Dumitra, Alba county, 19TH CENTURY
Found in the ethnographic area of Târnavelor Plateau, Dumitra village is representative for the traditional rural architecture from the beginning of the 19th century in the Transylvania Plain. From here was transferred in the Village Museum, in 1959, a small household, typical for the free peasants, but owning just a small amount of land, who worked on the large nobiliary latifundia. The social status of the former owners is suggested by the lack of large annexes also. Next to the house there is a small cornloft.
The house has the walls made of wattle and daub, sequently whitewashed. The hipped roof has rounded hips and a covering made of wheat sheaves, manually harvested and withed on the roof framework. The house is dark, as the interior receives light only through three little windows, each having four panes. The window frames, as well as the area around them are painted blue and contrast with the yellow line at the wall base.
The house plan is simple, including the anteroom and a living room. In the foyer, one can note the pyramidal oven with front hearth and a small roof for protecting the thatch covering against the sparks (called “babură”). Next to it there is a smoker for fruits. In the living room, an interesting furniture item is the canopy bed (with “cobără”), built on a wood frame and covered with wool fabrics. The settles and the table with high chairs complete the furniture. The polychrome textiles in which the blue, red and black are dominant, the pottery hanged on the walls and the ceiling beams, as well as the icons on glass give vibrancy to the interior.
