Chapter TWO
2:0 Architectural Appreciation of plantation cottages.
2:1 Features of British period architecture in plantation cottages.
The alone character of “ Bengali huts ” laid the foundation in the planetary production of cottages. The Oxford dictionary defines the word bungalows as a house holding a gallery all unit of ammunition. Recording to other definitions “ bungalow ” as a house with low saging roof, with a gallery on one or three of its side. As stated before the definitions says each old plantation cottages have a running gallery environing the suites, with saging roof. Sri Lankan architecture faced an development after the state being a settlement. As a consequence the residential edifices as cottages were attached to the Sri Lankan architecture.
At the really early period the cottages were built to provide to British plantation owners. The British period Architecture can be categorized into two groups as follows,
1 ) Dutch voluminous architecture
2 ) British bought architecture
The 2nd type once more can be categorized in to four groups.
1 ) Domestic architecture
2 ) Administrative
3 ) Commercial and industries
4 ) Residential edifices
a ) House
B ) Bungalows
Again the cottages can be categorized in to another two groups.
a ) Castle type cottages
B ) Home type bungalows9
The chief purposes of the cottages were provide the maximal comfort to the residents. The hill state cottages were really alone as they catered the British plantation owners. The plantation cottages were illuminations of the British domestic houses. It is really clear that the British architecture can be fixed in to hill state without any alteration because the clime of the hill state is so familiar with their female parent land. Solid walls, Fireplace, Chimney, Wooden floors, Doors and Windowss are the outstanding architectural characteristics of the British period plantation cottages. These cottages normally had big garden with dramatic landscape gardening. That was the major architectural characteristic of those cottages which added the royalty to the topographic point. This conveys the indirect massage of detering the people who approach the topographic point. Most of the houses have a big enclosed gallery for the outer community. It expressed the attitude of higher grade of societal integrating and it created a topographic point for run intoing both superior and peers. The front gallery serves as a sight out, it is besides to make nexus between indoors, and outer garden and it provides a bird’s-eye position of the lawn and garden environing the cottage.
The British and locals had contact with minor community merely at the degree of service and no doors opened from the forepart for them. The cottages have kitchen and retainers quarters as separate edifices. The lone entree to the minor community who had the contacts with the inhabitance was through the rear, or the back gallery. Such architecture of the domestic edifices ever expresses the power, prestigiousness, wealth and the societal stableness of the dwellers.
In order to set up the glandular expression ornamentation of architectural elements such as doors, window gaps, balconies, galleries and porches have been integrated with the design of the edifice. Cosmetic doors and window gaps in domestic edifices could be identified aggressively, catching one s oculus, and would besides ensue in heightening the value of edifice.
2:2 Analysis of the house from in relation to the socio-cultural background during the period.
2:2:1 Hierarchy of the house signifier.
There are different theories about house signifier such as climatic demands, stuffs, building methodological analysiss, site conditions, economic system and civilization. But it is of import that there can be different house signifiers of different communities.
Consequently there is no cardinal factor that determine the house signifier. The house signifiers can be differing from state to state. The civilization of a society is the manner of life of the people who belongs to the society. The foundation of a civilization extends up to the clip of the formation of that society. This civilization could be name as an “ autochthonal civilization ” which was wholly free from any foreign influence. It can be observe that the house signifiers besides are alone and good harmonized with the civilization and give a common individuality to the society.
British house type was really popular in Sri Lanka than Dutch house type. The Dutch houses spread merely in the hill state every bit good as in the low state countries. It shows in different graduated tables depending on assorted physical factors since the British were able to capture and govern the whole state. Therefore most of the clip proprietors of the cottages were estate plantation owners or Governmental officers. The edifices of plantation sector can be classified as follows.
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Some instances of the usage of colour besides help to place the construction of the edifices.
1 ) Manager/Assistant director – Green colored roof
2 ) Staff – Red colored roof
3 ) Workers – Black colored roof
Sing the director ‘s or adjunct director ‘s occupants gives a existent thought of the British plantation Bungalows in the hill state.
2:2:2 Orientation and Location
The British or the “ sudda ” were the chief dominant character of the society that ordinary locals were offers during the colonial period. In add-on, some locals achieved the same position of the British that highlighted from the Sri Lankan society. Hence, one of the chief purposes of this category was acquiring the same regard from the society. Therefore, look of the beginning was a more of import factor than comfort. Consequently, they used assorted methods to show their position. The visibleness of the cottage was a really of import factor for this intent. The location and orientation has played major function in this regard since so. Bungalows have really hard entree manner and most of the cottages are located on high lifts. The entree manner runs around the mountain by demoing and concealing the cottage, which is far off from the chief route. The entryway manner is the most outstanding characteristic in such cottages. There can see Bridgess across the attack ways. In few occasions view has framed in such topographic points as waterfalls, watercourses etc: in some instances, the cottages are located closer to the other of import edifices such has mill and the office. When nearing there is a considerable distance from the chief route to the cottage. The path manner goes around the cottage with tonss of tallies. It emphasized the hard to approachability for the ordinary people. However, there was an unfastened position of the cottage from the route. In some instances, the cottage was located at the highest point of the land confronting to the route. The front garden was located at really low grown, formal and sysmmetrically landscape which gives a good expression to the topographic point. The plantation owners gave more attending to the landscape gardening and most of the cottages were ever located really stray mode. Nevertheless, each of them has ocular nexus with other edifices that belongs to the same category.
