The Dovecote

People have raised pigeons for thousands of years as a complement to their diet -they provided cheap meat in the difficult winters. They became very popular in England and France in the 16th Century, and became a symbol of status (commoners were not allowed to raise pigeons). They grew larger and more profusely decorated as the nobles showed off their wealth. With the relaxing of feudal society, their popularity grew in the 17th Century among all social strata, and tens of thousands were built across both shores of the English Channel.

My version is rather modest to keep within the piece count, but I tried to decorate it as much as possible. The minifigure contributes to give it a medieval flair, but the structure would fit almost anywhere. Though small, the extra half stud of the corner arch makes it a challenge -the base must have an odd number of studs. Thus the 7x5 roof was quite tricky; I built it upside down based on the 3x1 and 2x1 inverted slopes. Is this a new technique? :)