Spanish Stone fireplaces
Northern spain has a rich history of stone use in their architecture. Although very rustic in the mountaineous areas, stone use for building is widespread, and many of the buildings have beautiful stone fireplaces and stone staircases. Many of the oldest stone buildings were originally farm houses, and in the colder regions, they had a layout where the farmer and his family lived on the first floor and the livestock were kept on the lower floor. This had the effect of letting the heat from the animals below, provide some heat to the floors above. No doubt it also allowed some pretty good aromas up there too!
Often the first floor where the farmer lived, was approached from outside the building, (though not always) and where it was reached outside, invariably there would be a set of substantial stone stairs. These were substantial for many reasons, not least that they had to endure very hard winters and severe weathering, particularly in the higher altitude areas of the Picos de Europa.
In May this year, we are making a short trip to Cantabria and Asturias to seek out some examples of these early stone structures, and to gather some ideas for some new stone fireplace designs. We will travel as much as possible through the more unspoilt rural areas, where use of stone is quite widespread, and who knows what new inspiration we’ll find!