Rahvusliku ehituse eriala kiviehituspraktika Läänemaal / Stone building fieldwork of the Estonian native construction curriculum in Läänemaa

Abstract

A student of the University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy, Laur Oberschneider, organised granite-boulder building fieldwork for his younger course-mates. The fieldwork took place from 22nd to 29th August 2014 in Laiakivi farm in Metsküla village, Lihula parish, in Läänemaa (western Estonia). Alo Peebo, who holds an MA in Inherited Crafts from UT VCA, shared his knowledge and skills for reconstructing the façade of the granite stone cellar and for repairing the back corners of the cellar's dry walls. During the fieldwork, the students learned how to split the rocks using both a stone splitting hammer and by wedging. A lot of attention was paid to the safety, and the students were taught to use ergonomic techniques to prevent any unnecessary injuries and or traumas arising from working with heavy boulders and slates.

Since the wall had been previously repaired using a fast cement-based mortar the stones of the facade were difficult to clean and most of them had to be replaced by new ones during the fieldwork. A 10% lime-cement mortar, was used to build the façade. Due to the rainy autumn the mortar could not dry properly and some fractures that need repairing developed in the joints. To prevent this from happening, work on a wall should take place at the beginning or middle of the summer, so that the wall will have plenty of time to dry.

A local newspaper Lääne Elu also wrote an article about the fieldwork. In the article, Krista Kallavus, the owner of Laiakivi Farm and the specialist on cultural heritage in the Hiiu-Lääne-Saare region with the Environmental Board, invited national parks to cooperate more with the VCA.

Keywords: granite stone cellar, boulder construction, splitting, wedging, mortar