It is located in the municipality of Santana, on the island of Madeira, and is an ex-libris of the municipality of Santana, and a tourist attraction on the island of Madeira, Portugal.
The houses have a triangular shape and are covered in thatch, and are popularly known as little houses of Santana.
The architecture of this type of house dates back to the discovery of Madeira and represents a part of Madeira's heritage.
The fame of these houses is that they are known for being small, triangular, colorful, made of straw from the cereal plantation that was used to cover them, and wood, because it was a cheap and abundant material in this region, is important for balancing the temperature inside.
The high slope of the roofs allowed rainwater to drain, thus ensuring the house was waterproof.
The interior of these houses consists of an attic where agricultural products were kept, and a ground floor where the residential area was located, divided into two separate parts, the kitchen and the bedroom.
The city center of Santana is the best place on the island to observe traditional Madeiran houses where visitors can observe several of these colorful houses with beautiful gardens.
On the other side of the street there is a fruit market that on weekends tourists can visit and buy such as: passion fruit, guava, cherry, papaya, banana, fig, tabaibo, medlar, tangerine, avocado, etc.
It is believed that these houses are traces of primitive constructions made of wood and thatch. In the region, as there was a lack of hard stone and the climate was cold in winter, this raw material was adopted, also enabling adaptation to the seasons, cool in summer and warm in winter.
In this area there were two types of typical houses: those based on the ground on wooden logs called “Casas Rasteiras” and the so-called “Casas Meio Fio” which were based on basalt stone walls, and the ground floor consisting of three rooms such as the living room and the two bedrooms.
On the upper floor there were other bedrooms and storage rooms, in the attic it was used to store the seeds for planting the next sowing.
The roofs of the houses are covered with thatch every three years, consisting of at least two layers of thatch, in which the roof is made with the thatch sections facing downwards and the second layer in which the thatch is placed with the sections facing upwards.
These homes date back to the discovery of Madeira, which, due to the abundance of wood and straw from cereal plantations, was used to cover people's homes and the so-called “haystacks” where animals were kept.
Currently, these typical Madeira houses are tourist shops that sell traditional pieces in clay or wood, typical Madeira (Santana) houses in miniature, corn husk dolls, embroidery, pasta dolls, miniature Monte baskets, dolls with regional costumes, embroidery, linen, carpets and clothing items, production of fabrics for typical costumes carried out using artisanal methods made with natural products (sheep's wool and linen).
The architecture of this type of house dates back to the discovery of Madeira and represents a part of Madeira's heritage.
The fame of these houses is that they are known for being small, triangular, colorful, made of straw from the cereal plantation that was used to cover them, and wood, because it was a cheap and abundant material in this region, is important for balancing the temperature inside.
The high slope of the roofs allowed rainwater to drain, thus ensuring the house was waterproof.
The interior of these houses consists of an attic where agricultural products were kept, and a ground floor where the residential area was located, divided into two separate parts, the kitchen and the bedroom.
The city center of Santana is the best place on the island to observe traditional Madeiran houses where visitors can observe several of these colorful houses with beautiful gardens.
On the other side of the street there is a fruit market that on weekends tourists can visit and buy such as: passion fruit, guava, cherry, papaya, banana, fig, tabaibo, medlar, tangerine, avocado, etc.
It is believed that these houses are traces of primitive constructions made of wood and thatch. In the region, as there was a lack of hard stone and the climate was cold in winter, this raw material was adopted, also enabling adaptation to the seasons, cool in summer and warm in winter.
In this area there were two types of typical houses: those based on the ground on wooden logs called “Casas Rasteiras” and the so-called “Casas Meio Fio” which were based on basalt stone walls, and the ground floor consisting of three rooms such as the living room and the two bedrooms.
On the upper floor there were other bedrooms and storage rooms, in the attic it was used to store the seeds for planting the next sowing.
The roofs of the houses are covered with thatch every three years, consisting of at least two layers of thatch, in which the roof is made with the thatch sections facing downwards and the second layer in which the thatch is placed with the sections facing upwards.
These homes date back to the discovery of Madeira, which, due to the abundance of wood and straw from cereal plantations, was used to cover people's homes and the so-called “haystacks” where animals were kept.
Currently, these typical Madeira houses are tourist shops that sell traditional pieces in clay or wood, typical Madeira (Santana) houses in miniature, corn husk dolls, embroidery, pasta dolls, miniature Monte baskets, dolls with regional costumes, embroidery, linen, carpets and clothing items, production of fabrics for typical costumes carried out using artisanal methods made with natural products (sheep's wool and linen).
