Malvaglia house

Previous Next

(Ballenberg) Ballenberg

Dates and religious signs are inscribed above the doors. The latter and the proximity of the house to a church suggest that it could have formerly been a priest's house. (swissinfo, Dale Bechtel) dale bechtel

The wood was fed into the stove from the outside. (Ballenberg) Ballenberg

The stove as seen from the inside. (Ballenberg) Ballenberg

The main living area (Ballenberg) Ballenberg

The house inhabitants were self-sufficient, often making all of their own clothes. (Ballenberg) Ballenberg

Food was cooked over an open fire, without the benefit of a chimney to draw the smoke out of the house. (Ballenberg) Ballenberg

(Ballenberg) Ballenberg

(Ballenberg) Ballenberg

Clothes were scrubbed clean on this board, but bars of soap were not necessarily available to 19th century rural families. (Ballenberg) Ballenberg

Sleds were used both in summer and winter to bring hay and other produce down from the steep alpine fields. (Ballenberg) Ballenberg

The slate roof, as seen from the inside. (swissinfo, Dale Bechtel) swissinfo.ch

• Picture 1
• Picture 2
• Picture 3
• Picture 4
• Picture 5
• Picture 6
• Picture 7
• Picture 8
• Picture 9
• Picture 10
• Picture 11
• Picture 12

The house dates back to the early 16th century.

The Casa San Carlo owes its name to a legend that tells how the counter-reformation Cardinal Carlo Borromeo spent the night here. A second full storey was added in 1564. A notable detail of the living quarters floor is an open vestibule with an opening for tending the stone-heating stove.