FiliTour Nr. 2: Haus Pol Andrea

The Banker of Filisur

The former owner, Pol Andrea Lorenz (1846-1919), became one of the richest filisurers thanks to an inheritance. Like other wealthy locals, he acted as a private lender. At the time, this was nothing unusual. Supposedly, rich Reformed people often lent money to poor Catholics because they invested their belongings in the salvation of souls and donated them to the church.

The typical Engadine house

This house illustrates the typical architecture of an Engadine house. The house and the stable are united under one roof. The main façade faces the village street to observe what is happening there. The brick residential wing is provided with an imposing arched gate, deep funnel windows, often a bay window and sgraffito or paintings. The ornaments or mythical creatures have a symbolic meaning and structure the façade. In summer, red Engadine hanging elks or geraniums adorn the windows. The stable wing consists of a brick base and pillars with air-permeable wooden walls and an attached arbor.

Daily life took place mainly on the ground floor of the residential wing. Through the arched gate, the carriage crossed the hallway (sulèr) to the hay barn (talvo). From the sulèr you can see the panelled parlour (stüva), the kitchen (chadafö), and the pantry (chamineda).

On the upper floor are the sleeping chambers (chambra), often the parlour (stüva sura) and the upper hallway (palantschin). The living wing with the parlour and the sleeping chamber above it often consists of a wooden construction and was later pre-bricked.

In the basement, you can access the anteroom (cuort) with the dung stick from the outside and the cattle shed (stalla, uigl) behind it.

In the audio, the owner of the house, Magdalena Tscharner, guides you through the house and explains some typical elements of the Engadine house. The audio file can be found at the back of the pictures.