Vernacular Architecture 39

Explores the potential of Scotland's Statutory Lists of Buildings of Architectural or Historic Interest to elucidate the scale and rapidity of the Highlands building boom (part of a process of agricultural improvement that permanently transformed the Highland landscape) and offers suggestions as to the potential of this source for high-level thematic building analysis. PP-B

The study of vernacular buildings in the North East of England has progressed sufficiently in recent decades to reach the point at which a preliminary roof typology for the region can be set out. This goal has been much aided by tree-ring dating. Early roofs include the most northerly crown posts found in England, while in the later-medieval period the truncated-principal truss develops as a regionally distinctive roof form. The medieval evidence for crucks is largely documentary, but post-medieval examples are plentiful, usually in upper or raised cruck form. The late-medieval tiebeam-and-principal roof gradually established itself as the most common regional roof form by the end of the seventeenth century.

Old Hall Farm illustrates the influence of progressive thinking on farm building design, and also demonstrates an owner/architect's readiness to adapt these models to meet local needs and take advantage of local conditions and materials.

The use of earth as a building material in rural Wales in the nineteenth century was seen by contemporary observers as symptomatic of poverty. But there is also documentary evidence suggesting a more subtle picture, with clom taking its place in a clear hierarchy of materials, and used as a means of managing resources. Surviving clom buildings reveal a consistent craft in construction, clearly associated with other building crafts and other regional building traditions.

Uses a series of case studies to demonstrate recent developments in the interpretation of dendrochronological dating evidence (Miles 2005; 2006), and to evaluate the accuracy of the approach in practice. The adoption of a standardised protocol for the presentation of dates is suggested in order to provide a clear distinction between those results that incorporate a Bayesian approach to interpretation and those that do not. Individual and combined felling date ranges produced by existing methods are compared with those obtained using the new methodology. In particular, the selected case studies allow further appraisal of the Bayesian approach to the production of a combined felling date range for a group of timbers, and highlight the potentially delicate balance between accuracy and precision.

Includes very brief notes on some of the buildings dated. PP-B