Limousin Half-Timbered Houses
The region is full of charm, with old half-timbered and granite houses roofed in the traditional way with gorgeous local material.
These Limousin houses roofs are generally made of slate or local stone (lauze). The traditional technique of building a wooden structure over a stone wall is used. It does protect the house from the humidity and fire attacks. Limousin half-timbering houses have large windows with many small window panes.
Wood is used both inside and outside the house, for both decoration or protection.
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This half-timbered style is a legacy of the middle-ages. Some exquisite examples of half timbering can then be found in the Haute-Vienne department and in Limoges, having resisted superbly the rigours of 2nd WW.
The dominant construction material used in the Limousin region of France is Granite, and short tiles are used on roofs.
Some Norman half timbered houses have a corbelling structure, allowing more space to the upper floors’ rooms.
Corbelling technique used in Limousin.   |
A Corbel is in this case a piece of wood jutting out of a wall to carry the superincumbent weight of the floor above. This is a technique used since Neolithic times – late Stone Age (around 3,500 BC): this is actually a traditional construction method in the region.
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