Cave dwelling is such an arched cave dwelling dug according to the mountain situation. Because loess itself has the property of standing upright, the bearing capacity of vault is better than that of flat roof, and vault is generally used in caves to ensure its stability. Northern Shaanxi is characterized by thick soil layer and low groundwater level in the Loess Plateau, and digging caves as dwellings has the advantages of being warm in winter and cool in summer. Cave dwellings can be divided into pit type, cliff type and adobe type. Digging caves on the ground, digging caves on three or four sides to live, with ramps in and out. Cliff caves are caves excavated layer by layer along the mountain side and ditch side. Adobe arch hole is built with adobe arch, covered with soil for thermal insulation. In addition, there are brick cave houses. There are also pit caves in the western Henan plain with thick loess layer, such as the pit caves in Gongxian County, Henan Province. Often the whole village and street are built under terraced fields, and only the crown of the village and the trees on the ground can be seen from a distance. The land on the top of the pit can also grow crops. Longdong also has such underground streets. From the perspective of western environmental architects, this pit building is a perfect civilized building that does not destroy nature. The combination of underground caves still maintains the pattern of traditional quadrangles in the north, with kitchens, warehouses for storing grain, drinking wells and seepage wells, and sheds for raising livestock, forming a comfortable underground courtyard. There are ingenious treatment methods in the utilization of lots, the division of courtyards, the traffic relationship between upper and lower floors, lighting, ventilation and drainage. Advantages of special packaging.
What are the characteristics of caves in northern Shaanxi?
The caves in northern Shaanxi are such arched caves dug according to the mountain situation. Because loess itself has the property of standing upright, the bearing capacity of vault is better than that of flat roof, and vault is generally used in caves to ensure its stability. Northern Shaanxi is characterized by thick soil layer and low groundwater level in the Loess Plateau, and digging caves as dwellings has the advantages of being warm in winter and cool in summer. Cave dwellings can be divided into pit type, cliff type and adobe type. Digging caves on the ground, digging caves on three or four sides to live, with ramps in and out. Cliff caves are caves excavated layer by layer along the mountain side and ditch side. Adobe arch hole is built with adobe arch, covered with soil for thermal insulation. In addition, there are brick cave houses. There are also pit caves in the western Henan plain with thick loess layer, such as the pit caves in Gongxian County, Henan Province. Often the whole village and street are built under terraced fields, and only the crown of the village and the trees on the ground can be seen from a distance. The land on the top of the pit can also grow crops. Longdong also has such underground streets. From the perspective of western environmental architects, this pit building is a perfect civilized building that does not destroy nature. The combination of underground caves still maintains the pattern of traditional quadrangles in the north, with kitchens, warehouses for storing grain, drinking wells and seepage wells, and sheds for raising livestock, forming a comfortable underground courtyard. There are ingenious treatment methods in the utilization of lots, the division of courtyards, the traffic relationship between upper and lower floors, lighting, ventilation and drainage.
Architectural characteristics of cave dwellings
Cave dwellings take many forms. But judging from the layout and structural form of the building, it can be divided into three forms: leaning on the cliff, sinking and independent. Sinking cave (underground kiln)
Sinking caves are underground caves, mainly distributed in loess areas. The practice of this cave dwelling is: first dig a square pit on the spot, and then dig a hole to the wall to form a "quadrangle". On the flat ground, people can only see the yard and trees, but not the house.
Cliff cave (cliff cave)
Cliff-leaning caves include mountain-leaning caves and ditch-leaning caves, which are often arranged in curves or broken lines, with harmonious and beautiful architectural artistic effects. When the height of the hillside allows, sometimes several terraced caves are arranged, which are similar to buildings.
Independent cave (ring kiln)
Independent cave dwelling is a kind of arched house covered with soil, including adobe arch cave dwelling and brick arch cave dwelling. This kind of cave does not need to be close to the mountain and cliff, and it can be independent without losing the advantages of the cave. It can be a single story or a building. If the upper floor is also a hoop kiln, it is called "kiln on kiln"; If the upper floor is a wooden house, it is called a "kiln house".
Cave fire prevention, noise prevention, warm in winter and cool in summer, not only saves land, but also saves labor and economy. It is indeed a perfect architectural form adapted to local conditions.
