FINNISH WOODEN CHURCHPreviously issued in 1981, this book examines the wooden church
architecture of Eastern Europe. Eastern Europe is the principal refuge
of styles and techniques of 'solid' timber and log building which were
once far more widespread. These same building methods were once well
known in central Europe too but the increasing scarcity of forest
resources prompted the development of timber-framing or half-timbering
as a more economical alternative. This system exerted an influence over
wide areas of eastern Europe, and Mr Buxton devotes some space to a
consideration of it, but the bulk of the book is concerned with
churches built basically in solid timber, though with many refinements
and embellishments. The author attempts to show the origin and
relationship of the numerous regional styles with notes on their
geographical and historical setting. He spent a number of years
travelling in eastern Europe gathering material and taking a great many
photographs some of which are included in the book; there are also
plans and sections of all principal church-types. There are two
appendixes: in the first Mr Buxton discusses the relationship between
the wooden styles presented here and the American log cabin; the second
describes the wooden synagogues of eastern Poland, all tragically lost
in the last war.
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