The Corsican houses

Considered as one of the most beautiful heritages of Europe, the Corsican Romanesque

art divides in two periods: 

The pre-Romanic period It began in the 9th century when dozens of rural chapels were built. Most are in ruins today. One of the best examples is doubtless St Jean-Baptiste de Corte whose baptistery is always in a state. 

St Jean-Baptiste de Corte

The period pisane At the end of the 11th century, to repopulate the abandoned littoral plains, the Republic of Pisa made architects come to build small cathedrals, in particular in Nebbio, Castagniccia and Balagne. They served as places of prayer, as house of the people and as courts. Among the most known, San Michele of Murato and Mariana's cathedral (in the South of Bastia) which are recognizable in their polychromatic walls.

San Michele of Murato

Artistic expression of the religious revival, the baroque invaded Corsica under the influence of Genoa in 17th and 18th centuries.

Numerous churches of Balagne and Castagniccia adopted then this very fashionable style from North Italy. Facades with triangular or curvilinear front wall appeared, whereas inside they were luxuriously decorated with gold, with marble, with trompe l’oeil paintings, with sculpted wooden furniture, and golden stuccos. The holy church of Jean-Baptiste de La Porta in Castagniccia, the religious buildings of Bastia and the cathedrals of Ajaccio and Cervione are some examples of this visible artistic movement in the architecture of 150 churches built until 19th century.

Jean-Baptiste de La Porta in Castagniccia

Another architectural testimony, the military buildings with in particular the Genoese towers, the citadels and the forts.

Citadels: quite situated in commercial cities in relation with the ports of the Mediterranean Sea: Bastia, St-Florent, Calvi, Algajola, Bonifacio, Porto-Vecchio and Ajaccio. These high and attached houses shielded with their ramparts were endowed with statues, paintings, sculpted furniture, religious silversmith's trades and liturgical ornaments bound by gold or by silver. 

Algajola

Towers Built to fight against the barbaric invasions, they were used to alert the villagers as soon as barbary sails appeared on the horizon. Today, on 85 towers counted at the beginning of the 18th century, 67 remain still standing along the Corsican coast on advanced headlands, especially in the Cap Corse region and on the west coast.

Tour Micalona

Forts Of the medieval castles of the Lords of the island only remains ruins, mainly in the Cap Corse region. Some military works, designed for the defense of a strategic place, remain partially; it is the case of the fort defending the bottleneck of Tizzano.

The traditional architecture counts Genoese bridges, typical villages, living houses, sheepfolds and fountains. 

The Genoese bridges Built from the end of the 13th century, certain, attributed to genoas are in fact, the work of Pisans. Narrow-mindedness of the way, unique arch in hogback, two strong piles on each side and granite paving stones are the main characteristics of these bridges. The height of their arch and their situation in a wide place of the stream are calculated in anticipation of the always sudden and violent floods under the Mediterranean climate. The oldest of them is the Spin at Cavallu, on the Rizzanese river, between Propriano and Sartene.

Spin at Cavallu

The traditional village In the old Corsican villages, houses are grouped in a visible disorder which hides at first sight their organization in family blocks. They are sometimes combined with covered passages and separated by stoned alleys in staircases, it is the case of San' Antonino in Balagne or from Vescovato to Casinca. The rare villages of the South, which have preserved their houses, are former noble housing environment which could have also had a community defensive function. It is the case of Ste-Lucie-de-Tallano and Bicchisano.

The Corsican house Most of the time constructed in granite in the center and in the South and in schist in the North, it sheltered formerly the family in the widest sense of the term. Made up of several floors (4 - 5 most of the time), staircases are often relegated outside or reduced to simple ladders to save space in the house. The small openings in facades allow to protect themselves from the cold in winter and from the heat and from the light in summer.Roofs are covered with wide fine slates of schist called " teghje " the color of which varies according to the origin, the grey-blue in Corte, green in Bastia and silver grey in Castagniccia. 

Sheepfolds Were spread in mountains, they are more or less abandoned because of the decline of the transhumance.Generally built with heavy stony blocks assembled without mortar, between which fit flat pebbles intended to wedge the construction, the sheepfolds of the North of the island possess a tiled roof with double slope. In the South, the technique of shelters sub-rock of the region of Sotta was also used for sheepfolds. In the calcareous country of Bonifacio still remain some baracconi, small round buildings in stones topped with vaults of dry fladstones, which use goes back to the bronze age. It is the ultimate high slab that gives its solidity to the construction.

Fountains Often in the entrance of villages or of forests, charming fountains made of pebbles bring their picturesque touch to the landscape, they testify of the wealth in water of Corsica compared with the rest of the Mediterranean islands.

Bonifacio

Bergerie Bitalza Sotta

Fontaine-du-village-de-Canelle