Small day labourer's house in Our

Maison de journalier à Our © PBVW

In the traditional village, the shape of the houses generally depends on the occupants’ trade and their relative means.

This so-called day labourer’s or labourer’s house originally had only one room on the ground floor and one bedroom upstairs. However, the living space is not necessarily smaller than that of the neighbouring family farms. The house even has a cellar and an attic for storing perishable foodstuffs.  The quality of the construction is also comparable to that of the other buildings in the village.

Here, the absence of agricultural outbuildings implies the need to ensure one’s subsistence by working for others; dedicated to agricultural work in the season and to a craft practice in winter.

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