Săliștea Nouă, The Orthodox Wooden Church

GENERAL PRESENTATION The wooden church dedicated to The Birth of Saint John the Baptist built most likely in the first half of the 18th century went through some major changes around the year 1798. Erected by the community from Buzaș, a village from the Someșului Valley, between Dej and Jibou, left derelict after the Second […]

13. January 202020. March 2020 Veronica

Rădulești, The Orthodox Wooden Church

GENERAL PRESENTATION There is no exact knowledge of the moment when the church was built; in 1733 the village of Rădulești was registered with a parochial church and that is why the List of Historical Monuments marks the year of 1733 as that of its construction. Nevertheless, the local tradition also notes that the place […]

13. January 202020. March 2020 Veronica

Roadeș, The Evangelical Church

GENERAL PRESENTATION The evangelical church ensemble in Roadeș has a very special, unquestionable documentary, architectural, artistic and environmental value. It is a noteworthy example of Saxon architecture part of a well-defined cultural landscape, but several of its components are in urgent need of an intervention. THE STATE BEFORE THE INTERVENTION One of the components that […]

13. January 202020. March 2020 Veronica

Prigor, ”Tuluji” Water-Mill of Ibulcina

GENERAL PRESENTATION The Valley of Almăj is one of the richest ethnographic areas in the country from the point of view of themolinological heritage. The spectacular water mills, some of which are still used, others abandoned are, without question, one of the area’s greatest fortunes. At Ibulcina, probably on the site of an old hamlet, […]

13. January 202023. January 2020 Veronica

Banloc, Guard Tower

GENERAL PRESENTATION The Castle of Banloc is one of the most representative castles from the Plain of Banat. What is less known is that alongside the castle and the park, along its property, there are many other modest edifices, which are abandoned, covered by vegetation, having been vandalized many times throughout their history. The Guard […]

13. January 202027. January 2020 Veronica

Șoimușeni, The Orthodox Wooden Church

GENERAL PRESENTATION The precise moment when the church was built is unknown; the list of historical monuments indicates the 16th century as the period of its erection. The most important documentary sources show that in Șoimușeni, the church was erected before the year 1848. The local tradition notes that the church was brought from Fericea, […]

11. December 201923. January 2020 Veronica

GENERAL PRESENTATION
The precise moment when the church was built is unknown; the list of historical monuments indicates the 16th century as the period of its erection. The
most important documentary sources show that in Șoimușeni, the church was erected before the year 1848. The local tradition notes that the church
was brought from Fericea, county of Maramureș, a village from the same Chioaru region, 2 villages away from Șoimușeni. To the extent to which this
tradition is based on real facts, most probably this event happened sometimes in the 3rd-4th decades of the 18th century.

THE STATE BEFORE THE INTERVENTION
The overall technical condition was extremely degraded for most elements and the tower was in a pre-collapse condition which needed an urgent
intervention to make it secure. The main problem with the narthex/nave and the altar was the existence of nodes/dislocated/broken elements caused
by the deformation of the church.
The deformation of the church (and leaning of the tower) are mainly caused by the absence of any foundation, which triggered the excessive compaction
of the narthex segment. The degradation of the roof and the absence of any maintenance works in the last decades have led to the surfacing of degraded
wood segments which need an intervention, too. The same type of intervention was also necessary for the biologically degraded float shoes. The roof
suffered an accelerated degradation which caused water infiltrations and thus endangered the roof structure and the mural painting. The laths were
undersized and largely affected by rottenness. The existing lightning rod was degraded and no longer functional.

SAFETY INTERVENTION PROPOSAL
The proposed intervention covered the structural and architectural rehabilitation. We propose interventions for the reconstruction of the foundations
and the rebuilding of the dry walls and the rehabilitation of the walls by replacing the degraded shoes and the joints between them, respectively the
broken blockages where needed. The intervention to the floors will be ones of rehabilitation/restoration; no strengthening works are proposed. The roof
structure will be consolidated and rehabilitated and the degraded segments will be sectioned-changed. The degraded shingle roof will be dismantled
and a new roof of the same material will be installed respecting the disposition, size, material and manufacturing technique of the existing one. A
lightning rod will also be installed.

