Stone sheep wintershed, Şugag, Alba county, middle of the 19th century
The sheep wintershed, locally called “the sheep yard” is a pastoral construction of archaic type, specific to scattered villages of the Şureanu Mountains, used to shelter sheep in wintertime. The wintershed was transferred in the museum in 1994 from the village of Arţ (Şugag Commune, Alba County), from Ştefan Gheorghe (aka Păstoiu).
The walls are made of mica-schist with lime and sand mortar. The roof was not preserved in the field, but was rebuilt based on information from the owner. Thus, in the specific of the area, the roof framework was made from fir, and the covering from rye straws mounted in the sheaves (“jipi”) technique, with eaves of softwood shingles.
The building can shelter 100-120 sheep. Next to it, there are the pen and the walk-through milking parlor.
The usage of stone for such a shepherding construction is a rarity. In addition to the one in the Village Museum, there is only one sheep wintershed of this type, built in 1953, at the Prislop monastery (Hunedoara county), under the guidance of Father Arsenie Boca.
