam is longer than the burning speed of a metal beam, which bursts immediately and leads to the collapse of the house. A wooden beam burns longer and allows people to be saved.
What advantages and disadvantages does wood have over stone and brick?
The advantages are, undoubtedly, the environmental friendliness of the tree. After all, even at the production stage, the smallest amount of CO2 is generated, compared to the production of other construction materials. And in further operation, the wooden house “breathes”, it maintains oxygen balance and optimal humidity air.
Another point is energy saving in wooden houses. Technologies used in construction make it possible to keep the room warm for as long as possible in the winter and cool in the summer.
Wooden houses, in my opinion, are the most organic for comfortable country living; they logically fit into the surrounding landscape. In general, I believe that the future lies with wooden houses.
As for the disadvantages, here I can only name a person’s personal preferences. If the family likes it for some reason brick house, then in this case a wooden one will certainly not suit them.
In an interview with our publication, architect Totan Kuzembaev said that in order for a wooden house to last for centuries, all technologies must be strictly followed. What technologies are these? Does the amount of impregnation of wood impair its environmental qualities? Is it possible to build a wooden house yourself?
A home should be environmentally friendly, just like food should be delicious. Still, we must include a number of combined factors in ecology - the location of a given house, its fundamental engineering solutions. This makes the house environmentally friendly. And not the presence of glue or impregnations, which are present in any other materials as well.
The company has a number of patents for its original solutions in the field of wooden construction. It was the first manufacturer of wooden houses in the world to receive the right to put the CE mark on its products, confirming compliance with European quality standards.
Fortunately, almost all of the world's largest manufacturers have in their assortment compositions based on natural and safe ingredients and dyes. Typically, these are water-based or alkyd-based compositions, sometimes based on natural oil. Such compositions have fairly high protective properties, and at the same time preserve the natural texture of the wood and do not violate its natural properties. The secret is that the composition used should not form a hard protective film on the surface of the wood, but create a vapor-permeable “breathable” coating. These are the compositions that HONKA uses.
The only drawback of such compositions is their shorter service life, that is, after several years of operation of the house, the issue of painting will have to be returned.
But what won’t you do for yourself and your family? By the way, materials such as nitro varnishes, epoxy and polyurethane varnishes and HONKA does not use enamels at all in its homes, despite their exceptional durability.
As wall material When building houses in elite villages, laminated veneer lumber of various sizes is often used. In particular, we actively use interior timber, consisting of six glued parts, an ideal material for the construction of high-rise wooden buildings. Our own development - laminated laminated logs with a diameter of 230 mm and 260 mm, combining the appearance of a traditional log and the technical qualities of salon timber. There are practically no cracks on laminated logs, and its diameter and density make it possible to build well-insulated, large buildings. All these types of building materials are distinguished by high strength, aesthetic appearance, and low settlement coefficient. From round models logs are often used to build houses in classical and country styles. While laminated veneer lumber is excellent for buildings of a more modern look, architecture that is not traditional for wooden houses - with large areas of glazing, pitched roofs etc. When constructing large-scale objects, it is most effective to use materials with a large diameter.
In general, an environmentally friendly wooden house, like the kind we build, is built from natural, natural, certified materials. Under environmentally friendly clean materials most often they mean wood, because It is precisely this that has a “breathing” effect, allowing air to pass through itself and thereby ensuring constant air exchange, infiltration, in the premises. In addition, one of the most important characteristics of an “eco-house” is its energy efficiency, that is, the utmost reduction in heat loss, and wood, as is known, is an excellent heat insulator. To this we can also add the unique disinfecting qualities of coniferous trees, which secrete phytoncides, which, as scientists have proven, increase the biological activity of oxygen and neutralize pathogens. And large areas of glazing in such wooden houses allow maximum use of natural light, which reduces energy consumption.
Is it possible to build a high-quality wooden house yourself?
Before starting any work on the design and construction of a house, everyone decides for themselves the following questions: what place on the site will be the best for placing a house on it? How to optimally position the house according to the cardinal directions and neighboring buildings (if there are any nearby)? And finally, what architectural and spatial solution for the house will be the best way correspond to the client’s wishes and the characteristics of his site (lighting, relief, trees on the site, viewpoints, access roads, etc.)?
The questions are not easy, so many customers prefer to turn to specialists at this stage. If a client comes to our company with such questions, then an architect is immediately sent to his site, often together with a landscape architect. When talking with the customer on his own site, you can pay attention to many features of future design and construction, which will allow you to correctly begin the process of designing a house and profitably use the features of the site, including its possible shortcomings.
In which regions of the Russian Federation are you building?
HONKA – as an international concern, has representative offices in 30 countries, and HONKA houses are supplied to more than 50 countries. In Russia, the concern ranks first in the import of Finnish wooden houses. The first HONKA representative office opened in Russia in 1995 in St. Petersburg, then in 1998 the Moscow representative office opened and in 2007 the Perm representative office opened.
In total, during this time, more than 1,500 objects were built on the territory of the Russian Federation, and about 700 in the Moscow region.
The suburban housing market in the Leningrad region is actively developing and there are several villages on it, built in accordance with the principles of eco-development, which we adhere to. We can name the cottage villages “Honka Park”, “Russian Switzerland”, “Copper Lake”, “Honka Family Club”, etc.
This fall marks the 3rd anniversary of the HONKA representative office in Perm. If we talk about the results of work in the Urals, then over these years the construction of the cottage village Demidkovo Village has been completely completed. The total development area is more than 10 hectares. The HONKA representative office acted as a single contractor. The village has 23 individual premium class houses ranging from 367 to 507 sq. m. m. By the way, it should be noted that architectural projects were developed by our specialists specifically for the Ural region, taking into account climatic conditions.
During its operation, the company has achieved a leading position in terms of construction volume in the market of wooden housing construction in organized high-level cottage villages. The geography of HONKA's presence in the Urals is expanding. In addition to Perm, orders for construction have been received in Yekaterinburg and other cities of the Sverdlovsk region. The volume of private orders is constantly growing.
What volume of wooden house construction relative to other materials exists today in the Moscow region and in other regions in which you build? Where is it more, where is it less? What changes have occurred over the past 5-10 years?
