It is actually more than a shed, namely a shed with granary. The building was altered in the course of the 19th and 20th centuries and served various purposes. Ploughs and harrows, transport means such as sleighs and wagons were stored here, as were also modern farm machinery and accessories. Faggots (bundles of twigs) for fuelling tiled parlour stoves were kept dry here. The ground floor of this wagon and farm machinery shed was also used as a chicken coop – once it housed a press.
The most important information on the age and architecture of the building is quickly summarised: a two-storey timber frame structure stands on a low foundation of stone and brick. The walls are partly timber infill and partly board[1]ed. The exact age cannot be determined but this shed from the western edge of the hamlet of Hagenbuch in the municipality of Kappel displays constructional similarity to a nearby barn of 1638. At its original site it had to make way for a new barn and is being re-erected at Ballenberg in 2014/15.
Sheds small and large were characteristic items in the traditional economy. They were as necessary as the many small utility buildings like the little mills (1121, 1122). Economic change swept them away unnoticed – the simple plain buildings were torn down without further ado.
Ballenberg
Swiss Open-Air Museum
Museumsstrasse 100
CH-3858 Hofstetten bei Brienz
Opening hours
10 April to 2 November 2025
10 am to 5 pm daily