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Tiny, Perfect Staircases Made by French Woodworkers
- benkarst 9y agoI don't know why it's on hacker news but it's cool.
- candiodari 9y agoI remember seeing full-scale versions of these in actual houses long ago. Man technology has advanced for the better. These things are brittle, require regular maintenance, they are tiny in width (try getting a fridge up a few floors), ... This actually used to be a pluspoint: when maintenance is lacking, specific portions will deteriorate : so walking upon them there will be a circular fault, which your leg will sink into (as opposed to the whole staircase collapsing entirely). The thing is, this happened to someone I knew on a yearly basis. It can only be fixed by replacing the whole thing. And of course, these were actually put into houses sometimes 5 floors high. Exercise !
- jimnotgym 9y agoI think you are confusing the regular spiral staircase with the properly made 'geometric' staircase which most of these models represent. Spirals are a menace, but a spacer saver. In contrast geometric stairs were installed in the grandest homes, on huge scales and have often survived for a couple of centuries.
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- pimlottc 9y agoCan you explain the difference between a "regular spiral staircase" and a "geometric staircase"?
- jimnotgym 9y agoIn a spiral staircase the stairs 'rotate' around a small diameter centre pole. They save a lot of space but seriously limit access for large items. They can be useful to access a loft space for example, where you want something better than a ladder but don't want to lose much floor space below. The small diameter centre pole seriously limits the way timber can be jointed. Long lasting timber joints need ways to deal with shrinkage, and therefore are better with a large contact area. Spirals are better made out of metal for this reason. Most of the images here are a much grander form of stair that 'rotate' around a large stair well leaving a large open space in the middle, which makes it easy to move furniture up by overhanging the handrail or even winching up the middle. The well can be circular or elliptical at the turns, and often have straight flights between. Since building a set of geometric stairs is complex and time consuming it is unlikely that you will see them outside of grand hotels and stately homes. It is likely that the simplest ones built in a traditional way would cost well over $100k. I struggled to find a reference that explained the true complexity outside of this classic book https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Modern_Practical_Joinery.html?id=KzNSAAAAMAAJ https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Modern_Practical_Join... Although here is a basic diagram here showing the curved strings and open well. http://year3shopfitting.wikispaces.com/Geometric+stairs http://year3shopfitting.wikispaces.com/Geometric+stairs Of course it is true to say that either type could have been made poorly and require maintenance, it is less likely that a common wood-butcher would attempt the second kind. Disclosure: I can use the term wood-butcher as in a former life I was qualified in that area!
- tenpies 9y ago> It can only be fixed by replacing the whole thing. Sounds like our electronics these days. We made progress, then completely un-made it.
- bradknowles 9y agoWhich is part of why deliveries of large pieces of furniture in France and Belgium is still done through the windows, and a portable exterior temporary elevator. They are usually mounted on small pickup trucks or on trailers towed by trucks. Absolutely terrifying — and fascinating — to watch being used. Nothing quite like a slightly hopped up version of a fireman’s ladder with hundreds or thousands of pounds of furniture one it. Or maybe just piled up with a bunch of random stuff that they don’t want to have to carry up or down stairs. Been there, done that. Examples: https://youtu.be/LQg8JCtNPtg https://youtu.be/LQg8JCtNPtg and https://youtu.be/lnF0ETvdTXc https://youtu.be/lnF0ETvdTXc
- buserror 9y agoMy brother is a companion stone carver. He's always there when there is an historical monuments to repair, as most insurance companies insists the work is done by them. he's full of cool stories, and taught me quite a few cool tricks, like how to 'listen' to wood when taping it with the handle of a screwdriver to 'hear' if it's still green and/or has faults/cracks.
- ruricolist 9y agoHow does the trick with the screwdriver work, exactly?
- ggg9990 9y agoWater content drastically changes the acoustic transmission properties of porous materials. A tap with a screwdriver is pretty close to a pure impulse, which means it contains all possible sound frequencies overlapped. By tapping wood, listening to it, and then cutting it open, you an learn a correlation between the sound and the water content of the wood and avoid cutting wood too early or too late.
- xattt 9y agoWhat is the recent trend of Atlas Obscura articles posted to HN? Do they have a new social media manager to drive traffic?
- DiabloD3 9y agoAtlas Obscura just happens to print a lot of interesting articles in the style of long-form journalism. Them and Nautilus get a lot of love from the HN community.