In the Russian low-rise construction market, wooden houses today occupy a share of about 40%. Almost half of the low-rise buildings are made of wood - these are both cottage villages and private buildings. All of them, of course, different levels and quality, but in any case, this vector is present: many companies produce wooden houses in Russia; The distribution of Western timber houses is also growing. However, I don’t think this percentage will grow much; I think now we are seeing its most correct meaning.
However, for example, in Perm the volume of private orders in 2010 increased 3 times relative to the same period last year. It should only be noted that we're talking about about high-level villages located in picturesque places.
In general, it is impossible to name figures characterizing the volume of construction services and production accompanying wooden house construction for the Russian market. Any expert assessments here will be taken from the ceiling.
In the wooden house-building market today there is a serious differentiation of manufacturers, participants in the construction and real estate markets. At the Ministry level natural resources and Ministries economic development and trade of the Russian Federation, measures are being developed to limit the export of raw materials abroad, aimed at creating a comfortable subsidy and tax climate for potential investments in the wood processing industry. However, we, as experts with extensive experience, see that such a situation will most likely lead to the stimulation of the pulp and paper complex, the emergence of factories, primarily primary processing, and the construction of factories for the production building materials, but not to the growth of high-quality production of wooden houses. Including reasons biological characteristics Russian forests and for reasons of logging logistics. Today, the market for high-quality wooden house construction has a pronounced import character in terms of production and a colossal difference between the service and range of services of well-known Finnish manufacturers and Russian companies.
What is the percentage of wood construction by European countries and how much is HONKA's share in it?
As for the situation abroad, it is similar in proportion in number and differs in proportion in regional distribution. Northern and Central Europe build more houses from wood than the European south.
Today, HONKA is the leader in terms of turnover, both in the domestic market in Finland and in the export of supply kits for the construction of houses made of dense-fiber pine. Currently, in terms of import volume, Russia shares first place with Germany, followed by Japan, America and the domestic Finnish market.
What are the areas of the houses, in what architectural style and what layout is most in demand in Russia today?
In our cottage village HONKA No. 1 we offer houses in the “polite” style Scandinavian architecture. The area of houses in the village varies from 330 to 510 sq.m. These are HONKA wooden houses of adequate size in an ecologically clean and picturesque place in the Moscow region. Each house has a maximum number of bedrooms and bathrooms. We do not offer palaces of 1500 sq.m.
Another HONKA project is the cottage community “Dachi HONKA” - a country complex in Istrinskaya Dolina,” a joint project with the company “Vector Investments”. The project provides for 4 types of houses ranging from 280 to 350 sq.m.
Of course, the change in the financial situation in the country also affected the structure of demand. An analysis of consumer preferences of potential clients showed that the vector of demand has shifted towards smaller houses, 250-400 sq.m. The share of houses with similar adequate areas in high-level cottage villages is steadily growing compared to the pre-crisis period.
This format has replaced the most active and popular segment of the pre-crisis period “500+”.
What is the cost of a turnkey wooden house depending on the square footage?
For example, in the cottage village "Dachi HONKA", where we acted not only as construction company, but we also implement full cycle development, we have created an offer that is optimal from a price-quality point of view. This project features a completely different approach to pricing than in other HONKA villages. The cost of a land plot with utilities and a HONKA wooden house with an area of 280-350 sq.m will be at the level of 30,000,000 rubles. The project partner is Vector Investments.
Interviewed by Irina FILCHENKOVA
Russian house of five walls Central Russia. Typical gable roof with light. Five-wall with a cut along the house
These examples, I think, are quite enough to prove that this type of house really exists and is widespread in traditionally Russian regions. It was somewhat unexpected for me that this type of house prevailed until recently on the coast White Sea. Even if we admit that I am wrong, and this style of houses came to the north from the central regions of Russia, and not vice versa, it turns out that the Slovenes from Lake Ilmen have nothing to do with the colonization of the White Sea coast. There are no houses of this type in the Novgorod region and along the Volkhov River. Strange, isn't it? And what kind of houses did the Novgorod Slovenes build from time immemorial? Below I give examples of such houses.
Slovenian type of houses
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In this photo we see a gable roof, which allows us to attribute this house to the Slovenian type. A house with a high basement, decorated with carvings typical of Russian houses. But the rafters lie on the side walls, like a barn. This house was built in Germany at the beginning of the 19th century for Russian soldiers whom the Russian Tsar sent to help Germany. Some of them remained in Germany completely; the German government, as a token of gratitude for their service, built houses like these for them. I think that the houses were built according to the sketches of these soldiers in the Slovenian style |
This is also a house from the German soldiers' series. Today in Germany these houses are part of the open-air museum of Russian wooden architecture. The Germans make money from our traditional applied arts. They keep these houses in such perfect condition! And we? We don't value what we have. We turn our noses up at everything, we look at everything overseas, we do European-quality renovations. When will we take up Russ Repair and repair our Russia? |
In my opinion, these examples of Slovenian-type houses are enough. Those interested in this issue can find a lot more evidence of this hypothesis. The essence of the hypothesis is that real Slovenian houses (huts) differed from Russian izbas in a number of ways. It’s probably stupid to talk about which type is better and which is worse. The main thing is that they are different from each other. The rafters are placed differently, there is no cut along the house near the five-walls, the houses, as a rule, are narrower - 3 or 4 windows in the front, the platbands and linings of Slovenian-type houses, as a rule, are not sawn (not openwork) and therefore do not look like lace . Of course, there are houses of a mixed type of construction, somewhat similar to Russian-style houses in the arrangement of the rafters and the presence of cornices. The most important thing is that both Russian and Slovenian types of houses have their own areas. Houses of the Russian type are not found or practically never found in the Novgorod region and the west of the Tver region. I didn't find them there.
