Vernacular Architecture of Jaisalmer

 The word vernacular derived from ‘vernacular’ means ‘native’.

Hence vernacular architecture – native science of building.

The term "vernacular architecture" in general refers to the informal building of structures through traditional building methods by local builders without using the services of a professional architect. It is the most widespread form of building.

The builders of this structure are unschooled in formal architectural design and their work reflects the rich diversity of India's climate, locally available material and the intricate variation in social custom and craftsman.

Vernacular Architecture

LOCATION : The city is situated in the midst of the Great Indian Desert on the western frontier of India. 

Jaisalmer is almost entirely a sandy waste, forming a part of the Thar desert (great Indian desert). Those in the west are covered with log bushes, those in the east with tufts of long grass. The climate is dry and healthy.

CLIMATE : The region experiences an arid climate through the year. The temperature remains low during the winter season while summers are characterized by cold and dry Jaisalmer weather.

Hot winds blow during summer and sand storms are also seen.The absorbed radiation are dissipated to atmosphere at night. Mud hut of Rajasthan.

Jaisalmer

RAINFALL :The region is drained by very scanty rainfall during the monsoon season.

RAINCORPS :  bajra, jawar, motif, til, etc., are grown; spring crops of wheat, barley, etc., are very rare.

Jaisalmer  nicknamed "The Golden city. The town stands on a ridge of yellowish sandstone, crowned by a fort, which contains the palace and several ornate Jain temples. Many of the houses and temples are finely sculptured

Traditional Houses

People of Jaisalmer live in fort . Now many of houses has been converted into shops.

They use the golden stone for construction. Don't use any mortar , they make bond by using scissors in between the golden stones. The golden stone is a soft stone hence, very nice carvings could be done over it.

Patwon Ki HaveliThe Patwon Ji ki Haveli is an interesting piece of Architecture and is the most important among the havelis in Jaisalmer.It was the first haveli erected in Jaisalmer in 1805 by Guman Chand Patwa and it is not a single haveli but a cluster of 5 small havelis. It is believed that Patwa was a rich man and was a renowned trader of his time. He could afford and thus ordered the construction of separate stories for each of his 5 sons. 

Patwon Ki HaveliIt was well designed haveli , incorporates following rooms:Drawing room, common courtyard, bedroom (female) with dressing room attached, bedroom (male) with attached dressing room, music room, game zone , dinning room ,kitchen, utility area.

EntranceRich carved doors ,windows, pillars and balconies on entrance.They store food for camel in basement .

Carved door

Balconies, window pillars

Common courtyard

Sheesh mahalWalls and ceiling are decorated with glass and paint.Beautiful paintings were also there.

Drawing room Music room

Kitchen

Direct access to utility area

Preparation area

Water storage

Game zone

Small decorative holes over the wall To allow the hot air from inside to blow out .Its size is small to get ride of hot Climate.

Decorated ceiling

ceiling of top most floor is made with wood to keep the room cool.

Balcony around courtyardWalls were 95 degree to the floor

Shops in fort

COURTYARDS:A wide range of household activities could extend into courtyards. These spaces became the living areas of all domestic architecture. 

This room without a roof is often bounded by verandahs along its periphery. Other rooms open into these verandahs creating a spatial organisation based on a hierarchical sequence of spaces ranging from open to enclosed.

The rooms get their light and ventilation from this courtyard and have very few openings onto the exterior. This spatial sequence encourages the intermittent flow of activities responding to various private needs. Also, the tropical climate of India demands air movement as well as shaded spaces for comfort.

Variations in the generic form of the courtyard come from changes in materials, articulation of the enclosing elements, scale, proportion and complexity of plan.

Clay sandBajra waste

Typical vernacular architecture

ENTRANCES:The complexity of transition as an architectural element varies from community to community.a single door is total and only link between the inside and the outside. In yet another form, an entrance may be the prelude through which one is introduced to the interior right from the first step.

PROTECTION FROM DUST STORM :  In cases where normal low level dust swirls within the settlement the interiors of buildings are protected by almost blank walls with very small openings.All major streets are oriented almost in the East-West direction at right angles to the direction of dust storms.

Small window

CONTROL OF HEATING BY TEXTURE OF SURFACES:The heat inside of the building is controlled by the use of textures in Jaisalmer. the front part of the facade which remains exposed are controlled by creating deeply carved patterns. minimizes the heat gain by providing shading due to texture.

increased convective transfer of heat because of increased surface area. In summer in day time when the major heat source is Sun the exposed textured surfaces will be cooler than plain surfaces.

In evening when ambient conditions are cool the increase surface area helps in cooling it faster. However, an extended surface will warm up faster than a plain surface under winter conditions due to low solar altitude, therefore the location in context of these surfaces is very important.

ORIENTATION:The building is always oriented by the cardinal directions: North, South, East, West, Northeast, Northwest, Southeast and outhwest. Each of these directions is considered as energy by itself. Hence the spaces in different orientation are considered differently for design purposes which is a very climate sensitive approach.

For example the East or the North walls are made more open to light and air as the West is the heat gaining side in the warm humid climates of India

  

CONSTRUCTION DETAILSThe people use local available plants and trees for construction.

MATERIAL : Kejri (prosopis cineraria), bushes (hiniya) ,doka (bajara wate), akanda plant, clayed sand , water, ropes of bushes, cow dunk

METHOD : clay sand + water+ cow dun +bajra waste = to construct walls wood of kejri to construct ceiling(use insided) make 2-3 layers of bushes at the outer side of the roof use bushes rope to tie up bushes tightly

Bushes ropeKejri wood

Akanda plant

kejri

Akanda plant

bushes

Process of construction

Cow dung Clay sand

making Rope with shrubs

TOP ( INSIDE VIEW)

SHADING AND SUPPORTING WOOD

Appling cow dung over the walls

Roof view from outside

Women decorating the walls

They usually decorate the small windows and shelves etc.They decorate with the lime stone of red and white

Kitchen Hang utensils on wooden ends

Small size decoratedwindow