“That’s a really pretty hórreo!”
“Well…it has some nice aspects to it…”
“Maybe you could paint it.”
My neighbor’s evaluation diminished as the two of us walked toward the stone shed on stilts. But she was kind enough to put a nice spin on things.
The shed under scrutiny stands about four feet off the ground on stone pillars. Similar stone columns hold up the roof and provide the main support for the structure. The walls are composed of cement and brick. The roof is tiled with terracota. The steps are leftover stone columns left in a pile.
It isn’t a pretty thing, but what it lacks in beauty it makes up for in…strangeness. So, I guess it has that going for it.
Here in Galicia it was estimated that there were roughly 30,000 of these structures at the beginning of the 20th century.1 That works out to be about 2.5 for every square mile. Hórreos (pronounced like the chocolate cookie, Oreo, just with the “e” being an “a” sound. O-ray-o) are common here in Galicia. You can find a smattering of them in other parts of Spain, but by far they are most likely to be seen here in the northwest corner of the country.
Their history goes back to the 15th century where they were used like grain silos. The animal feed, produce, or other food was kept off the ground and away from wild animals. The walls are slatted so the air can pass through, discouraging mold in the wet climate. Today their use seems to be more nostalgic than agrarian. People like having them because of the memories they hold, not the rotting apples.
We have one in our yard that the kids are now using for their club house.
I am maintaining the dream of converting it into a sauna some day.
Either way, my opinion is that when it comes to hórreos, like the Oreo cookie, it doesn’t matter what the outside looks like. I am there for the inside.
Photo of an hórreo in our village, without the high level of “character” that ours possesses.