HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE -

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 INTRODUCTION
The Maasai people compose one
of the many diverse tribes of
Africa, occupying much of
southern Kenya and northern
Tanzania.

The Maasai has received the

most written recognition of all the
tribes of this region of Africa and
prove to be very interesting to
study.

The Maasai are predominantly a

warrior tribe whose lives revolve
around herding cattle.

HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE -

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 Their lifestyle reflects the harsh
environment in which they live, with
unpredictable rainfall and difficult
agricultural conditions.

Although the tribe has developed

rather recently from their warrior,
nomadic, pastoral way of life into
a more settled people, the
traditions that characterize their
culture and their daily lives remain
virtually the same. Google earth image taken during
2012

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GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE
The Maasai people are all located in East
Africa.

They stay in the southern parts of Kenya and

northern parts of Tanzania.

The Maasai are more commonly associated

with Kenya, but they've been a presence
around the Ngorongoro Crater of Tanzania
for over a 150 years and are the area's main
residents.

They have a hot climate, its kind of like the

desert.

It's very dry and hot there all year round, but
its also slightly
HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE cold at times
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 MAASAI SETTLEMENT
Maasai families live in
an Enkang (a form of
enclosure) formed by a thick
round 'fence' of sharp thorn
bushes.

This protects the tribe and

their cattle, especially at
night, from rival tribes and
other predators.
The enkang consists of anywhere from twenty to fifty huts enclosed
by a circular thorn fence.

Each family has one or two gates in the fence.

The animals are kept in the center at night for their protection

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SATELLITE IMAGE OF MAASAI EKANG MAASAI CLUSTER
SETTLEMENT`

PANAROMIC VIEW OF AN EKANG FROM INSIDE

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MAASAI HUT

The Maasai huts are oblong in

shape, typically 2 metres by 3
metres in size, with rounded
corners and low ceilings.

On each side of the fireplace

and along the short wall are two
beds.

There is an enclosure for

calves, lambs and baby goats
to one side of the passage
leading to the living area.

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 MATERIALS USED
As a historically nomadic and
then semi-nomadic people, the
Maasai have traditionally relied
on local, readily available
materials and
indigenous technology to
construct their housing.

The huts of the Maasai are

constructed from dried cow's
dung, loam soil and hundreds
of wooden branches.

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 MAASAI HUT (BOMA) GENERAL CHARECTERISTICS
Maasai huts are very small, with perhaps
two 'rooms' and not enough height for
these tall people to stand upright or lie
fully stretched.

In the huts, there constantly burns a

small fire which, during the day serves
for the cooking and which, in the
evening, keeps away mosquitoes and
provides warmth.

The hole in the roof serves two purposes;

it lets a little light into the hut but just as
importantly it lets some smoke escape
from the smouldering (cow-dung) fire.

Except for this small hole in the sleeping

HISTORY
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 Houses are sparsely
furnished -- as you
would expect of people
whose lives necessarily
focus on needs rather
than wants.

There will be a couple of

stools beside the fire,
and animal hides to
cover the sleeping
platforms, but there is
no need for curtains.

Acacia trees are a

common feature around
the Boma and provide
shade on a sunny day.

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 SALIENT FEATURES
When it is hot outside, the temperature inside is cool and when
it is cold; which is usually the case for places like Nainokanoka
in Ngorongoro Conservation, the huts provide warm, cosy
cocoons with or without the added fire.

With the right mixture of certain soils, clay, dung and straws, the
Maasai hut not only regulate the temperature but releases
some sort of scent not easily detected by human nostrils but
which can be very effective in keeping all types of insects and
rodents away.

The other dramatic feat of any Maasai hut is their ability to let
out smoke from heathen fires to filter out of through the roof yet
not a single drop of rain can pass though the same roof.

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CONSTRUCTION PROCESS

The construction typically takes four to

1
eight days.

First, building materials must be

collected; and this involves travel to
nearby forests or many trips across the
savannah in search of the right timber
for posts.

The best branches come from

the leleshwa bush,
because termites find its wood
distasteful.

