Professional Documents
Culture Documents
VERNACULAR
PRESENTED BY:
MEGHA SANADYA(35)
PALLAVI PRAKASH (43)
SHIVANGI NISHAD (62)
JATIN KAUR (29)
KOMAL SINGH (33)
What is vernacular ?
• The term vernacular is derived from the Latin vernaculus,
meaning "domestic, native, indigenous"; from verna, meaning
"native slave" or "home-born slave". Hence it means “native
science of building”.
Climate: The structure of the building must sustain all the effects caused
by the climate change, rainfall and winds thus the building topology of the
particular area is unique.
Materials: Material used will depend upon the physical condition of that
area. Vernacular is sustainable and doesn’t exhaust local resources.Only
those resources are used which are found in abundance and are non-
exhaustive.
Climate :
• There is a huge variation in the
climatic condition due to variation in
altitude. The climate varies from:
hot and sub-humid tropical (350-
900m) in the southern low tracts
warm and temperate (900-1800m)
Cool and temperate (1900-2400m)
Cool glacial and alpine (2400-
4800m) in the northern and eastern
high elevated mountain ranges.
Small windows
TRIPLE CUBOID
SINGLE CUBOID VARIANTS VARIANTS
Levels of house –
• A gaushala on the ground level offers both
sustenance and insulation. Sometimes a
secondary mezzanine level in the gaushala
serves to get the fodder of the ground and
closer to the next floor, offering further
insulation. Ladders and trapdoors allow people
access to the gaushala space during cold
weather.
• The middle level of the house is used to store
practical items. If the house is large enough, it
includes an indoor granary. This middle zone
acts as a buffer between the living areas
upstairs and the smells of cattle downstairs.
• The top level usually houses cooking and living
spaces and, sometimes, formal spaces to
entertain and welcome guests.
• Other transitional spaces in vernacular houses
include the plinth at the ground floor and
balconies on the upper floors.
• The stone used in the walls are chiseled and
well dressed. The walls are constructed with
stacking wooden framed on each other.
• The rooms on the upper floor are made of
beautifully carved local wood.
Darbargadhs :
• The powerful historical leaders of the villages build
grand houses that reflected their status in the
community. These structures were known as
darbargadhs.
• The darbargadhs was built using kat khuni construction
techniques with much larger spaces.
• Darbargadhs have enclosed groups of stacked cuboids,
still following the conventional orientation of facing the
valley and the mountain but also including enclosed DARBARGADHS OF KHANET VILLAGE AND
KOTKHAI VILLAGE
courtyards or narrow street like open to sky spaces and
towering cuboids at the highest point, for significant yet
personal local deities.
• The entrance for the people of these princely houses is
separate from that of their animals.
• The balconies of Darbargadhs are very elaborate,
enclosed and carved with local flora, fauna and deities.
• The structure comprises of excluded spaces and a
unique layout.
• They contain all elements of a vernacular house with
added attraction of an interior temple.
Palaces :
• The major palaces of the state are located in jubbal, rampur bushair,
naggar, chamba and kumarsain.
• Kumarsain palace is about 100 km beyond shimla is about 100 years
old
• It incorporates various styles of hill architecture such as traditional,
features from Hindu temples, Buddhist monasteries and even from
Islamic structures of the plains.
• A pergola roof to highlight main entrance coexists with domical roof
tops over the main halls.
• Palace is built in local materials and roof forms have to be perforce
sloping – so as to ward off climatic elements.
Granary :
A granary is a storehouse for grain or animal feed. In ancient or primitive granaries, pottery is
the most common use of storage in these buildings. Granaries are often built above the ground
to keep the stored food away from mice and other animals.
Two main types of granaries:
Independent (freestanding) buildings
Granaries within the houses
The size and the scale of the granary is in direct correlation to the volume of the content to be stored.
In Himachal Pradesh houses, the prime criteria in creating spaces is personal security and comfort for
daily living.
Granaries on the other hand are for food security and the storage of work from the past, for life in the
future.
