A mendeur is the large double door in the wall of a Dutch farmhouse or barn through which a loaded cart could be driven inside. The name comes from mennen: to drive a horse and cart. In other regions the same door is called a baander, deeldeur or darsdeur; mendeur is used mainly in Zeeland and parts of the eastern Netherlands. The English equivalent is the barn door or threshing barn door.
Size and construction
The dimensions were dictated by the high-loaded harvest cart:
- Height and width are usually in the region of 3 to 4 metres — for Zeeland barns, figures of roughly 3.5 by 3.6 m are commonly quoted
- The door is double-leaved, so each leaf stays manageable
- One leaf often contains a wicket door: a small pedestrian door so the main leaves can stay shut
- The other leaf sometimes has a small window to bring daylight onto the threshing floor
- Construction: vertical boards on a horizontal frame, ledged and braced, hung on heavy strap hinges
Use and maintenance
The mendeur gives access to the threshing floor, the central bay of the farmhouse where grain and hay were unloaded and threshed. When old farm buildings are converted, the mendeur usually remains the defining feature of the elevation; an insulated glazed screen is often set behind it so the external appearance survives.
Points to watch:
- Sagging is the most common defect; a diagonal brace or a tension rod within the leaf prevents it
- Check the hinges and pintles for wear and rust, and grease them
- The bottom edge rots first: keep it clear of the ground and seal the end grain properly
Related terms
- Barn door
- Threshing floor
- Barn
- Strap hinge
- Aisled house
- Conversion
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