What are the characteristics of Shaanxi cave dwellings?
Shaanxi cave dwelling is a unique form of Han people's residence on the Loess Plateau in northern China, which is divided into earth cave dwelling, stone cave dwelling, brick cave dwelling, earth cave dwelling, Liurafter Liubazi cave dwelling and joint cave dwelling. Cave dwellings are generally more than 3 meters high, about 3 meters wide and up to 20 meters deep. The holes are all facing the sun, which is convenient for sunlight. The simplest cave is a soil cave formed by direct cave excavation; If the earth hole is reinforced with stones, it will become a stone hole. Of course, if it is reinforced with bricks, it will become a brick hole. Brick caves are more beautiful in appearance.
What are the characteristics of caves on high loess slopes?
In the Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia region of China, the loess layer is very thick, some of which are tens of kilometers thick. Our people creatively use the favorable terrain of the plateau, dig holes in it to live, and create cave buildings called green buildings (as shown in figure 1). Cave dwellings generally have cliff type, sinking type and independent type. Among them, the back mountain kiln is the most widely used. It is built on the hillside, and at the edge of the original soil, there are often several steps along the mountain. The top of the lower kiln is the upper vestibule, with a wide field of vision. Sinking cave dwelling is to dig a square pit on the spot, and then dig a cave dwelling on the inner wall to form an underground quadrangle. Cave dwelling is an ancient living form for the residents of the Loess Plateau in northwest China. The history of this "cave dwelling" can be traced back to more than 4000 years ago, when people began to dig holes in the loess and settle down. Today, caves are widely distributed in the middle and upper reaches of the Yellow River, such as Shaanxi, Gansu and Ningxia, with a population of over 40 million. Cave dwelling-the biggest feature of characteristic cave dwelling architecture is that it is warm in winter and cool in summer. The traditional cave space is arched in appearance. Although it is very common, in the case of monotonous loess background, the arc is more light and lively. This form originated from nature not only embodies the concept of circular place in traditional thinking, but more importantly, the high arch and high windows at the entrance can further penetrate the winter sunshine into the cave (see figure). My tutor, Mr. Liu Jiaping, once commented on cave architecture: the cave is warm in winter and cool in summer, comfortable and energy-saving, while the traditional space is full of harmony with nature, and the simple appearance is unique in architectural aesthetics.
What are the advantages of living in caves?
The temperature in the cave changes little in winter and summer. Because of its good thermal insulation performance, it is warm in winter and cool in summer. The cave was dug on the hillside, so its "roof" and "wall" are quite thick. When people dig caves, they choose places with hard soil. This thick and hard "wall" is not easy to transfer heat. Therefore, the top and wall of the cave can neither directly absorb heat from the atmosphere nor directly dissipate heat to the atmosphere, only the hole is in direct contact with the outside world. Therefore, the temperature change in the cave always lags behind the external temperature change, and the temperature difference changes little.
Tuyaodong in northern Shaanxi
Long, long ago, the wind brought the loess from the far north to the northwest plateau of China, day after day, year after year, thus forming the vast and thick yellow land of northern Shaanxi. Since there are people in this land, there are caves. These caves are places where the descendants of the Chinese people thrive and create splendid cultures.
Yan 'an, located in the middle reaches of the Yellow River and in the gully region of the Loess Plateau, is still the most important life form for people, whether in towns or villages. I have known caves since I was a child, but I didn't really know them until I went to Yan 'an recently and stayed in the most primitive earth cave for a few days.
Most human rooms are built according to local conditions, especially in the Loess Plateau. The bank of the earth cliff on the Loess Plateau is the natural terrain for digging caves. The earth cave is warm in winter and cool in summer, which is very suitable for living. As early as the Neolithic Age, clan tribes in the middle reaches of the Yellow River built simple caves and shallow caves with wooden frames and grass mud on the earth caves, and gradually formed settlements.