ACCOMPLISHED INTERVENTIONS
The stone foundations of the south and east sides were redone, the degraded oak shoes were replaced and completed, one of the tower pillars that had
been struck by lightning was replaced, the tower was rotated and made vertical and a new roof was installed while preserving the historical laths.

Crivina de Sus, Wooden Church

GENERAL PRESENTATION The wooden church in Crivina de Sus with the dedication “Cuvioasa Paraschiva” is the oldest such church in the area, the oral tradition as well as a Cyrillic inscription on the southern portal are marking the year 1676 as the year of its erection. The dendrochronological inverstigation taken in the summer of 2016 […]

11. December 201927. January 2020 Veronica

crivina-cu-bleed-1 crivina-cu-bleed-3

GENERAL PRESENTATION
The wooden church in Crivina de Sus with the dedication “Cuvioasa Paraschiva” is the oldest such church in the area, the oral tradition as well as a
Cyrillic inscription on the southern portal are marking the year 1676 as the year of its erection. The dendrochronological inverstigation taken in the
summer of 2016 confirm its age. The wooden church in Crivina de Sus is the center of a multidisciplinary project (Wooden Churches in Banat), which
has been running since 2013 at the initiative of the Romanian Landscape Association, the Western Territorial Branch, and it is conceived as a sum of
interdisciplinary workshops on architecture and urbanism, landscape, restoration of painting and stone, anthropology and cultural studies. Between
2013-2017 the church survey (laser scanning and photogrammetry) and a series of studies (geological study, dendrochronological study, analysis of
plaster composition, archaeological surveys, historical study, etc.) were carried out. In 2018, the oak was cut and carved for the soles and then the
church was erected to replace the degraded soles, as well as the restoration of the stone foundation “a secco“. In 2019, plumbing, continuation and
replacement of some structural elements in the tower and roof framing were carried out. Subsequently, the interior of the church was plastered with
earth-based plaster.

THE STATE BEFORE THE INTERVENTION
The shingle cover had been degraded for many years, the church was covered with a foamy foil through which the meteoric water penetrated when
the involvement of volunteers began. In 2013 the roof was additionally covered with a ventilated waterproof cloth.
In 2015, within the project is was managed to install a temporary protective roof, made of a tensioned membrane, a roof that allows the carrying out of
research and restoration actions.

SAFETY INTERVENTION PROPOSAL
It was proposed to secure the church by restoring the sheathing. The new shingle is 43 centimeters long and the width between 8 and 12 cm with the
straight finish. The existing degraded laths were undersized, so they were replaced with some suitable of 4×5 cm.

ACCOMPLISHED INTERVENTIONS
The actual intervention consisted in the dismantling and installation of a new shingle roofing, respecting the layout, the size, the material and the
manufacturing technique of the previous one.

Jupânești, „Cuvioasa Paraschiva” Church

GENERAL PRESENTATION The local tradition and some stylistic arguments point towards a dating of the church sometime in the second half of the 17th c. or in the first half of the following one. The building is simple – a single rectangular space for the naos, with a polygonal apse to the east and a […]

11. December 201927. January 2020 Veronica

Luncșoara, Orthodox Wooden Church

GENERAL PRESENTATION Local tradition and the research conducted up to the present moment reveal that the church has been placed on its current location around 1825. Its original location is still uncertain. Some say that it used to be in the hamlet Crăciunești, others say it is from Vața de Sus, both in Hunedoara County. […]

5. December 201920. March 2020 Veronica

GENERAL PRESENTATION
Local tradition and the research conducted up to the present moment reveal that the church has been placed on its current location around 1825. Its
original location is still uncertain. Some say that it used to be in the hamlet Crăciunești, others say it is from Vața de Sus, both in Hunedoara County. The simple structure of the church is made of a rectangular nave, a polygonal three-sided apse on the east side and a nartex on the western side above which the high slender tower rises. The gazebo on the tower is unusual for the architecture in Arad County. Another unusual detail is the fact that both entrances are situated on the southern wall (one for the nartex, one for the nave). The painting which is only visible on the iconostasis and partially in the altar dates back to the end of the 19th century and was made by Ioan Demetrovici, ”city” painter (as referred to in historic documents).
He also painted other nearby churches, including the one in Vîjdoci, where an inscription from 1870 is still visible. Another inscription, from one of the wooden churches nearby, says that he comes from Timișoara. Both the interior and the exterior of the church in Luncșoara are plastered now.
According to historic evidence, this happened at the beginning of the 20th century. The family of the priest Viorel Cotocea says that the latest intervention on the church, when the shingle was replaced, happened in 1975.

