HOA 104

MSEUF
COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE & FINE ARTS
1ST SEMESTER 2022

BY: AR. JFPUERTOLLANO

History of Architecture 4 – HOA 104
Reflection on Architecture in the Philippines

Course Outcomes:

1. Appreciate the evolution of Philippine architecture; local culture, traditions,

influences
2. Appreciate the heritage sites and structures in the country.
3. Identify the natural and built heritage
4. Knowledge of the Filipino Culture, their behavior and traditions and its effects on
architectural space and design.
History of Architecture 4 – HOA 104
Reflection on Architecture in the Philippines

Topics
Prelims: Pre-Spanish Period
Midterm: Spanish Colonization Period
Semi-Finals: American Colonization Period
Finals: Independence & Modern Architecture
History of Architecture 4 – HOA 104
Prehistoric Architecture

Early Philippine Shelters

1. Caves
2. Rock-hewn Structures
3. Lean-to
4. Tree Houses
History of Architecture 4 – HOA 104
Prehistoric Architecture

Early Philippine Shelters

1. Caves
a large underground chamber, typically of natural origin, in a
hillside or cliff
tabon cave palawan flake tools - Bing images

The earliest shelters of human beings were probably not built by them.
They simply found these shelters or found themselves in them. It was
nature which fashioned hollows on cliffs and mountainsides that
offered protection from heat, rain, and wind.
History of Architecture 4 – HOA 104
Prehistoric Architecture
Early Philippine Shelters
1. Caves
• Tabon Cave, Palawan
yielded the earliest-known remains of human beings in the
Philippines.
Tabon Cave, located on the southwest coast of Palawan, is
considered one of Asia’s great Upper Paleolithic archaeological
sites. The cave can be found in a towering cliff, a part of a massive
limestone rock promontory that juts into the South China Sea,
which is known locally as Lipuun.

Archeaologists from the National Museum conducted excavations

from 1962 to 1970 which revealed that the cave was inhabited by
man over different periods of time for more than 40,000 years.
They found flake tools (dating back to 50,000 to 9,000 years),
porcelain and stoneware vessels, and burial jars. It also resulted in
the discovery of fossilized human bones—the Tabon Man—an
early Homo sapiens sapiens who came to the Philippines by way of
land bridges.
History of Architecture 4 – HOA 104
Prehistoric Architecture
Early Philippine Shelters
2. Rock-hewn Structure
Pieces of evidence of human settlement were found in this 10th to 14th-
century sites,

They are triangular shaped citadels, with flat tops and walls of limestone
and wood. Within the Idjang are various artefacts, the evidence of past
habitations of the people. There are earthenware vessels, burial jars,
beads, ceramics, and stone tools. Overall, there are several Idjangs in
Batanes; the Itbud Idgang, Ivana Idjang, Chuhangin Idgang and Savidug idjang batanes - Bing images
Idgang.

During the Spanish colonization, the Ivatans abandoned their Idjangs to

live in the lowlands. Though Batanes was included in the Spanish
Philippines in 1783, the Ivatans continued to live in Idjangs until 1790.
History of Architecture 4 – HOA 104
Prehistoric Architecture
Early Philippine Shelters
3. Lean - To
• a frame made of tree branches and twigs, using leaves
and fronds for sidings.
• Single pitched roof supported by rafters
• lean-to is both roof and wall,
• The floor can be the ground itself or a bed of leaves or a
platform slightly above the ground
• The lean-to is light enough to be carried to another site.
Hawong - Used by Pinatubo Aeta; has no living platform;
forms two sloping sides with one or both ends left open.
A pair of lean-tos can be joined together to form a tentlike
shelter or a double-slope roof, which, in effect, is the
beginning of a house.
History of Architecture 4 – HOA 104
Prehistoric Architecture
Early Philippine Shelters
3. Lean - To
Since pre-history, the Agta in the provinces of Rizal,
Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Quezon, Aurora, Nueva Vizcaya,
Isabela, Cagayan, Abra, Camarines Norte, and
Camarines Sur have called themselves “Agta,” which
means “human” in their native language (Ancestral
Domain 2014, 3; Bennagen 1977, 35).

The Agta Tribe (Dumagat Remontados) of the Philippines -

But in Tagalog, it is synonymous with “people from the History, Culture and Traditions [Philippine Indigenous People |
sea.” The Agta are also called Remontado, which is Ethnic Group] - yodisphere.com
derived from the Spanish word remontar, meaning “to
flee to the hills.”
History of Architecture 4 – HOA 104
Prehistoric Architecture
Early Philippine Shelters
3. Lean – To
Agta’s Lean-to

• The lean-to is made up of a ridgepole across two

posts made from slender tree trunks, supporting a
roof made of leaves or grass.
• The open side of the lean-to is shifted to always face
the sunlight.
• The flooring may either be bare ground or covered
with bamboo slats or plant material.
• There is usually a fireplace near the opening for
cooking, light, warmth, and protection from pests.
The Agta Tribe (Dumagat Remontados) of the Philippines -
History, Culture and Traditions [Philippine Indigenous People |
Ethnic Group] - yodisphere.com
History of Architecture 4 – HOA 104
Prehistoric Architecture
Early Philippine Shelters
3. Lean – To
Pinanahang – the Palanan Agta’s Lean-to
• can be built within 30 to 60 minutes by the family members.
• It measures 4 square meters, made up of branches and palm leaves
erected over a space with no flooring.

Kubo - made up of two pinanahang that are joined together.

Tinaltal - is a pinanahang with bamboo flooring laid on the ground
Tagapa – is a pinanahang with grass flooring
Sahing - is the pinanahang with bamboo flooring raised about 1 to 2 feet
from the ground.
Kabbun - The simplest shelter, which is the big leaf of a palm locally called
denEp, used like an umbrella by a person who sleeps in a squatting position

The Agta Tribe (Dumagat Remontados) of the Philippines -

There are three kinds of lean-to houses among the Agta of Quezon: the saulen, History, Culture and Traditions [Philippine Indigenous People |
the linages, and the rungarung at binutuk, also known as talikod-mundo
Ethnic Group] - yodisphere.com
History of Architecture 4 – HOA 104
Prehistoric Architecture
Early Philippine Shelters
4. Tree House
Built as safeguard from night-time ambushes by tribal
enemies or wild predators.

Tribes:
Gaddang, Kalinga, Manobo, Mandaya, Moros,
Negritoes, Bagobo, Mandaya, Bilaan, Ilongot
THANK YOU !!!!!

References

The Ijang Of Batanes - The Philippines Today

https://discover.hubpages.com/education/The-Idjang-The-Ancient-Precolonial-Castles-of-
Batanes
HISTORY: Philippine Architecture (Prehistoric) (slideshare.net)

The Agta Tribe (Dumagat Remontados) of the Philippines - History, Culture and Traditions [Philippine Indigenous People |
Ethnic Group] - yodisphere.com