Unusual Pomorskie – “living open-air museums”, from the Kociewie village.

Before you set off in search of examples of picturesque folk architecture in Kociewie, visit the Kociewie Land Museum in Starogard. It is a real mine of knowledge about the region. Pay attention to the ethnography exhibitions. You will see what traditional folk costumes look like and what characterizes elegant Kociewie embroidery. You will look into the miniature interior of an old Kociewie cottage. You will learn a lot about folk customs related to holidays and important events in everyday life. About Kociewie weddings and the folk dance called “krokarz”, about Easter single-coloured “kraszanki” and “purcle” in the carnival time, about carol singers and St. John’s customs.

Living open-air museums - where to see the old architecture of Kociewie?

When you visit the museum in Starogard Gdanski, you can go out into the field to look for traces of Kociewie folk architecture. In many villages, original, over 100-year-old wooden cottages, charming churches have been preserved, and roadside chapels and crosses at crossroads are an inseparable element of the landscape.

When looking at old village cottages, you will certainly notice that they vary in size. Larger cottages were evidence of the wealth of the former farmers. They were built of natural materials: wood, stone, clay, and the roofs were covered with straw or reed. The walls had a log construction, and the gaps between the logs were filled with clay and peat. Wealthier farmers enriched their cottages with wooden arcades.

Kasparus is a small village lost in the Kociewie forests. There are an exceptionally large number of wooden cottages preserved there, as well as a wooden rectory with a log structure, a half-timbered church, an old cemetery and a brick school building. The Dlugie Village, located deep in the forest, has preserved its original layout. It is dominated by beautiful wooden cottages, some with colorful, decorated shutters. The number of picturesque cottages accumulated in this village created a real “living open-air museum”. We can called them alive because the cottages have their own inhabitants – they are private property. When viewing old houses, do so with respect for their privacy.

You can also see examples of folk architecture in the towns of Osiek, Wycinki, Jaszczerz and Bukowiny.

In Szteklin there is an old manor house built of larch wood.

The interiors of Kociewie cottages

The interiors of Kociewie cottages were simple and modest. The heart of the cottage was a stove with a chimney – it heated the room, was used for baking bread and preparing meals. The representative room was the “white room” – always with carefully whitened walls and the best furniture. This is where Christmas carols were received, celebrations were held, Sundays were spent.

If you want to enter the interior of a Kociewie cottage, you must visit the cottage in Borzechowo – the most famous cottage in Kociewie, with wooden arcades, which currently houses a library. It is a small house, with one room, a hall and a chamber.

On the southern edge of Kociewie, in the Chrystkowo village near Gruczno, there is a beautiful, impressive wooden arcaded house from the Mennonite period, which can be visited and is worth doing. It is a remnant of a large farm, which also included a barn, a sheepfold and a cowshed. The cottage has two storeys and several rooms: a kitchen, a pantry, a bedroom, a guest living room and a smokehouse. We will see a collection of exhibits related to rural life there. Interestingly, the house was adapted to the floods that regularly visited the area – it was equipped with a system of ramps that allowed the livestock to be led to the attic. Old markers showing the water level during the flood have also been preserved.