Traditional timber-framed construction, case study: the rabbi family house in Koromľa, Slovakia

Abstract

Timber-framed structures are of particular cultural significance. Their wide global and historical occurrence is proved from the oldest prehistory era recorded by archaeological finds to its actual boom in contemporary residential architecture. From ancient times until today, the reasons for their popularity are the low financial costs and fast construction process, and, in some regions, earthquake and flood resistance. The predominance of stone or brick-walled buildings we are surrounded with is relatively recent compared with the historical prevalence of timber structures. In this paper, the traditional construction nature of settlements in the lowland and hilly countryside of the upper Tisa region basin will be illustrated by the example of already a rare residential monument preserved on the eastern edge of Slovakia, close to the current borders with Ukraine, in the former Ung County. Single-storied cellar-less house Nr. 114 in Koromľa (Sobrance District, Košice Region) has timber-framed construction with post and plank infill, a double-wide floor plan, and six rooms. In addition to the walls' technological uniqueness, the house is the last remembrance of the once considerable Jewish minority of the village and a broader region. The object is relatively recent, built at the end of the 19th century, but represents the characteristic wall construction of the previous centuries in the lowland and hilly countryside of the upper Tisa basin region spreading at the confines of Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, and Hungary. Last objects with similar wall construction still can be found in some villages of the multicultural region. They are most often in a similar, poor state of decay. However, in three countries, except for Slovakia, several such buildings are registered as architectural monuments or protected in open-air museums.