Therefore the research consists of: • Address the misconceptions associated with earth architecture. • Exploring the kind of possibilities with mud that naturally exist in abundance. • Understanding and exploring its properties,limits and scales they can be applied in today’s • modern construction and buildings. • Analysing the work of architects that are already pioneering in the field and exploring further into the possibilities. • An understanding of all the pros and cons and how to push the limits of its use to new levels and bring traditional knowledge into the forefront.
Fig.1(above)&Fig.1.1(below)The making of adobe blocks, Shibam,Yemen
Adobe Ingredients: Mud, straw, and water. Method: Mix and shape into a brick and bake in the sun until dry. This simple recipe results in perhaps one of man's most important inventions—the mud brick. Adobe is a low-cost, readily available construction material, usually manufactured by local communities. Typical cost of a new adobe house US$11/m2 in India. Adobe structures are generally self-made because the construction practice is simple and does not require additional energy resources. Mud mortar is typically used between the blocks. Here in India we know it as sun dried bricks
History
Fig.1.3
The world's first skyscrapers, tower houses constructed over five hundred years ago in the city of Shibam, Yemen, reach heights up to 96 feet. Mud brick can be stacked even higher. Humankind's first cities were also constructed of mud brick. As agricultural knowledge increased, builders realized that agricultural soil, mixed with the straw left over from grain harvests, was highly suited for creating a durable building module.
Fig.1.3& Fig.1.4 The Manhattan of the East, Shibam, Yemmen. Built entirely out of adobe blocks.
Catalhayuk, an Early Neolithic site in Turkey, a mud brick town of 8, 000 people, dates back as far as 9500 B.C.E. it was also coming into use in the developing cities of ancient India.
Fig.1.4
2