Finno-Ugric type of houses
The Finno-Ugric type of house is, as a rule, a five-walled building with a longitudinal cut and a significantly larger number of windows than houses of the Slovenian type. It has a log gable, and in the attic there is a room with log walls and a large window, making the house seem to be two stories high. The rafters are attached directly to the wall, and the roof overhangs the walls, so this type of house does not have eaves. Often houses of this type consist of two joined log houses under one roof |
The middle course of the Northern Dvina is above the mouth of the Vaga. This is what a typical house of the Finno-Ugric type looks like, which for some reason ethnographers persistently call northern Russian. But it is more widespread in the Komi Republic than in Russian villages. This house has a full-fledged warm room in the attic with log walls and two windows |
And this house is located in the Komi Republic in the Vychegda River basin. It has 7 windows along the facade. The house is made of two four-walled log cabins connected to each other by a log frame. The gable is made of logs, which makes the attic of the house warm. There is an attic room, but it has no window. The rafters are placed on the side walls and overhang them. |
The village of Kyrkanda in the southeast of the Arkhangelsk region. Please note that the house consists of two log cabins placed close to each other. The gable is made of logs, and there is an attic room in the attic. The house is wide, so the roof is quite flattened (not steep). There are no carved platbands. The rafters are installed on the side walls. There was a house consisting of two log buildings in our village of Vsekhsvyatskoye, only it was of the Russian type. As a child, playing hide and seek, I once climbed out of the attic into a gap between the log houses and barely crawled back out. It was very scary... |
House of Finno-Ugric type in the east of the Vologda region. From attic room In this house you can go out onto a balcony. The roof overhang at the front is such that you can be on the balcony even in the rain. The house is tall, almost three stories high. And in the back of the house there are three more of the same huts, and between them there is a huge story. And it all belonged to one family. This is probably why there were many children in families. Finno-Ugric people lived luxuriously in the past. Today, not every new Russian has a cottage of this size |
The village of Kinerma in Karelia. The house is smaller than the houses in the Komi Republic, but the Finno-Ugric style is still visible. No carved frames, therefore the face of the house is more severe than that of Russian-style houses |
Komi Republic. Everything suggests that this is a house built in the Finno-Ugric style. The house is huge, it contains all the utility rooms: two winter living huts, two summer huts - upper rooms, storage rooms, a workshop, a canopy, a stable, etc. To feed livestock and poultry, you don’t even have to go outside in the morning. In the long cold winter this was very important. |
Republic of Karelia. I would like to draw your attention to the fact that the type of houses in Komi and Karelia is very similar. But these are two different ethnic groups. And between them we see houses of a completely different type - Russian. I note that Slovenian houses are more similar to Finno-Ugric ones than to Russian ones. Strange, isn't it? |
Houses of the Finno-Ugric type are also found in the northeast of the Kostroma region. This style has probably been preserved here since the times when the Finno-Ugric Kostroma tribe had not yet become Russified. The windows of this house are on the other side, and we see the back and side wall. You could drive a horse and cart into the house on the paved road along the flooring. Convenient, isn't it? |
On the Pinega River (the right tributary of the Northern Dvina), along with houses of the Russian type, there are also houses of the Finno-Ugric type. The two ethnic groups have lived together here for a long time, but still maintain their traditions when building houses. I draw your attention to the absence of carved platbands. There is a beautiful balcony, a small room in the attic. Unfortunately, this good house abandoned by the owners who were drawn to the city couch potato life |
There are probably enough examples of houses of the Finno-Ugric type. Of course, nowadays the traditions of building houses have been largely lost, and in modern villages and towns houses are built that differ from the ancient ones traditional types. Everywhere in the vicinity of our cities today we see ridiculous cottage developments, indicating the complete loss of our national and ethnic traditions. As you can understand from these photographs, which I borrowed from many dozens of sites, our ancestors lived unconstrainedly, in environmentally friendly, spacious, beautiful and comfortable houses. They worked joyfully, with songs and jokes, they were friendly and not greedy, there are no blank fences near houses anywhere in the Russian North. If someone’s house in the village burned down, then the whole world would build him a new house. Let me note once again that there were and still are no high fences near Russian and Finno-Ugric houses, and this says a lot.
Polovtsian (Kypchak) type of houses
I hope that these examples of houses built in the Polovtsian (Kypchak) style are quite enough to prove that such a style really exists and has a certain distribution area, including not only the south of Russia, but also a significant part of Ukraine. I think that each type of house is adapted to certain climatic conditions. There are a lot of forests in the north, it’s cold there, so the residents build huge houses in the Russian or Finno-Ugric style, in which people live, livestock, and belongings are stored. There is enough wood for both walls and firewood. There is no forest in the steppe, there is little of it in the forest-steppe, which is why the residents have to make small adobe houses. Big house not needed here. Livestock can be kept in a pen in summer and winter, equipment can also be stored outside under a canopy. A person in the steppe zone spends more time outdoors in the open air than in the house. That’s how it is, but in the floodplain of the Don, and especially Khopra, there is a forest from which it would be possible to build a stronger and larger hut, and make a roof with a horse, and build a light in the attic. But no, the roof is made in traditional style- hipped, it’s more familiar to the eye. Why? And such a roof is more resistant to winds, and the winds in the steppe are much stronger. The roof here could easily be blown away by the next snowstorm. Besides hipped roof it is more convenient to cover with straw, and straw in the south of Russia and Ukraine is a traditional and inexpensive roofing material. True, poor people covered their houses with straw in central Russia, even in the north of the Yaroslavl region in my homeland. As a child, I also saw old thatched houses in Vsekhsvyatskoye. But those who were richer roofed their houses with shingles or planks, and the richest roofed with roofing iron. I myself had the opportunity, under the guidance of my father, to cover our new house and the house of an old neighbor with shingles. Today, this technology is no longer used in villages; everyone has switched to slate, ondulin, metal tiles and other new technologies.
By analyzing the traditional types of houses that were common in Russia quite recently, I was able to identify four main ethno-cultural roots from which the Great Russian ethnic group grew. There were probably more daughter ethnic groups that merged into the Great Russian ethnic group, since we see that the same type of houses was characteristic of two, and sometimes three related ethnic groups living in similar natural conditions. Surely in every type traditional houses subtypes can be identified and associated with specific ethnic groups. Houses in Karelia, for example, are somewhat different from houses in Komi. And houses of the Russian type in the Yaroslavl region were built a little differently than houses of the same type on the Northern Dvina. People have always strived to express their individuality, including in the arrangement and decoration of their homes. At all times there were those who tried to change or improve traditions. But exceptions only emphasize the rules - this is well known to everyone.
I will consider that I wrote this article not in vain if in Russia fewer ridiculous cottages will be built in any style, if someone wants to build their new house in one of the traditional styles: Russian, Slovenian, Finno-Ugric or Polovtsian. All of them have today become nationwide, and we are obliged to preserve them. Ethno-cultural invariant is the basis of any ethnic group, perhaps more important than language. If we destroy it, our ethnic group will degrade and disappear. I saw how our compatriots who emigrated to the USA cling to ethno-cultural traditions. For them, even making cutlets turns into a kind of ritual, which helps them feel that they are Russians. Patriots are not only those who lie down under tanks with bunches of grenades, but also those who prefer the Russian style of houses, Russian felt boots, cabbage soup and borscht, kvass, etc.
