ARCHITECTURE IN

Indonesia and
Malay Archipelago
 INDONESIA:
GEOGRAPHICAL,GEOLOGICAL
& CLIMATIC

• • The Malay peninsula is bounded by southern Thailand in the

North, and on the West and South by the straits of Malacca which
separate it from Sumatra, which in turn is separated from Java on
the SE by the Sunda Straits. Java is the first of a Chain of Islands
extending eastward. Borneo is the largest island in this archipelago
separated by the straits of Macassar on the East from Celebes, to
the North of Borneo and Celebes lies the Philippines.
• Much of this vast region is mountainous, a long curving band of
active and extinct volcanoes passes through Sumatra, Java and
Bali, and Volcanic rock has been extensively used for construction
work.
• Indonesia almost bestrides the equator, with a tropical climate and
not great seasonal variation in temperature. The climate is also
generally humid and under the influence of both monsoons.
ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER
In Middle Java, an architecture of solid stone walls, corbelled arches and with no load- bearing
columns, which reached its consummation with the stupa of Barabadur and the Temple
complex of Prambanam. This is always associated with isolated religious com- munities and
never with large Centres of population A new development began with the shift of power to
East Java in the 11th century charac- terized by a lessening of Indian Influence and increased
evidence of the native Indonesian tradition, reflected especially in the sculpture which already
foreshadows the folk-art of the Javanese 'wayang" puppet drama.

Timber is abundant and varied throughout Indonesia, and has always been used for houses,
the traditional dwelling is a 'long house' generally raised on stilts, and often sheltering an en-
tire clan. It is seen at its architectural best in the Menang Kabau homes of South central
Sumatra, which are carried on carved and decorated wooden pillars, the facades adorned with
colour patterns of intertwined flowers in white, black and red, the inward-sloping ridge (saddle
back) roof with high gables at each end ornamented with buffalo horns.
Theatrically sited on the Java
plains against a background of
smoking volcanoes. This extra-
ordinary building symbolizes
the world mountain "Meru" of
Indian Cosmology and the
Mahayana Buddhist cosmic
system through the nine
stages there are nine storeys
or ter- races-which lead to
Nirvana. Basically square in
plan, with a stone plinth-
foundation each 150 m side
having five slightly stepped
faces, (diminishing to three at
the higher levels) Barabudur
rises through five rectangular
closed galleries and three
circular open terraces (the
latter carrying 72 bell-like
stupas) to the crowning
Central Stupa. The galleries
display some 1,300 pane; of
sculpture, depicting the life of
the Buddha and legends from
VIETNAM AND LAOS
The architectural character of
Vietnamese buildings is seen in the
"Kalam' roofs (Keel shaped in the
Chinese Pagoda Style) as at the shrines
of Mi-son and Po Nagar and in the 'Lu'
Style of Tonkin province. Southward the
influence is Javanese at Dong Duang
and My-Duc, from the 12th century the
example of Angkor Vat appears in the
Binh-dinh style towers at NHA-TRANG.
The dinh (Communal House) built by
each village, seemingly continued
ancient tradition of houses built on
stilts. By the 19th century, Chinese and
French styles were apparent.