History of " A Casa da Moita"

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After the death of the grandparents, Augusto Dias and later  Maria Augusta Dias preserved for a number of years the inheritance.

In 2003, four grandchildren, after bequeathing the part of the Mother, Maria Alzira Dias, decided to associate and

property to the remaining heirs, with the aim of to preserve this heritage in the family.

The estate is composed of lands (pine forests, marshes and fruit trees), the family home, the last residence of the grandparents and a ruin that would have been a blacksmith's workshop and that lately was known by the name of "Barracão da Moita" and served as a chicken coop . After a reconstruction, this ruin is now the "CASA DA MOITA".

The initial ruin (photos included in Photogallery) built of local shale stone laid with clay mortar was supported by a rock visible at the entrance of the house, the exterior reading of which allowed the natural extension to the interior of the house to be foreseen.

Two of the four walls of the house had been dug into the rock, giving the whole a certain originality and perfect integration into the environment. The cover was of large format slabs, seated on dry beams and rafters in chestnut wood. The outer stone walls were not plastered and the floor was ground level and slightly sloping. The wooden windows of chestnut or pine, taller than wide, with two wings and three windows per stop, divided by pinazios, the lintels in chestnut wood, shoulders built stone by stone and slates in shale.

Part of the roof, beams and rafters, were propped up here and there to support the whole. One of the stone walls showed a belly announcing the winters spent in the rain, the two walls on the rock gave evidence of their initial strength ...

At the initiative of the Pampilhosa da Serra Chamber and with the support of the European Community, we were then aware of the Schist Villages Network Funding Program. We present our application that was accepted by the Chamber.

What to do ???

Involved in this story, from a village to which our grandfather Augusto Dias dedicated time and civic work as president of the Junta de Freguesia, in the 30's, a village that saw generations of family members, where kids played the ball, the blind goat, a week, or the scarf in the church square or when far from the earth we dreamed of it.

This ruin had too strong an emotional significance, and deserved to be treated with respect, love, and dedication.

This is how we decided to design a project of architecture that contemplated all these promises and requirements:

• denature as little as possible the memory of the initial construction,

• use the same maintenance for restoration, shale stones, slabs in cover ...

• avoiding aluminum and plastics,

• maintain the balance of existing volumes and spans,

• preserve the external reading and extension to the interior of the natural rock,

• make a slight increase in order to make better use of the interior and organize an exterior volume more compatible with the house of the neighbor, giving the entrance of the village a more coherent aspect with the work developed by the House.

• at the same time it was current, and therefore it respected the new requirements in terms of habitability and comfort, open spaces, luminosity in the interior, sanitary conditions and culinary possibilities.

The rebuilt walls were made of local stone, double wall with internal insulation. The floor was insulated to ensure better thermal comfort and covered with tiled floor. The structure of the roof is of wood and the cover is made in blackboard and insulated by the interior. The existing rock in the interior was preserved, based on the important mass it represents in terms of storage and restitution of heat and cold and thus contributed to a natural balance of heating and freshness of the house.

Given the small area we had, the distribution of spaces was studied in order to reduce circulations. The Living Room is open to the Contemporary Drawing Fireplace which, in turn, lies against the inner rock. The kitchen with stove, hob, fridge and storage room is open to the living room. The bathroom with shower and washbasin leaning against the rock has heating, hot and cold water and natural ventilation. The Toilet is independent. A ladder outside the norm! .... narrow and with high steps, using a reduced space, which allows access to the upper floor and to the Bedroom.

The rehabilitation of the ruin was made during the year 2004. "Casa da Moita" is now a reality that awaits you. For we forgot to add that we will continue to restore family assets and that we decided to rent "Casa da Moita", so that it contributes to the jobs that await us.

The Family of Fajão

Great grandparents

Manuel Bento and Maria Fernandes

The Great-grandparents:

José Dias and Maria Augusta * 187

José Augusto Fernandes * 1876 and Maria Trindade * 187_

Fajão's grandparents:

Augusto Dias * 1898 and Maria Augusta Dias * 1901

The parents:

Manuel dos Anjos Branco * 1922 and Maria Alzira Dias * 1923

The children:

Marília Dias Branco Domingos *1944
Manuel Armindo Dias Branco *1946
Maria Alice Dias Branco Bento *1948
Maia Alzira Dias Branco A Bogas *1950
Duarte Dias Branco *1957