In the book by a team of authors edited by I.V. Vlasov and V.A. Tishkov's "Russians: History and Ethnography", published in 1997 by the Nauka publishing house, has a very interesting chapter on rural residential and economic development in Russia in the 12th - 17th centuries. But the authors of the chapter L.N. Chizhikova and O.R. For some reason, Rudin paid very little attention to Russian-style houses with a gable roof and a light in the attic. They consider them in the same group with Slovenian-type houses with a gable roof overhanging the side walls.
However, it is impossible to explain how Russian-type houses appeared on the shores of the White Sea and why they are not in the vicinity of Novgorod on the Ilmen, based on the traditional concept (stating that the White Sea was controlled by the Novgorodians from Ilmen). This is probably why historians and ethnographers do not pay attention to Russian-style houses - they are not in Novgorod. In M. Semenova’s book “We are Slavs!”, published in 2008 in St. Petersburg by the ABC-Classics publishing house, there is good material about the evolution of the Slovenian-type house.
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According to the concept of M. Semenova, the original dwelling of the Ilmen Slovenes was a semi-dugout, almost completely buried in the ground. Only a slightly gable roof, covered with poles on which a thick layer of turf was laid, rose above the surface. The walls of such a dugout were made of logs. Inside there were benches, a table, and a lounger for sleeping. Later, in the half-dugout, an adobe stove appeared, which was heated in a black way - the smoke went into the dugout and came out through the door. After the installation of the stove, the house became warm even in winter, and it was no longer possible to bury oneself in the ground. The Slovenian house “began to crawl out” from the ground to the surface. A floor of hewn logs or blocks appeared. This house became cleaner and brighter. The earth did not fall from the walls and ceiling, there was no need to bend over backwards, it was possible to make a higher door.
I think that the process of turning a half-dugout into a house with a gable roof took many centuries. But even today the Slovenian hut bears some of the features of an ancient half-dugout; at least the shape of the roof has remained gable. |
A medieval house of the Slovenian type on a residential basement (essentially two-story). Often on the ground floor there was a barn - a room for livestock) |
I assume that the most ancient type of house, which undoubtedly developed in the north, was the Russian type. Houses of this type are more complex in their roof structure: it is three-sloped, with a cornice, with a very stable position of the rafters, with a light heated by a chimney. In such houses, the chimney in the attic made a bend about two meters long. This bend of the pipe is figuratively and accurately called a “hog”, on such a hog in our house in Vsekhsvyatsky, for example, cats warmed themselves in winter, and it kept the attic warm. In a Russian-type house there is no connection with a half-dugout. Most likely, such houses were invented by the Celts, who penetrated the White Sea at least 2 thousand years ago. Perhaps the descendants of those Aryans lived on the White Sea and in the basin of the Northern Dvina, Sukhona, Vaga, Onega and upper Volga, some of whom went to India, Iran and Tibet. This question remains open, and this question is about who we Russians are - aliens or real natives? When an expert in the ancient language of India, Sanskrit, found himself in a Vologda hotel and listened to the women’s conversation, he was very surprised that the Vologda women spoke some kind of corrupted Sanskrit - the Russian language turned out to be so similar to Sanskrit. Houses of the Slovene type arose as a result of the transformation of semi-dugouts as the Ilmen Slovenes moved north. At the same time, the Slovenes adopted a lot (including some methods of building houses) from the Karelians and Vepsians, with whom they inevitably came into contact. But the Varangians of Rus' came from the north, pushed aside the Finno-Ugric tribes and created their own state: first North-Eastern Rus', and then Kievan Rus, moving the capital to warmer climes, displacing the Khazars. But those ancient states in the 8th - 13th centuries did not have clear boundaries: those who paid tribute to the prince were considered to belong to this state. The princes and their squads fed themselves by robbing the population. By our standards, they were ordinary racketeers. I think that the population often moved from one such racketeer sovereign to another, and in some cases the population “fed” several such “sovereigns” at once. Constant clashes between princes and atamans, constant robbery of the population were commonplace in those days. The most progressive phenomenon in that era was the subjugation of all petty princes and chieftains by one sovereign, the suppression of their freedom and the imposition of a flat tax on the population. Such salvation for the Russians, Finno-Ugric, Krivichi and Slovenians was their inclusion in the Golden Horde. Unfortunately, our official history is based on chronicles and written documents compiled by princes or under their direct leadership. And for them - the princes - to submit to the supreme power of the Golden Horde king was “worse than a bitter radish.” So they called this time the yoke. |
Both the house and the chapel are all made of wood.
Rus' has long been considered a country of wood: there were plenty of vast, mighty forests around. The Russians, as historians note, lived for centuries in " wooden age"Frames and residential buildings, bathhouses and barns, bridges and fences, gates and wells were built from wood. And the most common name of the Russian settlement - village - indicated that the houses and buildings here were wooden. Almost universal accessibility, simplicity and convenience in processing, relative cheapness, strength, good thermal properties, as well as the rich artistic and expressive capabilities of wood brought this natural material to first place in construction residential buildings. Not the least important role was played here by the fact that wooden buildings could be erected in a fairly short time. High-speed construction from wood in Rus' was generally highly developed, which indicates high level organization of carpentry. It is known, for example, that even churches, the largest buildings in Russian villages, were sometimes erected “in one day,” which is why they were called ordinary.
In addition, log houses could be easily dismantled, transported over a considerable distance and re-installed in a new location. In the cities there were even special markets where prefabricated log houses and entire wooden houses with all the interior decoration were sold “for export.” In winter, such houses were shipped straight off the sleigh in disassembled form, and assembly and caulking took no more than two days. By the way, all the necessary building elements and parts of log houses were sold right there; on the market here you could buy pine logs for a residential log house (the so-called “mansion”), and beams hewn into four edges, and good-quality roofing boards, and various boards“dining rooms”, “bench”, for lining the “inside” of the hut, as well as “crossbars”, piles, door blocks. There were also household items on the market, which usually filled the interior of a peasant hut: simple rustic furniture, tubs, boxes, small “wood chips” down to the smallest wooden spoon.
