The Swedish Roundpole FenceThe Swedish Roundpole Fence

Gärdsgårdsstaket is an important part of the country’s heritage, and its gardsgard (fence) is still present around many houses. During the 18th and 19th centuries ,large parts of Sweden were covered with these linear fence structures used to keep livestock away from cultivated fields and to demarcate property boundaries. The building of this kind of fence was common rural knowledge and a skill that was highly versatile.

It was also possible to build buildings for livestock using the same technique as for fencing. This is documented by a small barn (lotak) and the cowshed from a farmstead in eastern central Sweden that date from the 18th and 19th century. These buildings for the farm animals were situated somewhat further apart from the dwelling house than usual. This was probably due to the fact that cattle were kept in pens or corrals (Myrdal, 1999).

Swedish Roundpole Fencing: History, Style, and How to Get One

In scholarly literature on vernacular building, the construction methods of the 18th and 19th centuries are often seen as having developed from earlier simpler forms. They are characterized by quality and a consideration for long-term sustainability (Erixon, 1947). However, the wooden pole fence-buildings indicate that this was not entirely the case.

A wooden pole fence-building was reconstructed as part of an investigation into the building techniques depicted in the film Svedjebruk (Bannbers, 1932). The work was carried out as processual reconstruction (Almevik, 2012) and attempted to recreate the craft procedures that were employed to construct the barn. This research contributes to a more nuanced understanding of the versatility of the skills that were employed in these buildings and demonstrates that they could be considered as sloyd, a form of domestic, versatile craft knowledge that was capable of solving any problem imaginable.…