Hamous farm
If you’re interested in going back 150 years and discovering how the simple Czech people lived in the countryside back then, be sure to visit the Hamous farm, located in the village square of the picturesque village of Zbečno. This was once the princely centre of the Křivoklát forests before the Křivoklát Castle, seven kilometres away, took over this role.
The timber used in the construction shows that a timbered farmhouse stood here as early as the end of the 16th century, while the youngest roof is from the late 18th century. Therefore, this set of farm buildings is a valuable example of folk architecture of richer estates in Central Bohemia.
The farmhouse was inhabited until 1992, when it was bought by the Central Bohemia Heritage Institution. The last owners of the farmhouse, František Kučera and Václav Barchánek, are to be thanked for not taking any insensitive modernising steps on the farmhouse, as was common on other farms and estates in the village. Subsequently, it was possible to build an exhibition here, which presents life and traditions in Czech history in a unique way.
At first glance, the terraced residential house doesn’t look special. As you walk in, a built-in black kitchen with a bread oven catches your eye in the entrance hall. To the right is the entrance to the housekeeper’s large living room and from there to a small room, the housekeeper’s kitchen. However, the hall’s dominant feature is the left part, where there are two chambers above each other, which were used to store part of the harvest, harnesses or tools, and even as a summer room for the coachman to sleep. Below the chambers are two small vaulted cellars, and the wooden ramp behind the chambers leads to the old farmer’s changing room with a small kitchen.
The Hamous farm offers examples of contemporary housing, farming, folk crafts and daily customs in an open-air exhibition. The homestead is open during the tourist season and on Saturdays the tour includes a bread baking demonstration in the black kitchen.
