Kath-khuni architecture of Himachal Pradesh: timeless way of buildingWhen we say Indigenous architecture, what do we mean? Dwellings and structures that have responded to the topography and local climate of the region They have been built using locally available resources They have emerged out of hard necessities of the place and the lifestyle They are built by user themselves without professional architects They represent a far less degree of specialization They are dwellings that are a product of traditional customs and practicesFactors influencing vernacular architecture are Topography Climate ‘Materials and Resources Users and lifestyle Construction Technology Culture and Traditions= Himalayan mountain stretches from ineia, Nepal, Bhutan, China, Agharistan and Pakistan. Length of Himalayas is 2500 km from east to west. Average altitude is 4000 meters.Himachal Pradesh land and PeoplePhysical landscape of Himachal Pradesh “The land of Himachal Pradesh ries rom the plains at an alttude from 350 meters mean sea level onthe southwest to analtitue of 6816 meters in te east towards the Tibetan platenSeismic Zone ‘According to the Global Seismic Hazard Assesment Program (GSHAP) data, Himalayan region falls in a region of high to vory high seismic hazard rated as Zone 1V and V. From the low-lying plans along the south-west to the ‘mountains along the north-east, the change in altitude isa result of upward thrust cause by grinding and calsion ofthe Indian and Euresian plates. This dit continues cousing Himalayas to rise accompanied by seismic activites.cme sive | musian | anne | a Typeet | vterren | Mint | pine | ust suena! | sgh ern | terms | exec Climate ‘There isa huge variation inthe climatic conditions of Himachal Pradesh du to variation in alttude (250-6500 ints}. The climate varies from hot and sut-humid tropical (450-800 metres) inthe southern low tracts, warm and ‘temperate (500-1800 mis), cool and temperate (1900-2400 mts) and cold glacial and alpine (2400-4800 mts) in the northern and eastern high elevated mountain ranges.Forest and farming 64% of land area i covered with forest in imachal Prades, Secause ofthe existence ofthete forests, the most predominant material of construction : wood. Prmary rooted ina difiult andscape he Ifstle anc economy revolves around farmingCedars of western Himalves Stones hauled rom the quafes Slate stones Materials ‘The primary materials of construction here are wood and stone. Among variety of trees, deodar and kal are best sulted for construction,Glimpse of socio-cultural landscape Nearly 90% ofthe population in Himachal Pradesh spread in thinly in smallvilage. The rural population hat travonally depended upon agricuure andl anal husbandry as prime economc actives. The patterns of but forms andsettlements aso reflect centrality ofthese actitesArtisanal activities Relative iolation , combined with harsh climate, and being cutoff inthe hils, appear to have encouraged artisanal actos such as wood carving, weaving, embroldery, brass work ete. witha very refined aestheticohare: Maskasan object, oF worship, Pad Land of Gods: Socio-religious traditions Itisne wonder that every hamlet and village inthe mountain- no matter how small t may be, worships ane or ‘more devatas. This perhaps the reason why temples occupy site that are experiential highly chargedSettlement patterns- Typical village along stepped contours Temple is tthe heart of mos settlements and usualy ed at he highest spot, The surrounding areas of the temple mainly Used during fetal and religous gatherings by te inhabitants of the partsar vilageSettlement patterns ‘The tadtional ettiemente appear to have the ‘olor ofthe land’ and appear just ight, slmost ecologically planned. The landscape, materials, techniques of making, al contabute toa common formal arguage of Ssetlements in Himachal PradeshSettlement patterns Typeally located along the contoured sunny dope amidst the backdrop of hile and snowclad mountains and ‘appear to organically grow out ofthe fold of the landscape.Kath-khuni ‘An empirical building technique of Himachal Pradesh.Examples of kath-khuni houses ‘Atypical house in Himachal Pradesh is built using kath-khuni construction technique and is usvally two or three ‘storey high. The lower floor is forthe cattle and the upper floors are for residing, storing, and litehenExamples of kath-khuni temples ‘The ayered treatment ithe same a that ins house but they often appear as stanclike sentinels inthe landscape, ‘The temples may re much higher froma single trey toa tower wth seven storey.Other Kath-khuni buildings ‘The darbargadh builtin Kath-khunihas very iferent proportioning system. However the method of construction, remain mostly similar in each case,Wooden Poors Wood a stone walle stone we a Typical components of a kath-khuni building It shows atypical house, with quashola atthe bottom, and ving ares onthe top capped off by» pent-and-gable roof temple feature similar elements but aferent proportions.1, Foundation and plinth ‘tone plinth filed upto a meter from the ground level and higher incase of tower temples. The depth ofthe ‘wench iselatve fo the height ofthe structure Fora two storey house, the depths 06 0 1 meter and incase of tower temple it may beas deep as 3 meter2, Wall (Wood-and-stone walls) ‘The wall are constructed with alternate courses of dry masonry and wood without any cementing mortar.Courses,3,5 Wall courses ‘This type of wall construction involves laying two wooden wall beams longitudinally parallel to each other witha 2p in-between, The space between the two members i Filed with rubble stone and edge is secured with kad (wooden nail)Typical Kath-khuni wall junction Deal showing layering of wood and stone including a truncated pyramid shaped comer stone to protect the wood‘wo paral crossbesine eld togstherby 2 Carpenter fing awooden opin the wall Aovetaed member construction in Devihar Wall construction Dry maronry wood.and:stone wall ofa temple construction in DavidharWall punctures Windows are provided in wals with sald plankshuttrs onal four sides and ae usualy very small. The same window has rhythmic eral earings onthe outer face with a small opening,(Wooden se boar ‘Wall storage units Atypical wall storage untied nthe peripheral all and lushes within the wal thickness.