- dang 9y agoYou can always look at the 'from' link for a site (https://news.ycombinator.com/from?site=atlasobscura.com https://news.ycombinator.com/from?site=atlasobscura.com) and from there to the submission lists of submitters (click on username, then click on 'submitted'). Most of these ones are submitting from a wide range of sources, which is the desired behavior.
- UweSchmidt 9y agoWe need this for programmers.
- eps 9y agoI suspect OpenBSD devs run a form of companionship :)
- dave84 9y agoWe already do, a four degree and a final year project.
- UweSchmidt 9y agoThe equivalent of a miniature staircase, perfected and fascinating for all future generations would be what, in software? Few final year projects would fit that description. We have a hard time even imagining or, if it exists, celebrating those rare pieces of code.
- chrisseaton 9y ago> The equivalent of a miniature staircase, perfected and fascinating for all future generations would be what, in software? A perfectly written little compiler or interpreter, a little database? Something like that?
- saalweachter 9y agoIt needs to be something that non-practitioners can also appreciate.
- dave84 9y agoA perfect but quite useless miniature staircase. “How will it scale under a heavy load?” Sounds familiar. Maybe these staircases were just the highly polished crud web app of their time.
- GuB-42 9y ago
- eps 9y agoFascinating, but not a single photo of a staircase model from this or 20th century...
- outsideoflife 9y agoI guess that is partly because of changes in architectural tastes. Large staircases in grand houses are more as likely to be concrete or steel today. I suspect most woodworkers would never be asked to create something like that today, so perhaps there is no way to learn it?
- deleted 9y ago[deleted]
- GuB-42 9y agoMost compagnon masterworks are a show of skill rather than practicality. Staircases are typically chosen because they are a recognizable item and involve most of the techniques required to be a master craftsman. Compagnons in other professions don't have the luxury of having everyday objects that work well as a show of skill. Plumbers masterworks, for example, usually look like an intricate mess of pipes with no purpose. It doesn't speak much unless you know the trade. Another thing to realize is that compagnons are not any workers, they are masters. Maybe few people want grand wooden stairs today, but some people do, and compagnons are the ones who are getting the job.
- mitchdoogle 9y agoHere are some: https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18703491/ https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18703491/ https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18703497/ https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18703497/ https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18703509/ https://collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18703509/ https://www.1stdibs.com/furniture/more-furniture-collectibles/collectibles-curiosities/architectural-models/early-20th-c-signed-miniature-staircase-made-compagnon/id-f_593452/ https://www.1stdibs.com/furniture/more-furniture-collectible...
- bambax 9y ago> a Secret Society of French Woodworkers... One of my great grandfathers was a Compagnon (couvreur: slater). He made a table with a single piece of slate of 2m diameter and maybe 5cm thick, on top of a medieval column marquee (taken from a church that was being renovated). The table is in my garden, it's beautiful. As for the society, there has never been anything "secret" about it --- maybe some specific rituals, I'm not sure, but the fact of being a member is very public: it's actually the whole point.
- cmpb 9y agoThat's awesome! Do you have any pictures of the table/garden available online?
- ksenzee 9y agoThe definition of a secret society is that it keeps its initiation rites and other activities secret, not that it keeps its list of members secret. Membership in a secret society is often public information, and in this case, as you say, it's the whole point.
- jonbrady12 9y agoHaving visited France a few times I agree they are the best woodworkers in the world.
- eumenides1 9y ago“Glory be to Work and Scorn upon Idleness—Work and Honour, this is our wealth.” What a quote!
- khana 9y agoYes. And those stairs are exquisite.
- fotbr 9y agoI know it's in "flyover country" for most of you, but if you ever find yourself in Kansas City, the National Toy and Miniature Museum [0] has exhibit after exhibit of miniature woodworking (and miniature ceramics, and miniature metalworking and miniature textiles, etc) that is well worth the $5 entry fee. [0]http://www.toyandminiaturemuseum.org/ http://www.toyandminiaturemuseum.org/
- madcaptenor 9y agoIs there good barbecue nearby? (I'm only half joking.)
- bluGill 9y agoKansas City style barbecue is a thing for good reason. You will find plenty of good barbecue. Note that this is a style, if you are looking for a different style you will be disappointed.
