Sam Jacob

BROWSE ALL FROM THIS AUTHOR HERE

The Origins of Half-Timbering: 2000 Years of Non-Stop Nostalgia

Sam Jacob Studio harbours a long-held fascination with Half-Timbering. In this essay, Jacob examines the historical, cultural, and aesthetic roots of the style.

It’s fair to say that “Mock Tudor”—that black and white facade treatment—has a less than glowing reputation. Take these sneering lines from John Betjeman’s Slough, for instance:

It’s not their fault they often go / To Maidenhead / And talk of sports and makes of cars / In various bogus Tudor bars.

(Perhaps those very same bars that Martin Freeman’s character in The Office notes have “a sign in the toilet saying: Don’t get your Hampton Court”.) “Mock Tudor” is often accused of “bogus”-ness, of lacking authenticity, of fakeness, and many other types of architectural sin.

The Origins of Half-Timbering: 2000 Years of Non-Stop Nostalgia - Image 1 of 4The Origins of Half-Timbering: 2000 Years of Non-Stop Nostalgia - Image 2 of 4The Origins of Half-Timbering: 2000 Years of Non-Stop Nostalgia - Image 3 of 4The Origins of Half-Timbering: 2000 Years of Non-Stop Nostalgia - Image 4 of 4The Origins of Half-Timbering: 2000 Years of Non-Stop Nostalgia - More Images+ 1