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 2 The posts are dug into the ground close
together and range from 90 to 150 cm in
height.
Cattle dung is used to moisten the sides
of the holes: and, taking each one in
turn, the woman uses a rock or heavy
piece of timber to hammer the post into
the ground. This process is repeated
several times until the pole is firmly in
place.
The poles are then tied together at the top, to
3
pieces of wood arranged horizontally; and
there is usually another line of horizontal ties
lower down.
To form the curve of the roof, thin saplings
are wedged between the top horizontal bars
and bent over to form a bridge towards the
opposite wall.
Saplings from the other walls are bent over in
the same way and tied together with vines to
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4 Smaller branches, twigs, leaves
and grass are used to fill in the
gaps between both posts and
rafters.
The outside of the house is then
plastered with a mixture of mud
(made from clay and water) and
cow dung .
The straw in the dung helps bind
the plaster together.

5 sun does the rest, as it soon
dries the plaster, and the roof will
then be waterproof -- for a while
at least.
When it leaks it will be given
another smooth coating

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6 During the building phase the plastering is
actually done in sections, beginning with
the rounded parts of the roof and finishing
with the walls.
This is probably because the corners are
the most difficult part to cover with
temporary materials if a house is occupied
while under construction.
The other sections can easily be covered
with hides on cold nights as seen here.

7 Traditionally there were

no windows and no real chimney
-- just a small hole (perhaps!) in
the roof near the fireplace.
As a result it was dark inside and,
since every house had a
fireplace, it was also very smoky .

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8. The doorway (about 50 cm in width) is often concealed
by an overlap or false wall (much like a snail's shell) to keep
out cows. Calves can enter easily, but adults must bend
down to get inside .
9. The door itself was traditionally made of reeds held
together by strips of leather .

10. Indoors the layout is almost always the same. The

main section, furthest from the door and in the centre of
the far wall, is a combined cooking and eating, living and
sleeping area.

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 DRAWBACKS OF MASAI HUTS
The mud absorbs a lot of water, causing the structure to swell when
the rains come and to shrink in sunny weather.

This causes cracks to appear which allow not only water but also
insects to infiltrate the house, including termites.

To prevent cracks from appearing, the walls have to be replastered

with cow dung every two years.

In addition, the low ceilings force the occupants to stoop.

The use of an open fire creates a smokey interior that is a health

hazard.

Years of living in poorly lit, smoke-filled huts has taken its toll.
Elderly women develop bloodshot eyes.
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PRESENT MAASAI HUTS
The Maasai people have adopted a number of techniques to improve
the comfort and durability of their homes.

In order to raise the ceiling and strengthen the structure, they

replaced the existing poles with sturdier, longer ones.

To prevent water leakage, they designed roofs with eaves and

overhangs. A polythene sheet was spread across the roof to form a
second layer of protection over the cow dung.

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 To ensure the mud plaster would not erode over time, the
Maasai women started to add bitumen and kerosene oil to the
adobe mixture of clay and sand.

The adobe was then blended with cow dung to produce a hard
cement.

Once the walls had been plastered, they were polished with
trowels to give a smooth finish.

Sloping aprons were also introduced at the foot of the walls to protect
them from splashing rain.

One of the models proposes an additional feature: troughs made of

ferro-cement that are fitted round the roof overhangs to catch rainwater
and channel it into drums at the base of the structure

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 In old bomas stove was at the center. In the new model, the
stove was relocated in a corner and surrounded on two sides
by a clay brick wall 7080 cm high in order to help direct
smoke upward
A hood or chimney to channel smoke outside completed the
picture.
The windows were also enlarged to let in more light and
improve ventilation.
Lastly, a simple indoor lighting system based on solar water
bulbs was installed

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ADVANTAGES OF IMPROVISED TECHNIQUES
Reduced number of household accidents due to improved
lighting from having bigger windows and a higher roof.

Reduction in communicable diseases due to the introduction of

sanitation.

Reduced incidence of eye cataracts and lung disease due to

improved ventilation.

Greatly reduced number of vermin and rodents in the houses.

Safe water is now available from the roof catchments.

A reduction in the number of trees being cut.

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 THANKYOU

SIDDHI VASHI

AAYUSHI GAJJAR

SANJANA APPACHU

HETALI PATEL

NAMRATA MAIWALA

KARAN SOLANKI

KINJAL DESAI

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