Granaries, with their associated local small temples, are the intersection between houses that
guarantee the communities’ habitation and large temples that possess the communities’ shared beliefs.
In socio-economic terms, the granary is the content and container of the community.
TYPES OF INDEPENDENT GRANARIES
These are independent free These wooden granaries with The communal wood and stone
standing wooden granaries with stone plinths and roofs in granary is a cluster of three independent
stone tile roof. Sundagaon are a part of a cluster Kath-Khuni storage buildings and three
of family buildings. small folk temples in old Jubbal.
INDICATION OF STORAGE AREAS, AUKTA GRANARY, OLD JUBBAL VILLAGE
• In Kullu, elements of nature shape the spatial order and man has to
adapt himself to these forces.
• Climate : Cold
• Average rainfall : 80 cm
Vernacular of Kullu :
LOCAL MATERIALS
• Availability of forests implies high preference to wood for construction
purposes.
• Due to the Beas river passing through the district, mud is available
easily.
• Since it is hilly area, stone is available in abundance.
CLIMATIC INFLUENCE
• Low ceiling height for warmer interiors.
• Small size windows to prevent heat loss.
• Sloping roofs for efficient drainage in heavy rainfall and snowfall areas.
• Use of wood mainly for building purposes to keep the living warmer
and comfortable.
Vernacular of Kullu :
ARCHITECTURE OF HOUSES
• Double storey houses with pitched
roof, oriented towards South to reduce
heat loss.
• Linear arrangement of rooms,
connected by a verandah or balcony
on both the floors.
• Timber and stone are used widely as
both have high thermal capacity and
low conductivity.
• Inner walls thickness is 4 inch and
outer walls thickness is 9 inch.
Vernacular of Kullu :
TEMPLE ARCHITECTURE
• Himachal Pradesh is a land of the
Gods.
• Hindu temples of many types are
found in this spectacular land of the
Himalayas.
• This valley of Kullu has 368 temples.
• There are three styles of temple
architecture in the valley:
Pagoda style
Shikhara style
Pahari style
Vernacular of Kullu :
TEMPLE ARCHITECTURE –
SHIKHARA STYLE
MONASTRIES
PALACES
Vernacular of Kullu :
CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES
Rammed earth technique
Adobe construction
In the former style, the mud is filled into the wooden forms and
rammed into the place slowly building up the wall.
In the later style, sun dried mud blocks are used in the construction
of the wall. The roof is kept flat and comprises a closely packed layer
of sun twigs supported on wooden beams and joists and resting on
the wooden columns.
Vernacular Architecture
Of Kangra(HP)
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Location of
Kangra On Map
Location
• Kangra is located at 32.1°N 76.27°E.
• It has an average elevation of 733 metres (2404 ft.)
Climate
• Humid, sub-tropical zone.
• Annual rainfall is between 900–2350mm.
• Winter temp. ranges from 0 to 20 °C.
• In Summers hot (ranges from 25 to 38 °C) and dry.
Economy
Courtyard Verandah
TYPICAL HOUSE IN
KANGRA - 2
Building Materials
Mud, Stone & Sun-Dried Bricks
• Easy availability.
• Good insulation.
• Good binding properties.
• Mud mortar is used as the joining material. Sun dried
mud Bricks are used in the construction of the wall.
• Hard Stone: Obtained from local quarries and used in
building foundation and walls.
• Slate Tiles: Metamorphic rock. Used in roofs of
buildings. Has high quartz content, frost resistant,
absorbs heat and provides moisture barrier.
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Sheesham & Bamboo Wood
• Easily available, one of the strongest.
• Imparts stability to tall structures.
• This wood is insect and termite resistant and even
when untreated, can withstand long periods of weather
corrosion.
• Used in making posts, beams, window and door
frames, shutters, roofs etc.(Sheesham).
• Soft wood, easy to work in absence of high tech tools.
• Its properties were understood early and its texture
and scent have been prized for ages.
