In 1420, the Rhine boatsman Ackermann
made a house for himself here - of which
only the lower storey made of stone still
exists today.
The half-timbered upper stories were built
in the 16th century. For many years
the house was owned by the family of the
Knight of the Empire Franz von Sickingen -
which is how it came by its name.
Haus Sickingen was built in the old
"Ständerbau" style with post and beam
construction: The vertical beams are each
made out of one single tree trunk.
Notches were carved into these trunks, and
the horizontal beams were laid into these
notches. As this style of construction
was not stable, architects of the day
came up with the "Rähmbau" style
(header/joist construction).
In this style of construction, the horizontal
beams which ran all the way through were
joined using short, vertical beams.
This difference makes it quite easy
to spot the older houses.

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