Tyrolese Architecture 
NORTHERN TYROL 
A ROADSIDE HOUSE AT BRIXLEGG 
upon one side instead of the center of the 
end wall, and the little window near the 
apex is uncomfortably awry. Even elab¬ 
orate decorations are rarely honored with 
a central position on the facade of the 
house, but are placed at random. If a large 
erker should uphold one corner of the 
building, seldom would a balancing one 
be found upon the opposite end, which 
would lead us to believe that the Tyrolese 
are as doubtful that one can never do a good 
thing twice as they are sturdy in the belief of 
“ Let well enough alone.” In the southern 
parts of the province, only, can it be said 
that this scorn of symmetry is somewhat 
mitigated; but we must remember that the 
house at Cortina is not far from the Italian 
frontier and such symmetry as its gable-end 
presents would be most unusual farther 
north. 
A stable and a barn are combined with 
many Tyrolese homes under the same roof: 
in the case of chalets, a universal custom. 
Great trellises are attached to the houses 
for drying hemp and grain. A curious 
extreme of picturesqueness is reached in the 
little groups of these timber buildings with¬ 
out which the mention of Tyrolese architec¬ 
ture would be incomplete. They are perched 
high upon the mountain sides and far from 
towns. “Though they rest upon foundations 
of pine logs,” says a well-known French 
traveller, “ though their basements are com¬ 
posed of shapeless rocks which the torrent 
has brought down from the heights, these 
chalets lean to the right, to the left, and 
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