Shaker Windows

Here is yet another contribution to the growing number of window blogs. Windows seem to be a popular subject for folks who tend to walk around carrying a camera. We were at Pleasant Hill Shaker Village again over the weekend and I began noticing the variety of windows the Shakers had put into their buildings.  Since they were all done in the first half of the nineteenth century, they tend toward multiple panes held together by muntins. The double hung window above is referred to as a "6 over 6" or 6/6.

A 9/9 window.

And a 12/12 window. But windows don't have to be symmetrical.

There were 6/3's,

and 9/6's,

with different combinations on the same building.

The newest building, the 1839 Trustees' Office, even has fancy sidelights on in the windows. Architect/builder Micajah Burnett put everything he had into this building, including the famous spiral staircases seen here.

Even the small windows to let light into basements had variety.

And then there were doors. But that's for another day.

Nautilus in wood

I previously posted a picture of this stair from a different angle. This view has always appealed to me, as well, although it presents several challenges in photographing it. Kentucky photographer James Archambeault got excellent results by placing remote flash units on each floor. And to think that there are two of these stairs, on opposite sides of the central hallway, rising three floors. Designed and built by Shaker Micajah Burnett, the stairs never fail to impress, even after more than 200 years.