framed with a full cruck Crucks were chiefly used in the
medieval period for structures such as houses and large
tithe barns, which were entirely timber-framed. They were also often used for the roofs of stone-walled buildings such as churches. However, these bent timbers were comparatively rare, as they were also in high demand for the shipbuilding industry. Where naturally curved timbers were convenient and available, carpenters continued to use them at much later dates. For instance, base crucks are found in the roofs of the residential range of
Staple Inn Buildings, Nos. 337 – 338,
High Holborn, London. This is dated by documented records to 1586, with significant alterations in 1886 (under
Alfred Waterhouse) and further restorations in 1936, and 1954–55. Despite these changes Cecil Hewett, an authority on English Historic Carpentry, has stated that these 16th-century crucks are original. The large main barn of the manor house
Barlow Woodseats Hall features what is claimed to be the longest continuously roofed cruck barn in
Derbyshire, and possibly even in the United Kingdom. An example of a
Yorkshire cruck barn complete with a heather-
thatched roof can be found in
Appletreewick. The crucks or cruck "blades" are a single oak tree riven (split) in two to form an equally shaped A frame. Rare examples of cruck framing are found on continental Europe such as in Belgium, Flanders, Northern France and the
Corrèze region of France. No cruck frames are known to have been built in North America though there are rare examples of what may be an upper cruck or knee rafters. ==History==