Scheunenviertel Schlüsselburg

Twenty-six barns stand packed together in Schlüsselburg, a district of Petershagen in northwestern Germany. They make up the Scheunenviertel Schlüsselburg, a barn quarter dating to the seventeenth century. Each barn follows the traditional two-post framework style, which lets a wagon drive straight through along its full length.

The site answers two threats from the Thirty Years' War: floods and fires. Fires spread fast among the densely built houses, so the villagers kept their winter supplies outside the village itself. Floods get their own answer: all twenty-six stand on a rise of high ground called the Humbke. Height against the water, distance against the flames: the layout still shows its reasoning.

Most of the barns remain in private hands and serve a mix of purposes. One restored barn works as an information centre you can walk into. Inside, the Dat Schünenviertel association presents the quarter's history and its own activities.