However, despite all the positive qualities of wood, one of its very serious drawbacks - susceptibility to rotting - made wooden structures relatively short-lived. Together with fires, a real scourge of wooden buildings, it significantly shortened the life of a log house - a rare hut stood for more than a hundred years. That is why the greatest use in housing construction has been found conifers pine and spruce, the resinousness and density of whose wood provided the necessary resistance to decay. At the same time, in the North, larch was also used to build a house, and in a number of regions of Siberia, a frame was assembled from durable and dense larch, while all interior decoration was made from Siberian cedar.
And yet, the most common material for housing construction was pine, especially boreal pine or, as it was also called, “condovya.” The log made from it is heavy, straight, almost without knots and, according to the assurances of master carpenters, “does not hold dampness.” In one of the contracts for the construction of housing, concluded in the old days between the owner-customer and the carpenters (and the word “order” comes from the ancient Russian “row” agreement), it was quite definitely emphasized: “... to carve the forest with pine, kind, vigorous , smooth, not knotty..."
Construction timber was usually harvested in winter or early spring, while “the tree is sleeping and excess water has gone into the ground,” while the logs can still be removed by sleigh. It is interesting that even now experts recommend logging for log houses in winter, when the wood is less susceptible to drying out, rotting and warping. The material for housing construction was prepared either by the future owners themselves, or by hired master carpenters in accordance with the necessary need “as much as needed,” as noted in one of the orders. In the case of “self-procurement,” this was done with the involvement of relatives and neighbors. This custom, which has existed in Russian villages since ancient times, was called “help” (“toloka”). The whole village usually gathered for the cleanup. This is reflected in the proverb: “Whoever called for help, go yourself.”
They selected the trees very carefully, in a row, indiscriminately, did not cut them down, and took care of the forest. There was even such a sign: if you didn’t like the three trees you came to the forest with, don’t cut them at all that day. There were also specific prohibitions on logging associated with folk beliefs that were strictly observed. For example, cutting down trees in “sacred” groves, usually associated with a church or cemetery, was considered a sin; It was impossible to cut down old trees either - they had to die their own, natural death. In addition, trees grown by humans were not suitable for construction; a tree that fell during felling “at midnight”, that is, to the north, or hung in the crowns of other trees could not be used - it was believed that in such a house the residents would face serious troubles and illnesses and even death.
Logs for the construction of a log house were usually selected with a thickness of about eight vershoks in diameter (35 cm), and for the lower crowns of a log house - even thicker ones, up to ten vershoks (44 cm). Often the agreement stated: “not to set less than seven vershoks.” Let us note in passing that today the recommended diameter of a log for a chopped wall is 22 cm. The logs were taken to the village and placed in “fires”, where they lay until spring, after which the trunks were sanded, that is, they were removed, the thawed bark was scraped off using a plow or a long scraper, which was an arched blade with two handles.
Tools of Russian carpenters:
1 - woodcutter ax,
2 - sweat,
3 - carpenter's axe.
Various types of axes were used when processing construction timber. Thus, when cutting down trees, a special wood-cutting ax with a narrow blade was used; in further work, a carpenter’s ax with a wide oval blade and the so-called “potes” were used. In general, owning an ax was mandatory for every peasant. “The ax is the head of the whole thing,” people said. Without the ax, wonderful monuments of folk architecture would not have been created: wooden churches, bell towers, mills, huts. Without this simple and universal tool, many peasant labor tools, details of rural life, and familiar household items would not have appeared. The ability to carpenter (that is, to “unite” logs in a building) from a ubiquitous and necessary craft in Rus' turned into a true art - carpentry.
In Russian chronicles we find unusual combinations - “cut down a church”, “cut down mansions”. And carpenters were often called “cutters.” But the point here is that in the old days they didn’t build houses, but “cut them down” without a saw or nails. Although the saw has been known in Rus' since ancient times, it was not usually used in the construction of a house - sawn logs and boards absorb moisture much more quickly and easily than chopped and hewn ones. The master builders did not saw off, but cut off the ends of the logs with an ax, since sawn logs are “blown by the wind” - they crack, which means they collapse faster. In addition, when processed with an ax, the ends of the log seem to be “clogged” and rot less. The boards were made by hand from logs - notches were marked at the end of the log and along its entire length, wedges were driven into them and split into two halves, from which they were hewn wide boards- "closets". For this purpose, a special ax with a wide blade and a one-sided cut was used - “potes”. In general, carpentry tools were quite extensive - along with axes and staples, there were special “adzes” for selecting grooves, chisels and clearings for punching holes in logs and beams, and “lines” for drawing parallel lines.
When hiring carpenters to build a house, the owners stipulated in detail the most important requirements for the future construction, which were scrupulously noted in the contract. First of all, we recorded here necessary qualities scaffolding, its diameter, processing methods, as well as the timing of the start of construction. Then a detailed description of the house that was to be built was given, the space-planning structure of the dwelling was highlighted, and the dimensions of the main premises were regulated. “Build me a new hut,” it is written in the old row, four fathoms without an elbow and with corners” - that is, about six and a quarter meters, chopped “in the oblo”, with the rest. Since no drawings were made during the construction of the house, in the construction contracts the vertical dimensions of the dwelling and its individual parts were determined by the number of log crowns placed in the frame - “and there are twenty-three rows up to the hens.” The horizontal dimensions were regulated by the most commonly used long log - usually it was about three fathoms "between the corners" - about six and a half meters. Often the orders even provided information about individual architectural and structural elements and details: “to make doors on the jambs and windows on the jambs, as many as the owner orders to be made.” Sometimes samples, analogues, examples from the immediate surroundings were directly named, focusing on which the craftsmen had to do their work: “.. and make those upper rooms and the canopy, and the porch, like Ivan Olferev’s small upper rooms were made at the gate.” The entire document often ended with a disciplinary recommendation, instructing the craftsmen not to abandon the work until it is completely completed, not to postpone or delay the construction that had begun: “And not to leave until finishing that mansion.”
The beginning of the construction of a dwelling in Rus' was associated with certain deadlines regulated by special rules. It was considered best to start building a house during Lent ( in early spring) and so that the construction process includes the holiday of the Trinity, let us remember the proverb: “Without the Trinity, a house is not built.” It was impossible to start construction on the so-called “hard days” - Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and also on Sunday. The time “when the month is full” after the new moon was considered favorable for starting construction.