2:2:3 Plan constellation
When planing a plantation cottage, the interior decorator or the designer have to pay more attending to the program signifier, orientation, location, clime and activity form of the edifice. Therefore the cottage itself maps and contains self-respect and appreciates beauty. Most of the tea cottages were built 50-80 old ages ago. In add-on, most of the tea bungalows that built at the colonial period were boxlike with high hurler roof and they should non dwell of modern architectural characteristics. Tea bungalows built out of wooden floors, Seasoned lumber tiles covered roofs and stone-bricked walls. Other than in some instances asbestos sheets or Fe sheets used for roofs excessively. Prosperity and the position of the proprietor was emphasized by the size of the cottage. Most of the directors bungalows has 4500-8000 foot2floor country and most of the aid directors bungalows has 2500-3000 foot2floor country. Such a big infinite provided to give the plantation owner adequate cubitus infinite for respectable life. Normally director ‘s cottages have 3-4 sleeping rooms. Those suites were really big in their size and they were more than the demand. Besides there can see cottages with more than 8 sleeping rooms. The boundary wall, two gateways and the front garden were really closely connected to the house signifier. The gate was made of lumber or Fe. The gate provided a ocular nexus to the entree route and auto porch. The entree route and the porch, acts as an invitation to a peculiar category of people, while the gate acts as a barrier to the house. The auto porch is the symbol, which shows the ownership of a vehicle. That increased the position of the plantation owner at the colonial period. By and large, the plantation cottages have 20 % – 35 % of the built up country covered by the enclosed gallery. This type of gallery around the house helped to maintain doors and Windowss open all the clip in cool humid conditions. Therefore, the cottages had first-class air circulation through whole twelvemonth. The forepart gallery used as a site out and side gallery used as an country for cloth line still uninterrupted in most topographic points. In add-on, the plantation owners spent their leisure times in the gallery by reading, loosen uping or run intoing visitants. The life room used merely in really specific occasions that could b place as formal occasions. The plantation owners life fulfilled with parties get together and other assorted ceremonials. Therefore, they designed monolithic scaled life suites that are connected to the dining country. It can be identified as the life countries combined to the dining countries through arches. That provided considerable floor country to the above mentioned maps. Arches merely act as ocular divisions.
In some case, two big door gaps provided needed sum of visible radiation and airing to life and dining countries. Naturally drift wood and many brass artefacts are find in the life countries. Fireplace, epicurean furniture agreements, comfy rugs are some common characteristics of the typical life countries in plantation cottages. Following characteristics are the common characteristics of most plantation cottages.
Fireplace
The hearth is a common characteristic in plantation cottages. Those hearth were placed at the Sitting, Dinning & A ; bed suites in plantation cottages. Obviously the full agreement and furniture of the room revolved around the hearth. All those hearths were connected to one, two or four chimneys. The chimney is most dominant character in each plantation bungalow which adds a qualitative property to the construction.
The cottage kitchen
The kitchen in most plantation cottages were located individually from the chief block. Such distance was provided to forestall fire distributing at exigency. In add-on, this type of detached kitchen helps to maintain fume off from the chief country. Servants based family working besides required the retainers to be off from the cottage. There is a corridor connected to kitchen that could be functioned independently. Yet, in some topographic points there are no any screen or connexion to the kitchen, the cooks had to transport nutrients under an umbrella in showery yearss.
The larder
The importance of a larder increased with the distance of the kitchen. It was known as “ Bottle room ” in tea cottages. It served to put and adorn nutrient bought from the kitchen. Most of the larders consisted an gap to function nutrients to the dining room.
The Geysers/Boiler
The geyser or the boilers were besides important feature of the plantation bungalows. The plantation owners used wood or coal for these boilers and there was a hot H2O connexion to each H2O supply. Geysers were placed outside the bathroom or over the ceiling. In add-on, separate Geyser suites were available dual up as drying suites for wet apparels and places in monsoon months.
Bathrooms and Toilets
The plantation cottages had monolithic scaled bathrooms with epicurean equipments as bathtubs etc: Most of the times, the maestro sleeping room had attached bathroom and in some instances, there were two suites connected to the Bathroom. Bathroom design of the plantation bungalows consisted of back door to ease retainer ‘s entree and drying the surface.
The Courtyard
The plantation cottages were consisted of in-between outer courtyard. There are good design as gardens. Most of them located at the rear side of the house and it is really clear that batch of gallery built around that. So all the services were provided through this courtyard. And besides they used these courtyards to acquire more visible radiation for interior infinites.
