Architecture

The Dutch East India Company arrived at the Cape in 1652 with the express purpose of establishing a refreshment station at the Cape of Good Hope. Jan van Riebeek headed up the operation which was intended to provide passing European ships to the East with fresh water, food and general supplies. Naturally, architectural elements which were fashionable at the time in Holland and Europe were transported, and adapted to suit the Cape climate and terrain. Thus the Cape Dutch Homestead was born - an intriguing and visually stunning amalgamation of influences and adaptations, with a distinctive local character which has no identical anywhere in the world. In other words, these Cape Dutch Homesteads are unique to this specific area of South Africa.

Cape Town, was in the 1700s, a port of major significance in world trade, and was visited more often than most colonial towns by governors, commissioners, European aristocrats, and members of the professional classes (including surveyors and architects). The buildings of the Cape were thus fashioned in response to this status, and projected an image of prosperity. The magnificent Cape Dutch Homestead is an obvious result of this glorification.

What makes the Cape Dutch Homestead completely unique are the large rooms and the unusual shapes of the homesteads. The sheer size of the rooms can be directly related to the temperate climate; large rooms were cooler. It is also important to note that the early Dutch settlers, unused to such large plots of land (compared to an increasingly cramped Europe), made the most of the newly found space by building large houses. These houses were constructed in the form of a T-plan, U-plan or H-plan. Klippe Rivier is a classic example of the H-plan

Building at the Cape during the 1700s was a hazardous venture. Unreliable and dishonest contractors and antiquated estimating techniques, coupled with regular shortages of materials and skilled labour rendered the construction of any buildings a risky venture. It is indeed a miracle that we have such fine existent examples of Cape Dutch architecture.

The most impressive feature of the Cape Dutch Homestead is, undoubtedly, the ornamental gable. In the case of Klippe Rivier, the gable design is attribued to Louis-Michel Thibault, who studied at the l'Acedemie Royale d'Architecture in Paris, and is considered to be one of the foremost architects in the Cape in the late 1700s. It is generally accepted that the Cape gable was influenced by a similar design trend which was extremely prevalent in Flanders and Holland.

Klippe Rivier Homestead is a fine example of Cape Dutch Architecture, built circa 1820 to 1825 and is one of the white-walled beauties of the Cape. Dr. Mary Cook's view that Thibault probably designed the house is generally accepted. The land surveryor, Schutte (who did the original land survey for Marthinus Steijn) was in fact a partner of Thibault, and so there is a good case for the Thibault theory. Certainly for a strong Thibault influence, if Schutte had been the designer.

"The gable has got Thibault written all over it" she writes, and the clear, crisp architectural detail of the facade weighs the balance heavily in his favour, as also the small dentils (teeth) below the cornice. Another favourite is the shape of the pillars: outside Cape Town, not a single rounded pillar exists that Thibault did not design. However, the square capitals are discrepant and ugly, contrasting oddly with house's well defined mouldings, and certainly with all else Thibault built. If the Cape Dutch style can be likened to pastry, then Klippe Rivier is as light as pastry should be, but the pillar-tops are heavy and aesthetically indigestible. The insigificant cap of the end-gable, moreover, is quite out of keeping with authenticated work of the great Cape architect. Dr. Cook concludes: "There is ample stylistic evidence (which some regards as the strongest proof of all) that definitely the front gable and perhaps the house was based on a design of Louis Michel Thibault".

The thatched Cape Dutch homesteads were undoubtedly designed to last. The walls were built with layered clay or clay bricks - and these thick walls (often half a meter wide plastered and white washed), were designed to keep the houses cool in summer, and warm in winter. The floors in the Cape Dutch Homesteads were generally of polished wood, and Klippe Rivier itself retains the original yellowwood flooring and ceilings, which is quite unique. External doors were panelled in the best wood, as panelling was considered to be a sign of wealth and splendour. In the case of Klippe Rivier, the highest standards were realised, and indeed it later became the family home of past-Presidents Steyn and Reitz of the Free State Republic. The doors in the front rooms are stinkwood and yellowwood with a neat butterfly-joint inlay on the back of each door.

The typical outhouses for Cape Dutch homesteads were barns and stables, and in the case of Klippe Rivier, these have been converted into six luxury guest suites, preserving the ambience of a bygone era. The interiors of homesteads in the 1700s and 1800s were often sparse to the extreme, but the present owner of Klippe Rivier, Liz Westby-Nunn, has personally decorated the interiors with her impressive collection of Cape antiques, coupled with a fine selection of paintings. The interiors have a definite "English country house meets Africa" ambience which works beautifully with the stunning architecture of the homestead.