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Technology and Symbolism | Culture and Architecture
Culture and Architecture
Indah Widiastuti
5. Technology and Symbolism
Posted: July 6, 2010 | Author: Antropology and Architecture | Filed under: Syllabus‑ AD065
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Phenomenon
In 19th century, British scholars used to think that the usage of high‑pile building in Borneo would vanish when
the surrounding environment was ge ing safer, while assuming that the usage is due to need of protection
against animal. At that time Borneo is a practical jungle, and people (which is called tribal people) built
their architecture in piled building. However the local people never altered the piled building into
more modern building yet the environment were safer. High‑pile building would only vanished when
the whole set of social organization was damaged, because safety was not the only factors of the
dwelling culture.
House : “intersection of the Visible and Invisible (Daniel Couland, 1982)
Although climate, geography or materials only dictate the structural solution and expression, the rational
explanations for this is habitual activities and Historical continuity of the living culture.
Strong Continuity of characters in South Asian Architecture:
1. Courtyard house
Strong Continuity of characters in Southeast Asian Architecture (the Austronesian world):
1. Piled‑building
2. roof form that also appear as symbol maker
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General Illustration of Southeast Asian Architectural Structure
Example of Relation of roof‑body:
1. The House of Minangkabau people (Rumah Gadang= big house), is the case where roof structure is
separated from body, therefore it was stated that “roof sit on body” (the same case in Java, Toraja
and Kerala).
2. The House of Batak Toba (Jabu) is the case where roof has no truss, therefore can be used as space‑
roof‑space
3. The House of Sa’dan Toraja (Tongkonan=roof sit on body): dramatically extended eaves are built out of
by means of cantilevered frame
Sometime a feature of construction which result from technological consideration maybe exploited to
symbolic effect
Traditional building of Southeast Asia shares one characteristic:
1. variety of techniques of joining and mortising, sometime reinforced by pegging, wedging or
binding,
2. sometime they are lashed, bound, rather than joined, using ra an, strips of bamboo, or fiber (used
particularly in roof construction)
3. wall is not important. If appear they rarely load‑bearing, but consisted rather prefabricated screen.
4. Material: teak, ironwood, bamboo, palm, nipah, sago, thatch
5. No truss in roof therefore enable of usage space as storage.
6. Seismic activity created mode of “jointed wooden structure” (peg is made smaller for its hole)
7. Hot, humid character necessitate openings under roofs and sla ed roof
8. Porosity enables:
Smokes mosquitoes. high pile is also to avoid mosquito
fumigating the hatch
Case of Rumo in Aceh ~ movable structure
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Aceh House
Case of Omo in Nias ~ X‑braced pile (see upper picture)
Three Type of Structure
Most building can be described as variants of a post‑and beam system of construction.
(a) post run through the building
(b) post topped by heavy ring beam
(c) separation roof structure and floor
I. The Symbolic Aspect of building elements
Symbol: signage system used to represent something whose meaning is conventional and contextual. It
is manifested by means of myth, folklore and also house‑form.
Example
Roof as Crown: Image of Roof as Holly Space (Generally Southeast Asian house)
In Polynesia, there are two kinds of ridge : sun cranium fuf manas (sun cranium), fire cranium, diikat
masuak
The myth of buffalo horn for bent roo in all Southeast Asian Houses (Rumah Gadang)
Image of Tripartite World in division of roof‑body‑pile structure(Generally Southeast Asian house)
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Image of Tripartite World in division of roof‑body‑pile structure(Generally Southeast Asian house)
In Thai, Malay, Aceh effort to avoid accumulation of joinery consequently made floor were stratified.
It was finally associated with class
In Sumba part of house frame is called after human bone
In Rg Veda part of house frame is called after tree
Mortise‑joist is associated with aspects of female‑male
Toraja: about main post (ariri posi) they regard female post and male post
The Typo‑morphological Aspect of structures
A technology of House can be developed by simpler domestic structure, such as:
1. Expansion of granary Structure, (Philipine, Batak Toba Kerala)
2. Metaphor of boat element and structure (Batak Karo, Polynesia, Toraja)
References:
Waterson, Roxana, 1990. The Living House – Anthropology of Architecture in Southeast Asia, Singpore:
Oxford University Press
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