Smokehouse Großschrotter, Eggartsberg near Geistthal

The two-storey residential building is built over a ground floor of quarry stone masonry in a log construction. The floor plan of the main house (16th century) is characterised by the large smokehouse, the spacious front building, the ‘Labn’, and two chambers.

In 1728, Urban Schratter erected the transverse gable (Wiederkehr), in which a tiled parlour was set up. The brick-built cellar provided space for livestock, tools and storage areas. Bedrooms and storerooms were located on the upper floor. The ‘Großschrotter’ is a classic representative of the West Styrian farmstead type between the Gleinalpe and the provincial border.

The entrance on the eaves side leads into the ‘Labn’. The entire western gable end is taken up by the 54 m² smoking room. The double fireplace, consisting of a cooker and oven, characterises the atmosphere of the room where people cooked, baked and ate and where the extended farming family used to get together. In the outer corner is the dining table as well as the cradle for the little ones and a bed for sick members of the household. From the ‘Labn’, the ‘Gangl’ leads to the tiled parlour, which offered a much better quality of living than the smoking room. There was more light here and smoke-free warmth in winter. The steep shear rafter roof is covered with so-called ‘slate shingles’ made of spruce wood in a ‘herringbone pattern’.