There are many kinds of caves in northern Shaanxi, including back mountain earth kiln, crevice earth kiln and flat stone kiln. In general, there are mostly brick kilns in cities, and most of them are earthen kilns or stone earthen kilns in rural areas. The most typical cave in northern Shaanxi is the backer kiln. They cut horizontal holes in the natural earth wall, often several holes are connected together, or several floors up and down. Some add brick coupons or stone coupons in the cave to prevent landslides, or build brick walls outside the cave to protect the cliff surface. Large-scale houses are built outside the cliff to form a courtyard, which becomes a cliff kiln.
When I came to Luozishan Township, Yanchang County, I met a family building a new cave. At first glance, a row of four-hole earth holes has basically taken shape. The cave is backed by loess and faces the highway, and two earth caves have been excavated on it. The soil dug out of the cave just covers the earth kiln below and becomes a flat roof. Several young people took part in building the kiln. They told me that the winter slack season is the best time to build caves, which is hard to meet at ordinary times. I'm glad to meet such a good opportunity to start a dialogue with the boys. They say there is great pressure to build new caves. The first thing is to find someone to see Feng Shui and choose the terrain. It is very important to choose the soil for digging caves. It must be clay. The cave should face the sun, the back of the mountain and the open area.
The newly-built caves are still in the traditional form. From the outside, these four holes should have separate doors. When you walk in, you will find that they have tunnel-like doors to communicate with each other and become a whole, connecting all members of the family. The cave is about 4 meters wide, 5 meters deep and 3 meters high, and the loess surfaces on both walls are very flat and smooth. The dome is semicircular. This makes the already spacious cave look very high and has a lot of space. From the inner wall of a cave kiln in the middle, there is a tunnel-like door leading to a completely dark cave with a warehouse for storing food and other items.
The kang and stove in this newly-built cave have been repaired, and some square concave holes have been dug in the wall to put things. The boys built brick windowsills and doors outside the cave. They said that when the last brick was placed in the middle of the arched door of the cave, it was all finished. After the completion, a grand celebration ceremony will be held. The host will stick red paper-cuts inside and outside the kiln, put couplets at the door and set off firecrackers. Relatives and friends in the village will come to congratulate them, and the host will invite them to drink and eat meat, which will be a lively event.
In front of several caves, I saw several women making zongzi. There were pots and stoves outside the door. I asked them if they were all cooking outdoors. One of the women in her thirties told me that most caves have two stoves, and only hot people can cook outdoors. She invited me into the house, and I walked into the cave with the dust and sweat of my journey, feeling cool. This cave is more than 20 square meters in size, and there is a big kang against the wall in the depth of the cave. Sister-in-law said it was called a kang. Some caves are called Qian Kang near the window. No matter whether you are holding the kang or the front kang, you are on the kang. ......
Characteristics of cave dwellings in Shaanxi Province
Cave dwellings are generally more than 3 meters high, about 3 meters wide and up to 20 meters deep. The holes are all facing the sun, which is convenient for sunlight. The simplest cave is a soil cave formed by direct excavation; Reinforce the earth hole with stones, and the earth hole becomes a stone hole. Of course, if it is reinforced with bricks, it is a brick hole. Brick caves are more beautiful in appearance. Cave dwelling, an ancient living form and cave dwelling art formed by local people in their long life, has also attracted more and more foreign tourists and even foreigners to visit and stay. Nowadays, many families in Yan 'an City have realized the value of the caves they have lived in for generations, and used them to develop tourism and improve their lives. Yan 'an has also developed some scenic spots with caves as the theme to show the charm of caves to the outside world. Yan 'an Shi Yao Hotel, the largest cave building complex in Yang Jialing in the world, has become a new highlight of Yan 'an tourism. It is built on the mountain, with 8 rows of caves and nearly 300 caves. Hand-painted pictures of Han working people are hung on the cave wall. Paper-cuts are stuck on the hollowed-out lattice windows, and flowers are placed on the windowsill. There are stone mills, stone mills, stone tables and chairs in front of each row of caves, which are full of rich peasant flavor. In order to meet the different needs of tourists, some caves have beds, while others are traditional heatable adobe sleeping platform. The cave is equipped with toilets, complete living facilities and clean environment. While many foreigners came to experience the cave life, some local farmers also moved out of the cave and built spacious and ventilated bungalows or two-story buildings like city people. In Yan 'an, you can often see new rural houses, which complement each other with an ancient cave on the hillside behind the new house.