The peasant house was built of logs. At first it was heated by a hearth made of stones. Subsequently, they began to lay the stoves. Livestock and poultry quarters were often connected to the dwelling by protected walkways. This was done for the convenience of caring for the farm in the cold season.
The peasant house was distinguished by a special constructive solution of buildings and their location on the site. In the center of the courtyard there was a residential hut, which was connected by corridors protected from rain, wind and frost into utility blocks for keeping poultry and livestock, storing inventory, and workshops.
What and how was the peasant house built from?
The peasant huts were built of logs that could be stacked both horizontally and vertically. The second method was used mainly in the west and north of Europe. In Russia, houses were built from horizontally laid sawn timber. The Slavs practiced this method of erecting buildings for the reason that it makes it possible to minimize the cracks and dig them tightly. The method of connecting logs by cutting did not appear immediately, so the first peasant huts were square in shape and small in size, not exceeding the length of lumber.
Features of peasant houses
Later, higher and more spacious log cabins began to appear. They consisted of crowns - logs laid in horizontal rows. The structural elements were connected in several ways: in a flash, in a paw, in a thorn. Such log cabins, depending on their purpose, were called: cage, hut, furnace. If there was a stove in the cage, it was considered an upper room, a hut, a mansion. If it was under another cage, it was called a basement or a cut.
Initially, the peasants were content with a house consisting of two cages: a firebox and a cold room. They were connected by a passage - a passage lined with logs. Its walls were low and there was no ceiling. Above the vestibule, a thatched roof covering, common to the entire building, hung.
The residential part of the house was surrounded by other log cabins, which, depending on the number of stands, were called twins or triplets. These buildings were intended for household needs. Subsequently, the canopy began to represent full-fledged insulated corridors.
The hearth was originally built from stones near the entrance to the house, there was no pipe. Such a hut was called a kurna. Later, they began to lay out stoves, in which Russian masters were especially successful. The chimney was built and the peasant house became more comfortable. Along the back wall of the dwelling, next to the stove, there were beds - sleeping places.
In Little Russia, housing construction was carried out in a slightly different way. Here the house was called a hut and was erected not on the street itself, but behind a small garden. The outbuildings were erected chaotically, without a certain order, only the convenience for the owners was taken into account. The yard was surrounded by a low fence - a wattle fence.
