Architecture by Adobe

Architecture by Adobe

Adobe's architecture was used in some of the first structures.Adobe is a fibrous material composed of sand, clay, straw, dung, or other fibrous materials.

The adobe is then formed into bricks with frames and sun-dried. The structures become extremely durable, similar to cob or mud bricks. They are primarily used in hot, arid climates because they keep cool in the summer and slowly release heat in the winter.

The same mixture, minus the straw, is used as mortar when assembling dried adobe bricks to form a structure. Some cultures even discovered that lime-based cement could be used to make plaster to protect against the wet months.

The thickness of the adobe bricks plays an important role in the architecture. It is primarily responsible for keeping the structures cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

The Bam Citadel was the largest structure ever built from Adobe. However, it was severely damaged by an earthquake in 2003.

The Huaca del Sol in Peru is another magnificent adobe structure made of over 100 million signed bricks.

The citadel of Arg-e Bam, built as recently as 500 BCE, may be the world's largest adobe architecture structure.

The Bam Citadel covers an area of 180,000 square meters and is surrounded by walls that are 6-7 meters high and 1815 meters long, all made of Adobe. No human or animal could enter the city once the gates were closed. The city was self-contained, with wells, gardens, and cattle all contained within its walls.

When it came to putting a roof on the structure, adobe architecture was a little different. Roofs were typically constructed from lengths of wood or metal. Then, over the top of a support structure, rows of dried adobe bricks are laid and plastered into place with more adobe.