The construction of the house was preceded by special and rather solemnly formalized rituals, in which the most important, earthly and celestial phenomena that were most significant for the peasant were reflected, in which the forces of nature acted in a symbolic form, and various “local” deities were present. According to an ancient custom, when laying a house, money was placed in the corners “to live richly,” and inside the log house, in the middle or in the “red” corner, they placed a freshly cut tree (birch, mountain ash or fir-tree) and often hung an icon on it. This tree personified the “world tree”, known to almost all nations and ritually marking the “center of the world”, symbolizing the idea of growth, development, connection between the past (roots), present (trunk) and future (crown). It remained in the log house until the construction was completed. Another interesting custom is associated with the designation of the corners of the future home: in the evening the owner poured four piles of grain into the supposed four corners of the hut, and if the next morning the grain turned out to be untouched, the place chosen for the construction of the house was considered good. If someone disturbed the grain, then they were usually careful not to build on such a “dubious” place.
Throughout the construction of the house, another custom, very ruinous for the future owners, was strictly observed, which, unfortunately, has not become a thing of the past and today quite frequent and plentiful “treats” for the master carpenters building the house, with the aim of “appeasing” them. The construction process was repeatedly interrupted by “hand-made”, “filling”, “matika”, “rafter” and other feasts. Otherwise, the carpenters could be offended and do something wrong, or even just “play a trick” - lay out the log house in such a way that “there will be a buzzing in the walls.”
The structural basis of the log house was a log frame with a quadrangular plan, consisting of logs laid horizontally on top of each other - “crowns”. An important feature of this design is that with its natural shrinkage and subsequent settlement, the gaps between the crowns disappeared, the wall became more dense and monolithic. To ensure the horizontality of the crowns of the log house, the logs were laid so that the butt ends alternated with the top ends, that is, thicker ones with thinner ones. To ensure that the crowns fit well together, a longitudinal groove was selected in each of the adjacent logs. In the old days, the groove was made in bottom log, on its upper side, but since with this solution water got into the recess and the log quickly rotted, they began to make a groove on the lower side of the log. This technique has survived to this day.
a - “in the oblo” with cups in the lower logs
b - “in the oblo” with cups in the upper logs
At the corners the log house was tied together with special notches, a kind of log “locks”. Experts say that there are several dozen types and variants of cuttings in Russian wooden architecture. The most commonly used were cuttings “in the cloud” and “in the paw”. When cutting “into the edge” (that is, roundly) or “into a simple corner,” the logs were connected in such a way that their ends protruded outward, beyond the boundaries of the frame, forming the so-called “remnant,” which is why this technique was also called cutting with the remainder. The protruding ends well protected the corners of the hut from freezing. This method, one of the most ancient, was also called cutting “into a bowl”, or “into a cup”, since special “cup” recesses were selected in them to fasten the logs together. In the old days, cups, like longitudinal grooves in logs, were cut into the underlying log - this is the so-called “cutting into the lining”, but later they began to use more rational way with a cut in the top log “into the overlay”, or “into the shell”, which did not allow moisture to linger in the “lock” of the log house. Each cup was adjusted to the exact shape of the log with which it came into contact. This was necessary to ensure the tightness of the most important and most vulnerable to water and cold components of the log house - its corners.
Another common method of cutting “in the paw”, without leaving a trace, made it possible to increase the horizontal dimensions of the log house, and with them the area of the hut, compared to cutting “in the clear”, since here the “lock” holding the crowns together was made at the very end of the log . However, it was more complex to perform, required highly qualified carpenters, and therefore was more expensive than traditional cutting with the release of the ends of the logs at the corners. For this reason, and also because felling “in oblo” took less time, the vast majority of peasant houses in Russia were felled in this way.
The lower, “framed” crown was often placed directly on the ground. In order for this initial crown - the "lower" - to be less susceptible to rotting, and also in order to create a strong and reliable foundation for the house, thicker and more resinous logs were selected for it. For example, in Siberia, larch was used for the lower crowns - a very dense and fairly durable wood material.
Often, large stones-boulders were placed under the corners and middles of the mortgage crowns or cuttings of thick logs were dug into the ground - “chairs”, which were treated with resin or burned to protect them from rotting. Sometimes thick blocks or “paws” were used for this purpose - uprooted stumps placed down with their roots. When building a residential hut, they tried to lay the “flat” logs so that the lower crown was tightly adjacent to the ground, often “for warmth” it was even lightly sprinkled with earth. After completing the “hut frame” - laying the first crown, they began assembling the house “on moss”, in which the grooves of the log house, for greater tightness, were laid with “mokrishnik”, torn from the lowlands and dried with swamp moss - this was called “mossing” the log house. It happened that for greater strength, the moss was “twisted” with tows - combed out flax and hemp fibers. But since the moss still crumbled when it dried, at a later time they began to use tow for this purpose. And even now experts recommend caulking the seams between the logs of a log house with tow for the first time during the construction process and then again, after a year and a half, when the final shrinkage of the log house occurs.
Under the residential part of the house, they built either a low underground, or a so-called “basement” or “podzbitsa” - a basement that differed from the underground in that it was quite high, was not, as a rule, buried in the ground and had direct access to the outside through a low door. By placing the hut on the basement, the owner protected it from the cold coming from the ground, protected the living part and the entrance to the house from snow drifts in winter and floods in spring, and created additional utility and utility rooms directly under the housing. A storage room was usually located in the basement; it often served as a cellar. Other utility rooms were also equipped in the basement, for example, in areas where handicrafts were developed, a small workshop could be located in the basement. Small livestock or poultry were also kept in the basement. Sometimes the podyzbitsa was also used for housing. There were even two-story, or “two-living” huts with two “livings.” But still, in the overwhelming majority of cases, the basement was a non-residential, utility floor, and people lived in a dry and warm “upper”, raised above the cold, damp ground. This technique of placing the residential part of the house on a high basement became most widespread in the northern regions, where very harsh climatic conditions required additional insulation living quarters and reliable and insulated from the frozen ground, while in the middle zone they often built a low underground that was convenient for storing food.
