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Origin and history

The house with boards of Jouandis, located in Beaumontois in Périgord, is a historical monument dating from the 14th century. It is part of a set of houses built by stacking of square logs, a rare technique in this border region between the Agenese and the Périgord. These constructions, studied from 1971 by François Fray and the Association des Amis du Pastourais, are concentrated around the cantons of Villeréal and Castillonnès, with a diffusion towards Issigeac and Villeneuve-sur-Lot. Their precise dating, established by dendrochronology, places their construction between the late 15th and early 16th century, although some sources evoke an origin from the 14th century for this specimen.

These wooden houses are a testament to a period of restocking after the Hundred Years' War, which had devastated Agenese and Périgord. Two waves of immigration, between 1472-1485 and 1515-1530, helped rebuild the ravaged villages, thanks in particular to the arrival of families of the Central Massif (Rouergue, Quercy, Auvergne, Limousin) and the Poitou. Local lords and abbots offered land to clear and advantageous conditions to attract these new inhabitants, including building a house. This context explains the scarcity and ethnological interest of these buildings, seven of which were protected between 1991 and 1992.

The house of Jouandis is distinguished by its rectangular structure, with stacked and embossed board walls, assembled with grooves and tabs in horn posts. Inside, a wooden and torchi partition separates two pieces. The site also includes an adjacent barn, partially built with the same techniques. These buildings, classified in 1996, illustrate exceptional medieval rural architecture, mixing wood and masonry. Their preservation underlines their heritage value, both for their seniority and for their rarity in the south-west of France.

The name "stackhouse" was popularized by 20th century researchers, including François Fray, who documented 53 copies in the region. However, this term only applies to this specific area, because other regions, such as Savoy or Dauphiné, use different names for similar constructions, such as "room-on-room building". The study of these houses reveals possible influences of Scandinavian techniques, mentioned in 1903 by Jules Momméja, who compared a local house to those of Telemark in Norway.

The house of Jouandis, with its nearby barn, was classified as historical monuments in 1996, with the exception of a brick appentis. Its state of conservation and archaeological interest bear witness to post-medieval construction methods and post-conflict repopulation dynamics. Subsequent research, such as that carried out for the General Inventory of Cultural Heritage, helped identify other examples in Sainte-Sabine-Born, reinforcing the importance of this local heritage.

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