[tictoc]

Half-timbered house, wood-frame construction. Wall fillings are a mixture of straw, clay and willow branches. Built in 1321.

Why has this one lasted so long? Possibly because the straw was never exposed to weather; clay is an excellent regulator of humidity. I am not an expert. Apparently, though, clay and straw can be very good building materíals when you know what you are doing.

[Aliska]

can be very good building materíals when you know what you are doing.

Neat. I don't know how English humidity compares with that in the US. Minneapolis area gets some but not as bad as further south.

An interesting concept. Possibly it could be researched and optimized rather than being relegated to the loony bin.

I love that house!

P.S. I remember reading about people building these houses in the southwest in "Mother Earth News".

[Kevin Curry]

The thatch on the roofs of old English cottages is made of straw (or a variety of reed) that is constantly exposed to the weather. That is its very purpose. Granted, a roof must be rethatched every so many years. Still, it proves straw can hold up to water.