‘Wall storage units ‘The inbuilt wall storage was an integral part ofthe wal‘agonal braces contievered Ss =} ty Tah an a 3, Projecting wooden balconies ‘Atypical two storey house with a cantevered balcony onthe tp ioe The wooden members supporting the balcony reston the wal3. Projecting wooden balcony [lithe vertical post are connected through ahorizontal member ontop on which si the perpendicular members {comected with lp jon) projecting from aval| SE EDEN 3. Projecting wooden balconies ‘Sometimes the baleany fopade is open witha parapet or may be closed but wth a series of openings to catchall ‘the possible warmth ofthe sun.j wht Mes es ” The von crs a shed in wood and Cittemmdeinthe cling ta connect the fst floor andthe secon floors ern. 4, Floor and stairs ‘The ground floor is raised above the stone plinth and fnished with adobe. Ifunctions as an insulating layer and at ‘the same time remains warmer than stone finished surface,Maanvi oxen oor plants Wall and Floor ‘The floor beams are shear pinned with the walllogs5. Roof ‘The roof structure is constructed aut of wooden beams followed by purlins and raters, topped with late or wooden shingles.Dass rs ‘late stones 5. Roof ‘The slate stones alzo weighs down the structure against strong wind.Wal construction and door frame ‘Wot constuction with ble Construction sequence of a typical kath-khuni houseState tones at on the rootNYY Pay QE yy Y Ne ki ‘The structure contains two storey with tw houses side by sid. Top level are th living areas and kitchen. The lowest area is used asthe gaushaleA Timeless way of building?No external help required Lacals can construct their own houses Time and resource efficiency \Wood and Stone are used asan alternative against slow seting morta. Al materials are available in the vicinity ofthe village Low maintenance Requires very ow etfortto ‘maintain and repair Structural resilience Non rigi construction helps to dissipate the stresses developed in the earthquake.Resource re-use ‘There is hardly any wastage and since materials don’t, ‘deteriorate for along time ‘and can be reused, Bio degradable materials No synthetic material are used o fating materials like mortar are used. Very limited use of meta is seen. Built form and climate Infil raps air within the walls creating an insulationEnergy efficient configuration and elements cuboidal stacking along contours, fetching ‘maximum sunlight. Slope ofthe roof allows ‘now tofall ff whereas the flater part holds some snow which acts asa inulation layer Cattle are kept at the ground flor which keeps the upper floors warmRelated building practices Uttarakhand, Ladakh, Sikkim, Bhutan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkey, Germany, France,Map of the silk route “he Sik Roadie a historically important international trade route between China andthe Mesiterranean ‘The present day Hindustan Tibet road that passes trough Himachal Prades flows an old rade route that branched from the famous Sk oute int IndiaMap of the silk route ‘As people and goods moved across the routes, knowlege about building techniques probably moved with ther, ‘which helps the mary related! buleirg techniques fund troughout tis landscape, Kath-hun construction technique is complementary to many other techniques that ae found throughout the Himalayan settiement“The typical ladder bands of timber runners and crosspieces embedded in masonry wall in traditional tag construction at floor level and atthe window lintel levels Taq construction in Kashmirt One a the most impressive tucttesusing Shatar fenstrucion the Bae fort Hunca vally dating back some 80 yes go, Bhatar construction in Pakistan hata 3 pashtoo word for beam. Wood i the main structural member and the craspieces tying the parallel ‘wooden beams shows the characterise Bhatar construction,Koti-banal, row houses in Kumaon People of the same caste or family come to live together and form linear settlements made out of ‘wood and stone, plastered with mud and slate roof on top. This sa very common typology of buiding.Dhajji-dewari model with diagonal bracing ‘hai dewort tackle shear forces duet their tense nature a wel asthe way the bracing pattern is made‘Himis’ construction system in Turkey: A house in Safranbolu, ‘The sik route passed through ths region which may explain dfuson of ideas fom distant regions in maloca architectural radon along the trade route,Settlement in Safranbolu, Turkey In‘ractional contruction af Turkeh houtes the space of wall framing was fille with various materiale which ‘was obtained from a the region special ble, sone, abode ana tmber were preferred material for he inf‘Half timbered’ in Britain, ‘Fachwerk’ in Germany and ‘Columbage’ in France ‘There are many variations af this construction technique in diferent parts of the world with regional diferences In rationale fr adaptation and the way itis constructedTraditional knowledge and skills Sometimes ies arise due to shared histories and at other time they arise as pragmatic responses to similar needs even if societies may be separated in terms of time, space and technologies.