Maniitsup Katersugaasivia / Maniitsoq Museum
Illunnguit 11
3912 Maniitsoq
Kalaallit Nunaat / Grønland
Colonial office building B-16
Year of construction: 1844.
B-16 is a type of building called a “stokværkshus,” which in essence is made of horizontally stacked massive logs, cut to fit together in a way that makes the building waterproof and well insulated. Originally the logs and materials were built by carpenters in a Copenhagen timber yard and later shipped to Greenland to be assembled as a kit in Maniitsoq in the year 1846. In 1847, use of the “stokværkshus” method ceased and was replaced by another type of construction, namely half-timbered frame houses with wooden board facades.
The local nickname of B-16 is “Pandekagehuset,” or “The Pancake House,” most likely because of the unusual construction consisting of massive hewn pine logs.
The B-16 building served as both housing for the clerk and as an office. In colonial times, it functioned as an office for the Royal Greenland Trading Company (KGH).
Year of reconstruction: 1975.
Year of preservation listing: 1982.