POARTA – ELEMENT AL ARHITECTURII VERNACULARE BĂNĂŢENE
THE GATE – AN ELEMENT OF THE VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE IN BANAT

Summary/Abstract: Gates are an important part of the architectural heritage, with a well‑defined role of protection, but which has also been invested with a symbolic charge that should not be neglected. They are a place for discussions with neighbours, a place to meet and part with loved ones at inevitable moments in human life. They are the ones that are sometimes shared with the home. From simple shapes, made from the most accessible materials, to beautifully ornamented ones, solid, brightly colored doors, in harmony with the living space, the gates are elements that contribute to the cultural and social definition of a family and even a community. The gate is an element of private space, but one that facilitates communication and interaction with the rest of the community. The gate and the fence not only delimit two worlds, two types of property, the private and the public, but makes it possible to find a fairly small space (the width of the gate or fence is only a few tens of centimeters) in which the two interact. In the plain villages of Banat, most of the gates and fences are made of tin or iron, but especially in the parts of the villages with a German population we can also find fences and gateposts made of masonry. These are beautifully ornamented and adorned with symbolic elements, generally the tree of life and its derivatives, or other vegetal or animal motifs alongside the geometric ones. The gates and fences that delimit and protect the property and the family in Becicherecul Mic are as old as the house, most of them date from the first half of the 20th century, and some of the owners have taken care of them and repaired them and preserved as close as possible to their original form.

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