512 – Granary from Heitenried Fribourg, 1652

Key purpose

Important functions in agricultural systems have always had their own buildings. In previous centuries free-standing granaries were in many places an integral part of the landscape. The grain harvest so necessary for survival was stored there. This Heitenried building is one of the oldest from the Sense valley region.

Contributions to the parish

The granary once stood behind the Heitenried parish house and was the parish’s property. Whether wheat, barley, oats or rye, the farmers had to pay a tribute of ten percent of the harvest to the parish. This “grain tenth” was stored in the parish granary; so was dried fruit and sauerkraut. The open foundation, a storage place for ploughs and other field instruments, was reconstructed when re-erecting.

Shingles as wooden armour plate

The upper storey is younger and built in a different manner, namely in wooden timber frame construction. Investigations of the wood employed yielded a construction date of 1761. Hundreds of small wooden shingles protect the facade from the vagaries of wind and weather. This is one of the oldest dated wall shinglings in Switzerland.

Art and architecture

The owner spared no costs when putting up this building: the date 1652, the Christian monogram IHS and the initials HR are carved over the door (the HR probably stands for Heitenried). The door jambs are profiled, the lintel carved in gothic style, the ends of the squared wall timbers are corbelled out to form brackets and a frieze extends over the whole facade, carved in the cubelets then in fashion.