Salt Mehuus

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Salt Mehuus

The Salzmehuus ("Salzmannhaus") is a thatched roof house in Kölliken in the canton of Aargau . The building, built in 1802, stands on the main road in the center of the village and is one of the last witnesses of this traditional rural construction in the Swiss plateau . As a cultural asset of national importance , it is a listed building. The timber frame construction has a hipped roof that is drawn down far . This was previously covered with straw , today with reeds . The house has been used as a village museum since 1987.

history

Until the early 20th century, thatched roof houses shaped the appearance of many villages in the grain-growing areas of the Central Plateau. Today only eleven buildings of this type remain in Switzerland, three of which are in Kölliken. The main reason for the gradual disappearance of thatched roof houses was their replacement with buildings made of stone and brick, which began to spread in the 19th century. The Salzmehuus was built in 1802, so relatively late in comparison to houses of its kind. It is not known why the choice fell on the traditional construction method. In any case, lack of money did not play a role, since the owner family Suter belonged to the wealthy rural upper class. The Suters had the cantonal license to sell salt , which is why their nickname was "Salzme" ( Swiss German for Salzmann). The name of the house is derived from this sideline .

Johann Suter, the client, spent around 5,000 francs on the construction of the house , which corresponds to the value of two hectares of meadow land in a prime location. He had invested in more lucrative cattle breeding and only cultivated traditional grain for his own use. With six hectares of usable area, his farm was one of the larger in the canton, because only every sixth Aargau farmer owned more than five hectares at the time. The house remained in family ownership for six generations. The farm existed until 1967, the last residents moved out in 1977. In 1981 the house was sold to the community of Kölliken - with the condition that a museum be set up in it. After extensive restorations and a few structural interventions, the museum was opened in 1987.

architecture

The approximately 30-meter-long Salzmehuus is a multi-purpose building in the frame construction method . Its central element is the four high studs ( ridge columns ) twelve meters high, which support the ridge beam , on which the main load of the hipped roof rests. This summarizes apartment, Tenn , stable and barn together in a single building. The Tenn is located in the middle between the residential and commercial section, which is why it is also called a mid-tenn house. The generously dimensioned living area consists of six rooms on the ground floor and six chambers on the upper floor. The walls are made of strong planks that are laid on a brick base on the ground floor. Belt cornices and elaborately carved arches adorn the facade facing the street. A room on the ground floor was separated from the living area, which meant that salt could be sold in it. Two cellars are located below the living area across the axis of the building . The northern one was used for weaving , the southern one as a storage room.

As is customary in a timber frame construction, neither nails nor screws were used. All connections are grooved, plugged in, mortised or pinned . Up until the 18th century it occasionally happened that houses of this type of construction were taken apart and rebuilt in a different location in a few days, especially since they belonged to the Fahrhabe , i.e. the mobile property of a farming family. The hipped roof has an area of ​​900 square meters and was originally thatched . During the renovation in 1982, however, it was decided to use 40 tons of reeds instead. The reason for this was that suitable straw was hardly to be found and had to be threshed out by hand first . The stable, which was built up during its expansion in 1941, is also no longer in its original condition.

museum

According to the stipulations in the sales contract, the salt mill has served as an exhibition building for the Kölliken village museum since 1987. The museum, redesigned in 2013, is open on Sundays from April to October and presents the typical way of life of farmers and craftsmen around 1900. The various parts of the exhibition show the change in everyday rural life between tradition and modernity and between agriculture and industry. As part of an extensive museum education program, various devices can be tried out and films show people at work. An extensive collection of objects and documents on economic and cultural history is integrated into the permanent exhibition. Temporary exhibitions on the upper floor deal with the region's art, history and nature. A straw house market takes place once a year.

literature

Web links

Commons : Salzmehuus  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Sauerland: The Salzmehus in Kölliken. P. 2
  2. ↑ Sauerland: The Salzmehus in Kölliken. P. 5
  3. ↑ Sauerland: The Salzmehus in Kölliken. Pp. 5-8.
  4. ↑ Sauerland: The Salzmehus in Kölliken. Pp. 8-9.
  5. ↑ Sauerland: The Salzmehus in Kölliken. P. 15.
  6. ↑ Sauerland: The Salzmehus in Kölliken. Pp. 10-11.
  7. ↑ Sauerland: The Salzmehus in Kölliken. P. 18.

Coordinates: 47 ° 20 '4.4 "  N , 8 ° 1' 28.4"  E ; CH1903:  six hundred and forty-four thousand two hundred eighty-five  /  242,797