Ken, senior moments are coming almost as fast as singularity.

I will see what I can do. I think Dave would find it on topic.

Tim

I've seen mortises near the bottom of the main posts in the barn at Great Coxwell.

We've used a similar mortise when a tall object (in this case our gin pole) was laying down that we wanted to stand upright. If you insert a smaller post in the mortise near the foot of the post, then run the rope up and over the smaller post and down to the people pulling on the rope, then you can get a vertical lifting force from pulling a rope to aid those who are lifting manually. as the pole or bent comes up, eventually the smaller lifting post moves downward until it is no longer guiding the rope and the rope is pulling straight from the top of the object to the pullers.

I personally think that is what those mortises are for, but in the absence of proof...

What Gabel is talking about is called a raising pole, as shown here:

Hi Gabel,

Great Coxwell barn is more than a little different from Cressing Temple in that the main posts stand a long way up on top of stone columns. I would presume that scaffolding must have played a major part in the raising process at Great Coxwell.

There is a picture of Great Coxwell on page 27 of "Conservation of Timber Buildings" by Freddie Charles and the rectangular holes to which you refer at the bottom of the posts are clearly visible.

On page 30 of the same book there is a photo taken of the bottom of a post at Middle Littleton Tithe barn near Evesham where the original inserted wooden peg still remains in position even after 700 years. Freddie gives a description of the lifting process on this page but once again this must be conjectural.

What is it that stops post feet from slipping away when lifting in assembled bent fashion as is practiced today in North America ?

Regards

Ken Hume

Hi Jim,

You snuck your post in as I was writing mine. I understand your sketch but this is not what can be seen at Middle Littleton where only a short length peg (6" or so) is seen to be sticking out of a square or slightly rectangular hole.

Regards

Ken Hume

Ken:
To stop a post from moving at the foot, sometimes is as easy as having a person "foot" the post. That is place his hands on the post, near the base, and hold it from sliding.

In larger frames, there are some blocks attached to the "deck" whatever that maybe, to hold the feet of the posts from sliding.

I've often heard them called "kickers", but never understood why they would be called that. You don't kick them away after they are done, and the aren't kicked into place, but they do stop the post from kicking out..... so maybe it is a good name....

Jim Rogers

PS. I may have some pictures of these if you needed to see them....

nice image, Jim -- illustrates my words perfectly.

Ken,

Yes, at Great Coxwell the height of the post feet up on those stone columns would have necessitated the entire Xframe be built on an elevated scaffolded platform and then the raising posts inserted in the now empty mortises, the ropes run over the top and dozens of oxen or hundreds of men or some pretty large windlasses or all of the above would be ready to take the strain and up it comes slowly....

I would really love to go back in time to see those massive cross-frames being raised.

Hi Gabel, Dave & Jim,

Further to my earlier posts I came across a much underutilised book in the collection - A Guide to Medieval English Tithe Barns by James W. Griswold (an American). This book was first published in 1999 by Peter Randall in Portsmouth New Hampshire (ISBN 0-914339-73-7) and features Great Coxwell, Little Middleton and Cressing Temple and of particlar interest is an illustration by Mary & Freddie Charles on page 16 showing a possible lifting scenario for Little Middleton cruck frames. The illustration does not seem to take account of the post bottom pegs even though this is recognised to have been present as a raising aid by the Charles. A lot of work went into making this hand drawn perspective view of the cruck raising apparently to no great avail.

Regards

Ken Hume

Ken,

I have that book and remember the drawing you refer to. It struck me as not drawn by a timber framer, but interesting to look at nonetheless. I'll have to get it out later and have another look.

The photo is a little on the dark side. The stained glass was a swap for some lumber.
The blue jay is for one of my boys, he was 6 years old when he cut the sills and braces with hand tools, his name is Jay. He is taller than I am now.

Tim

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