Detail of netted and tied thatch at ridge; Horizontal Click Mill, South Shawbost, Lewis.

Description Detail of netted and tied thatch at ridge; Horizontal Click Mill, South Shawbost, Lewis.

Date 9/6/2015

Collection Records of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, London, England

Catalogue Number DP 241294

Category On-line Digital Images

Scope and Content An excerpt of text on Canmore explains that these two structures are a ‘traditional thatched horizontal click mill and drying kiln’ that were used until the 1930s. The buildings were restored in the late 1960s, but again fell into disrepair until they were ‘reconstructed in 1996 by Stuart Bagshaw & Assocs. for the Norse Mill Society’ (Miers, M. (2008) The Western Seaboard: an illustrated architectural guide. Edinburgh). Both structures are oval in shape and have straw-thatched roof with a continuous straw ridge. The roof has been entirely netted, including across the ridge, which has been weighted down with stones and rope. There is a continuous string of stones around the middle of the roof horizontally, attached to vertical ropes that pass over the ridge and down the other side. Twin ‘horns’ protrude from either end of the ridge and are used to secure some of the ropes for weighting the stones. The netting is additionally weighted by stones placed on the edge of the netting along the wallhead, which is additionally weighted with turf. In some places, the turf from the wallhead has begun to grow up onto the straw thatch, particularly upon a lower area of the south elevation. The buildings are not occupied but are open to the public for viewing as an example of a once common building type on the Western Isles.

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/collection/1538633

File Format (JPG) JPEG bitmap