- wmeredith 9y agoQ39 is a nine minute drive from there and it's arguably one of the top three barbecue joints in town at the moment–this is always a hotly contested topic locally, but I'll go to the mattresses for their burnt ends and/or smoked sausage[0]. The toy and miniature museum itself is right next to UMKC campus just south of The Country Club Plaza, making the plaza a ten-minute walk. Jack Stack BBQ is on the Plaza, while not the best in town it is quite good, probably top 10. It's more about the sides than the meat if that's your thing. Their cheesy corn bake and hickory pit beans are to die for. There's also about a fifty other shops, bars, and restaurants on the plaza, too. [0] No affiliation, just a fan.
- tumba 9y agoI would also highly recommend the Thorne Miniature Rooms at the Art Institute of Chicago. http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/thorne http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/thorne
- mcmatterson 9y agoThis reminds me a lot of the father in 'All the Light We Cannot See', building their neighbourhood in miniature for his blind daughter to learn from. As a novice woodworker and obsessive builder of all things small and useful, I find small scale construction like this fascinating. To have spent so much effort on something so devoid of practical use seems impossible for the era.
- nshm 9y agoI recommend to everyone tied of social networks and coding to try to build a wooden ship model. It takes about a man-month. This one is very detailed https://www.ebay.com/itm/Brigantine-Phoenix-1-72-wooden-kit-ship-model-Master-korabel-MK0401/222881849754 https://www.ebay.com/itm/Brigantine-Phoenix-1-72-wooden-kit-... and does not require any special skills.
- klenwell 9y agoFor those of us who are a little lazier or less meticulous but want to experience something like this, I recommend the Lego Architecture series. I enjoyed this one and it makes a nice little display piece for my home: https://shop.lego.com/en-US/Fallingwater-21005 https://shop.lego.com/en-US/Fallingwater-21005
- zokier 9y agoOn the other hand, if you want to sink endless hours to model building that is also possible in the other end of the spectrum. I find this video series quite inspirational, I hope one day if/when I retire I can do similar thing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8tSfy0KJks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8tSfy0KJks He also has another video on a smaller boat which bit less intimidating and actually makes this sort of modelbuilding to look almost feasible.
- chiph 9y agoThe American College of the Building Arts was founded with the Compagnon model in mind, and was mentioned in a linked article. They offer four-year liberal art degrees in Architectural Carpentry, Architectural Stone, Classical Architecture, Forged Architectural Ironwork, General Education, Masonry, Plasterwork, and Timber Framing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNqqomuL-64 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNqqomuL-64 http://americancollegeofthebuildingarts.com/ http://americancollegeofthebuildingarts.com/
- hristov 9y agoFor those of you in Los Angeles you can see some of those tiny staircases in the wonderful weird museum of jurassic technology. The tiny staircases are displayed on the wall of one of the museums actual staircases.
- nkrisc 9y agoIf you like this sort of thing and find yourself in Chicago, the Art Institute of Chicago has a room of 68 fully-furnished miniature rooms all in different period and architectural styles. They're pretty impressive and kids tend to love them also. http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/thorne http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/thorne
- lisper 9y agoWow, some of them even have tread wear patterns. Now that is some serious attention to detail!
- bostonpete 9y ago> Measuring only a few inches in height, they are self-supporting, graceful, and impossibly delicate. Every example shown in the article is 2.5-4 feet in height...
- DanBC 9y agoThe first is just 20 inches tall, which is less than 2 feet. The Second is a bit more than 11 inches tall. The fourth is less than 13 inches. The sixth is 19 inches. And the last is 17 inches. I agree this isn't "only a few inches in height", but most of them are less than 2 foot tall.
- jameshart 9y agoMissed opportunity to headline this 'l'esprit de l'escalier'
- oelmekki 9y agoActually, the world have inherited something well known from compagnons : the word "chef d'oeuvre". It's translated as "masterwork" in this article, but it's something a bit more specific for compagnons : any compagnon is supposed, at the end of their "compagnonage" (companionhood) to realize their chef-d'oeuvre, the piece that should be the best thing they'll ever do in their live and that will be used as a rite to end their education. It's their thesis, on some sort.
- ranit 9y agoTIL that chef-d'oeuvre has such origin. Thank you.
- TheMagicHorsey 9y agoThis is great. It perfectly fits the scale of the space that I can afford to buy in San Francisco. Now if I can just shrink my body we will be set.
- kwhitefoot 9y agoIt's a pity that the article didn't have pictures of more recent pieces.