Traditional Builders
• Traditional Artisans are employed. There
knowledge is transferred orally from master artisan
to apprentice. Mostly people procure materials
from their surroundings and build houses with the
help of relatives and neighbors. This has fostered
an empirical knowledge of construction material,
tools and technology and all of these are reflected
in traditional building techniques.
Planning Techniques
CLIMATE
Devidarh climate is very cool all over the year, winter is very harass due to cold
wave, heavy snow fall occur during the month of December and January.
Temperature varies from -7 to 30 degree over the year. Summer is the best
time to visit and explore Devidarh.
TRADITIONAL BUILDERS & LOCAL
MATERIALS:
• The construction of houses is largely done by hand and by the resident
himself, sometimes with the help of other residents from the same or nearby
village while special artisans are employed for construction of temples or
religious structures.
• Usually the entire construction is carried out manually with limited tools and
the use of power-driven technology is minimal and was introduced only
recently.
• It is the close interdependence between people, materials, making and
environment that has created a lasting architectures specific to the needs,
climate, place, and culture and that evokes a sensation that is special and
spiritual, beyond the materiality.
LOCALLY AVAILABLEMATERIAL
• The primary materials of construction are wood
and stone for wall and plinth, topped by slate
shingles.
• Wood is predominantly from of Cedrus Deodara
(Deodar/Devidar) an endemic species to Western
Himalayas and one of the strongest of Indian
conifers.
• It has straight veins and grows upto 50 metres.
Being very durable, it is used in structural work of
all kinds.
• These materials (stone, wood and slate) are
locally available and possess specific properties
that make them excellent choices for building
Himachal Pradesh is rich in timber that is
construction from sustainability and performance especially strong and long-lasting and is
therefore the predominant material of
perspectives. construction. Deodar is easily recognizable
with its long trunk, spreading branches and
dark green foliage. Cross-section of deodar
tree
VERNACULAR OF DEVIDHAR
Establishing Solan brewery in 1855 due to availability of excellent quality mineral water.
The urban local body i.e. Municipal Council Solan came into existence in 1950.
Solan became an independent district on 1 September 1972, and the town of Solan became the district
headquarters
Vernacular of Solan :
HERITAGE:
• Solan became an independent district on 1 September 1972, and the
town of Solan became the district headquarters.
• Solan cantonment is still the best and the most well planned part of this
area hence buildings are made in a planned manner.
• The church in Solan cantonment is a heritage building with beautiful
wooden and stone carvings, it has elegant sloping roofs plus arches
reminiscent of the British architecture.
• Some important heritage of Solan:
Shoolini devi temple
The Church in Solan cantonment.
The Solan railway station, one of the Highest railway stations in the world.[7]
S.E., PWD office which used to be a durbar hall of Baghat State.
Jatoli Temple (5 km. far from Solan on Rajgarh Road).
Mount Karol in Chambaghat, Solan.
Mohan Shakti National Heritage Park (in Hart, 12 km from Solan)
Vernacular of Solan :
LOCAL MATERIALS:
LOCATION:
• Located in village Basal, Solan.
• Built on a gentle hill slope with a water channel
running beside.
• Was built around 1923 and the main
occupation of the family was to store grains
• Belong to Agrarian family.
ELEVATION
Vernacular of Solan :
ELEVATION:
• In addition to the sloping roofs and open
spaces the house is provided with large
arcaded openings.
SECTIONS:
• The house which constitutes many stores
has been built for storage of grains which ELEVATION
formed the back bone of the agrarian
family.
• Boxes of various sizes can be found.
SECTION
Vernacular of Solan :
ATTIC AS STORAGE SPACE:
• The two windows on the sides ventilate and dry the corn at the same
time protecting from the rain.
• Although the main function of the attic is to insulate the house, it serves
as an excellent storage space.
BUILT FORM:
• The built form of the house constitutes about
60% of the plot area.
• The house in its totality forms a compact unit.
The cow shed and north side elevation of
• As a general rule the houses do not have a the house.
boundary wall.