Having completed the equipment of the basement or underground, work began on installing the floor of the hut. To do this, first of all, they cut “crossbars” into the walls of the house - quite powerful beams on which the floor rested. As a rule, they were made in four or less often three, placing two huts parallel to the main facade, two near the walls and two or one in the middle. To keep the floor warm and not drafty, it was made double. The so-called “black” floor was laid directly on the crossbars, assembled from a thick slab with humps up, or a log roll, and covered “for warmth” with a layer of earth. A clean floor made of wide boards was laid on top.
Moreover, such a double, insulated floor was made, as a rule, above a cold basement-basement, under a hut, while a regular, single floor was installed above the underground, which facilitated the penetration of heat from the living space into the underground, where vegetables and various products were stored. The boards of the upper, “clean” floor were tightly fitted to each other. 
Male roof design:
1 - ohlupen (shelom)
2 - towel (anemone)
3 - prichelina
4 - headband
5 - red window
6 - fiberglass window
7 - flow
8 - chicken
9 - slightly
10 – tes
Typically, floorboards were laid along the line of the window entrance, from the entrance door to the living space to the main facade of the hut, explaining that with this arrangement, the floorboards are less destroyed, less chipped at the edges and last longer than with a different layout. In addition, according to the peasants, such sex is more convenient than revenge.
The number of interfloor ceilings - “bridges” in the house being built was determined in detail: “... and in the same rooms, three bridges should be laid inside.” The laying of the walls of the hut was completed by installing a “skull” or “pressure” crown at the height where they were going to make the ceiling, into which the ceiling beam - “matitsa” - was cut in. Its location was also often noted in regular notes: “and put that hut on the seventeenth matitsa.”
The strength and reliability of the base matrix - the base of the ceiling - was given great importance. People even said: “A thin uterus for everything means a collapse of the house.” The installation of the matrix was a very important point in the process of building a house; it completed the assembly of the log house, after which the construction entered the final phase of laying the floors and installing the roof. That is why the laying of the matitsa was accompanied by special rituals and another “matitsa” treat for the carpenters. Often the carpenters themselves reminded the “forgetful” owners of this: when installing the motherboard, they shouted: “the motherboard is cracking, it won’t go,” and the owners were forced to organize a feast. Sometimes, when raising the mother, they tied a pie baked for the occasion to it.
Matitsa was a powerful tetrahedral beam, on which thick boards or “humpbacks” were placed “ceiling”, placed flat down. In order to prevent the matrix from bending under the weight, its lower side was often cut along a curve. It is curious that this technique is still used today in the construction of log houses - this is called "hew out the building rise." Having finished laying the ceiling - the “ceiling”, they tied the frame under the roof, laying “shallow” or “shallow” logs on top of the skull crown, with which the ceilings were secured.
In Russian folk housing, functional, practical and artistic issues were closely interconnected, one complemented and followed from the other. The fusion of “usefulness” and “beauty” in the house, the inseparability of constructive and architectural and artistic solutions were especially evident in the organization of the completion of the hut. By the way, it was in the completion of the house that folk craftsmen saw the main and fundamental beauty of the entire building. Construction and decorative design The roofs of a peasant house still impress today with the unity of practical and aesthetic aspects.
The design of the so-called nailless male roof is surprisingly simple, logical and artistically expressive - one of the most ancient, most widely used in the northern regions of Russia. It was supported by the log gables of the end walls of the house - “zalobniki”. After the top, “shallow” crown of the log house, the logs of the main and rear facades of the hut were gradually shortened, rising to the very top of the ridge. These logs were called “males” because they stood “by themselves.” Long log beams were cut into the triangles of the opposite gables of the house, which served as the base of the “lattice” roof. The tops of the gables were connected by the main, “prince’s” beam, which represented the completion of the entire structure of the gable roof.
Natural hooks - “hens” - uprooted and trimmed trunks of young spruce trees were attached to the lower legs. They were called “chickens” because the craftsmen gave their bent ends the shape of bird heads. The chickens supported special gutters for draining water - “streams”, or “water tanks” - logs hollowed out along the entire length. The roof ridges rested against them, which were laid on laths. Usually the roof was double, with a layer of birch bark - “rock”, which protected well from moisture penetration.
At the ridge of the roof, a massive trough-shaped log was “capped” onto the upper ends of the roofing timbers, the end of which faced the main facade, crowning the entire building. This heavy log, also called “okhlupny” (from the ancient name of the roof “okhlup”), clamped the gaps, keeping them from being blown away by the wind. The front, butt end of the ohlupnya was usually designed in the form of the head of a horse (hence the “horse”) or, less commonly, a bird. In the northernmost regions, the helmet was sometimes given the shape of a deer's head, often placing genuine deer antlers. Thanks to their developed plasticity, these sculptural images were clearly “readable” against the sky and were visible from afar.
To maintain the wide overhang of the roof on the side of the main facade of the hut, an interesting and ingenious design technique was used - successive lengthening of the ends of the logs of the upper crowns extending beyond the frame. This produced powerful brackets on which the front part of the roof rested. Protruding far forward from the log wall of the house, such a roof reliably protected the crowns of the log house from rain and snow. The brackets that supported the roof were called "releases", "helps" or "falls". Usually, a porch was built on the same brackets, walk-through galleries were laid, and balconies were equipped. Powerful log projections, decorated with laconic carvings, enriched the austere appearance of the peasant house and gave it even greater monumentality.
In a new, later type of Russian peasant dwelling, which became widespread mainly in the regions middle zone, the roof already had a covering on the rafters, but the log gable with the males was replaced by plank filling. With this solution, the sharp transition from the plastically saturated, rough-textured surface of the log frame to the flat and smooth plank pediment, while tectonically completely justified, nevertheless did not look compositionally inexpressive, and the master carpenters decided to cover it with a rather wide frontal board, richly decorated with carved ornaments. Subsequently, from this board a frieze developed that went around the entire building. It should be noted, however, that even in this type of peasant house, some brackets-outlets made from earlier buildings, decorated with simple carvings, and carved piers with “towels” were preserved for quite a long time. This determined mainly by repetition traditional scheme distribution of carved decorative decoration on the main facade of the dwelling.
While erecting a log house, creating a traditional hut, Russian master carpenters for centuries discovered, mastered and improved specific techniques for processing wood, gradually developing strong, reliable and artistically expressive architectural and structural components, original and unique details. At the same time, they fully used positive traits wood, skillfully identifying and revealing its unique capabilities in their buildings, emphasizing its natural origin in every possible way. This further contributed to the consistent integration of buildings into the natural environment, the harmonious fusion of man-made structures with pristine, untouched nature.
