Page 46 - Bulletin 21

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wealth of historical old buildings and national monuments was most worthwhile. Spending

hours at Groot Constantia with a note book, camera, pencil and, most importantly, a tape
measure proved invaluable.

Knowing that Wieser had owned both Groot Constantia and Poespaskraal, we felt sure we’d
find connections and clues between the two properties and we did. Especially the wooden

support beams of the ceilings. The support beams in the old homestead must have been the

left-overs from Groote Constantia and the carpentry work could well have been done by the
same family of carpenters. The same finishes were clearly evident in much of the woodwork.

On examination of the variety of beams used, many of them from ships, and the odd
assortment of other features in the house, we came to the conclusion that this was possibly

how Poespaskraal got its name – hotch potch place – a bit of this – a bit of that.

Our aim was to renovate in such a way as to restore the Old homestead to its former glory.
Special care was taken to do the renovation as authentically as possible, to restore rather than

to replace, and to allow the house to still feel and look its age.

Thatching

We began with thatching. This way the roof would protect the renovations from the wet Cape

winter. Three generations of the Braaf family have thatched this roof. Old Mr. Braaf worked

with my grandmother, Ermin. Mr. Braaf with my mother, Thelma. Oscar, his son, with me.
Both families hold this proud tradition dear. (Figs. 2.15 – 2.17.)

Gable

The gable, being one of the most important visual features and identifying characteristics of

old Cape Dutch Homesteads, was a priority.

We were told that in the late 1930s the original gable had been struck by lightning and begun
to crumble, so to fulfil my grandmother’s wishes, the original gable was replaced with

something fancier. It was at this time that the brandsolder above the kitchen was also

removed. During our 1987/88 renovations we decided to return the gable to what we thought
was the original design. (Figs. 2.18 – 2.21.)