A Study of the Forms and Technology of Traditional Granary Buildings in the Middle and Lower Reaches of the Fu River

Abstract

In this study, the authors performed field surveys and investigated the formal and technological characteristics of granary buildings in the middle and lower reaches of the Fu River. Their study could help architects understand the regional features of traditional vernacular buildings. Employing field survey and mapping, the authors found that the building styles of traditional granaries are not different from those of traditional residential houses. This type of architecture challenges the restrictions of the ritual system and highlighted structural flexibility and functional priority through the use of beam structure. In the final section of the study, the thermal and wind environments of granary buildings are analyzed using ECOTECT software. The results of the analysis demonstrate that granary buildings can maintain low temperatures and prevent moisture using eco-building techniques, such as ventilative stone ridges, moisture-resistant walls and heat insulation storage rooms. These achievements demonstrate that traditional vernacular buildings, such as granaries, undergo fundamental evolution in architectural form and technology rather than maintaining the original state of a specific historical period.

Keywords

• middle and lower reaches of the fu river
• granary
• building form
• technology