In the buildings of the 13th-14th centuries, several generations lived under the same roof.
The buildings all had a single central hall that allowed access to the other rooms in such a way as to allow easy control of the house.
On the ground floor the floors were paved or paved, while the upper floor consisted of wooden floors where mats or carpets were spread as appropriate. The ceilings were rafters, sometimes decorated with painted geometric motifs, but more often painted dark.
Often along the walls, just below the ceiling, there were paintings or decorative motifs, lower down small hooks to hang from them. some tapestries or tapestries. Between one room and the other there were sturdy doors equipped with latches and bolts.
Sturdy wooden shutters protected the building from the external elements and the windows were often covered with "panes", ie cloths of canvas soaked in oil or coated with wax (the use of glass began only later, starting from the fifteenth century).
The homes of the less well-off were little more than a cramped shelter where they slept, ate and kept their meager possessions, characterized by the absence of differentiated spaces.
In the city as in the countryside, the furniture was always the same :the bed (for those who could afford it), a chest to store linen and clothing, the table, the cupboard, some inevitable container for cereals or wine.
Occasionally, in the more modest homes we also find spinning wheels or looms .
It goes without saying that these, of all the houses in the Middle Ages, were the poorest.
They were made of wood with a thatched roof and built directly on the manso, that is, on the plot of land that the peasant family he had to work.
These houses too, like the castle, after the 10th century underwent changes: the peasants, in fact, moved to the castle walls where they could also take refuge in case of external attacks.
Particularly felt was the problem of the security of the house which was protected with solid bars on the windows and with doors made of vertical boards nailed to other horizontal ones, to provide a solid resistance, made even more solid with sturdy locks and irons.
Al on the ground floor, in addition to shops, there was often a cellar, a well, a courtyard or a room.
Braziers, warmers and fireplaces made some rooms suitable for defeating the rigors of winter, while lights and candles made it possible to light up one or more rooms.
In any building, whether stately or modest, wood played a fundamental role in the stairs, balconies, attics and partitions.
The chronicles frequently recall the destruction of buildings devoured by fire, which also involved numerous neighboring houses or entire districts.
The means of lighting consisted of oil lamps, oil lamps with one flame, wax candles or , in the poorest homes, simply by the glow of the flame of the hearth.
In 13th-14th century houses, the bedroom was the main room .
Much of the medieval day was held here, welcoming guests, working or chatting with friends. The bed was made up of a wooden frame with the headboards of equal height and inserted on a dais that raised it from the floor, where drawers were usually inserted to store linen and fabrics:it was often also separated from the rest of the room. by a curtain woven on a loom.
At the foot of the bed there was a chest that was used both for storing clothes and as a seat (the wardrobes became part of the home furnishings only in the Late Middle Ages), while the jewels, money and important documents were kept in well-fitted boxes, hidden under the bed.
These were generally very large beds as more people slept in them (even two and a half or three meters wide ).
The wealthy notables and nobles used sheets and pillowcases, quilted or fur-lined blankets and embroidered or precious cloth covers. The poor man's bed was much more modest. They were satisfied with four boards on two trestles and a sack filled with straw, covering themselves as best they could with rags and the cloak they wore during the day.
The medieval nobility did not allocate great resources to furnishing their homes.
Only in the fourteenth century did the residences of nobles and merchants become the object of greater attention.
The premises multiplied and specialized, making single rooms more frequent.
The houses began to be furnished with simple and rustic furniture:chests for storing linen and clothing, jugs, various tools and utensils in wood, metal, terracotta or fabric for drawing, pouring, cooking, embellishing, cleaning, praying, sleeping, weaving, sewing and working.
A typical expression of these trends were the palaces of Italian cities, conceived both as spaces in which to bring together the whole social life of the family, and as a manifestation of wealth and power.