THE STATE BEFORE THE INTERVENTION
Both the shingle roof of the church and of the impressive tower above the nartex were severely deteriorated, thus threatening the conservation of the historic monument and the paintings. Meteoric water would penetrate inside the church which would soon affect irreversibly its structural elements and decoration.

SAFETY INTERVENTION PROPOSAL
Following a preliminary evaluation of the church’s conservation state, the proposal consists of further documentation (including the extraction of
samples from the original materials), replacement of deteriorated wooden elements (the slats) and a new shingle roof, similar to the old one found on site.

ACCOMPLISHED INTERVENTIONS
The shingle roof was replaced with a new one, of the same wood essence and dimension as the one found on site. The shingle was nailed in two
layers with apparent nails. The shingle found on site used to be one-layered. However, it has been decided for a two-layered approach in order to
ensure durability. A sample for the original material was preserved in the attic of the church. The intervention was coordinated by the NGO Monumentum Association from Sibiu and The Cultural Association Vernacular from Arad and was co-financed by the County Council of Arad, the Orthodox Archbishopric of Arad, the National State Secretariat for religious Affairs and the local town government.

Eftimie Murgu, “Îndărătnica de la Părete” Water-Mill

GENERAL PRESENTATION Rudăriei Gorges (Cheile Rudăriei) watermill reservation is one of the most important reservations of such kind in Romania. On the route of 3 km where there once were 40 watermills (only 22 preserved today) there is also the one named “Îndărătnica de la părete” – considered to be the oldest of them. It […]

5. December 201920. March 2020 Veronica

eftimie-1 eftimie-3

GENERAL PRESENTATION
Rudăriei Gorges (Cheile Rudăriei) watermill reservation is one of the most important reservations of such kind in Romania. On the route of 3 km where there once were 40 watermills (only 22 preserved today) there is also the one named “Îndărătnica de la părete” – considered to be the oldest of them.
It is partially built on the rock, partially on two wooden posts on the shore of the river Rudărica. After a severe flood which seriously affected other watermills more recently built and thus normally stronger, the “Îndărătnica de la părete” watermill survived – perhaps thanks to its position near the cliff –, although it was damaged. At the time of its evaluation we also noticed the old and deteriorated beech shingle, thus requiring rapid intervention necessary to slow down the decay.

THE STATE BEFORE THE INTERVENTION
The waters and the vegetation rests falling from the cliff were accumulated at the base of the building, thus leading to the severe decay of the elements located at the base of the watermill building. Furthermore, the rainwater slowly degraded the beech roof covering, as well as some laths and rafters.

SAFETY INTERVENTION PROPOSAL
The intervention proposal targeted the stability of the watermill and its protection with a new handmade beech covering, having similar characteristics with the older, replaced one.

ACCOMPLISHED INTERVENTIONS
The volunteers were split in two working-groups: the first worked under the guidance of a shingle master in the village, thus manually producing the
necessary material to build a new covering (the shingle pieces were cut along the fibres, according to the traditional techniques); the second group
documented the elements of the planned interventions, replaced one of the base elements of the building (severely rotten) with a new one, and then
replaced the degraded elements of the roof – some rafters and laths, then the shingle. The first workgroup provided the shingle, which was assembled
following the model of the former one. Members of the local community, and especially Mihai Vlădia (the mayor of the locality) also participated at
the production and assemblage of the new shingle. The intervention was coordinated by Active Patrimony Association (PACT) from Timișoara and cofinanced by the Romanian Order of Architects and Eftimie Murgu Town Hall.