The main elements of the Russian hut are surprisingly simple and organic, their form is logical and beautifully “drawn”, they accurately and completely express the “work” wooden log, log house, house roofs. Benefit and beauty merge here into a single and indivisible whole. The expediency and practical necessity of any were clearly expressed in their strict plasticity, laconic decor, and in the general structural completeness of the entire building.
Simple and truthful and general constructive solution a peasant house - a powerful and reliable log wall; large, solid cuts in the corners; small windows decorated with platbands and shutters; a wide roof with an intricate ridge and carved piers, and a porch and a balcony, it would seem, and that’s all. But how much hidden tension is in this simple structure, how much strength is in the tight joints of the logs, how tightly they “hold” each other! Over the centuries, this ordered simplicity has been isolated and crystallized, this only possible structure is reliable and captivating with the skeptical purity of lines and forms, harmonious and close to the surrounding nature.
Quiet confidence emanates from simple Russian huts; they have settled down soundly and thoroughly native land. When looking at the buildings of old Russian villages, darkened by time, one cannot leave the feeling that they, once created by man and for man, at the same time live some kind of their own, separate life, closely connected with the life of the nature surrounding them - so they became akin to that place where they were born. The living warmth of their walls, laconic silhouette, strict monumentality of proportional relationships, some kind of “non-artificiality” of their entire appearance make these buildings an integral and organic part of the surrounding forests and fields, of all that we call Russia.
The hut stands, stands without a single nail. The windows are patterned, the porch is high, and there is a perky “ridge” on the roof. A hut, it is a house, it is also a work of art, uncomplicated and alien to pretentiousness.
But the hut stands sad, it stands cold and empty...it is no longer needed. The hut became a frozen monument, an example of wooden architecture. But the hut needs life: for the stove to be heated, for the children to fuss under the benches, for the porridge to be cooked and the pies to be cooked...
“I lived, I lived, I wore an ax on my bare feet, I girded myself with an ax.”
Our grandfathers and great-grandfathers did not build, but cut down: “cutting down a hut” means building a house. Just give an experienced carpenter an ax and he will build the hut from the basement to the roof.
No saw, no nails, no hammer—just one axe. Trees were felled for them, they were cleared of branches, they were hewn, boards were “smoothed” as if using a cord. And why did you drink? If you cut a log, the ends will fray, which means they will quickly absorb moisture and rot. When processed with an axe, on the contrary, the wood fibers are compacted and become waterproof. Yes, and nails were of no use: not only was iron forging always distinguished by its high cost, but experienced craftsman and without it, not a single log will move, firmly attached.
“The corners are chopped into a simple bowl”
A wooden hut did not need a foundation; the frame was laid directly on the ground, sometimes only large stones or stumps of large trees were tucked under the corners of the house. But the Russian hut could not do without a “basement” - an underground floor in which cattle, poultry, and food supplies were kept.
Not a log cabin, but a sight for sore eyes! One log, as if passed through another, is intertwined! How is this possible? Stepping back from the end of the log, the craftsmen made a cut down to the middle, round, like a bowl. A transverse log was placed in this cutting. Four logs, squared together in this way, formed a crown.
On the first crown they placed a second, a third, and so on all the way to the roof. To avoid cracks, the carpenter fitted the logs to each other as tightly as possible, cutting out a longitudinal groove in each upper log, a groove that fit tightly to the lower one. And for thermal insulation, moss was laid between the logs - everything here is simple and, it would seem, rough, rough, but still strong and reliable.
And most importantly: the craftsman carpenters could put together such a hut in just one daylight hours, and, if necessary, dismantle it and transport it to a new place in order to rebuild it again. But it's time to get to work on the roof!
“The chicken is on the chicken, and the little Russian is on the street”
Showed off proudly wooden frame, future hut. He is waiting for triangular log gables, the so-called “tongs,” to be erected over its end walls. They will bear the full weight of the under-roof structures: “beds”, “kokory”, “flows”. And again, without a single nail, using only one ax, the craftsmen manage to create the unimaginable - a roof!
Just look: parallel to the side walls, longitudinal horizontal logs - “legs” - are cut into the logs of the tongs, and across them are laid out “cocors” or “chickens” - thin trunks of young spruce trees with rhizomes sticking out at the end.
As if proud birds, the “hens” look with the outlines of their rhizome heads at the world around them, they are about to fly up and disappear - they were the only ones they saw!
On the ends of the “hens” that bend upward, a long log with a hollowed out tray is laid - a “flow”, also known as a drain, which is also the support of the entire roof. It is against the “flow” that the lower ends of the roofing boards and gorges rest, and the upper ends, at the junction of both roof slopes, are secured with a heavy log – “ohlupnem”.
The “stupid” has climbed high, to the very top, and, as if arching a horse’s head, looks forward with its outer ends. And take a master carpenter and bring the curves of the silhouette to perfection - and then the “horse” that crowns the creation is ready!
“It cheers in the spring, cools in the summer, nourishes in the fall, warms in the winter”
In Rus', rich in endless, dense forests, from ancient times houses were built from wood, but they did not build, but “cut down”, as we have already seen. And after all, apart from an axe, harvested, pre-dried wood and a skilled, handy craftsman, nothing was needed. So it worked out: firstly, it was cheap; secondly, quickly - wood, unlike stone, is easy to process; thirdly, it is hygienic!
A tree, like any other living organism, breathes, which means everyone who is in a wooden house breathes. Breathes easily and freely.
And how could it be otherwise: it is always dry and fresh, cool in the midday heat in summer, and warm in winter in severe frost. But wood has irreconcilable enemies: fire, dampness, wood-boring beetles. No matter how you cut it, no matter how you arrange it, no matter how you adjust it, it is useless - the hut cannot withstand the ages.
Do we breathe, hidden in high-rise, multi-apartment reinforced concrete buildings, which are not so afraid of fire and moisture, and, even more so, bugs? It's a hut! You will reach out your hand, touch the rough surface of the logs, and see the unique, hitherto unimaginable pattern of wood fibers. Here is the past, the future, and the present with the thought of the porridge still undercooked in the oven, the difficult winter, the upcoming spring, something else is in store.
