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 MUD ARCHITECTURE IN RURAL AREAS OF PAKISTAN :

MUD AS CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL :

The villages in Pakistan are predominantly composed of mud

houses or cottages built with stone and timber. A huge amount of use is made of mud.

The first thing to notice is that mud is one thing in one place and a different thing in
another. It is used for different purposes and is used in different ways.

USE OF MUD :

Mud – a mixture of earth and water – is economical, practical, functional and attractive. It
is easy to work with, and it takes decoration well. Mud is especially useful in humid and hot climates like
we have in Pakistan. Mud is a natural material that is found in abundance, especially where other
building materials such as bricks, stone or wood are scarce due to affordability and or availability. In
Pakistan, use of mud has evolved from local necessity. This is why the use of extremely sticky mud
deposited found along river banks or elsewhere in Pakistan combined with appropriate technology
makes an excellent material to build functional and climate friendly buildings.
IMPORTANCE :

The future lies in mud architecture. Building living spaces with mud is a tradition dating back
to the start of civilizations. Some excellent examples from The Great Mosque – the world’s largest mud
building and UNESCO’s World Heritage site to the oldest surviving mud specimens found in the Harappa
Pakistan, show the continuation and importance of mud buildings.

EXAMPLES OF RURAL AREA MUD STRUCTURES :

Mud architecture varies from place to place – every part of Pakistan caters to
different people who prefer living in different types of homes, due to a number of reasons.The choice of
different architecture comes after taking many issues in account – the environment, weather, the locals
and most of all, their budget. However, a home is a home – and everybody loves their own the same.
Some examples include :

RURAL AREAS OF LAHORE :

On the whole, the vernacular architectural tradition of Pakistan takes a variety of forms,
techniques and materials according to its varying climates.

In the riverine plains of Punjab with extremes of hot-dry and hot-humid weather, earth is
the most easily available building material. Thick walls are built, due to their insulating qualities, and
timber is reserved for the roof structure. Openings are usually kept to a minimum to reduce heat gains.
 The mud dwellings of Bilal Nagar and especially Jabbo, with their molecular
settlement pattern and use of vegetation in most courtyard houses blend beautifully with the landscape.

One of the most interesting aspects of the dwellings is their decorations of

functional elements such as openings, niches, storage spaces, kitchen cabinets and especially boundary
walls. The boundary walls are very low, to emphasize the communal, clan feeling which prevails among
the dwellers, with very little requirement for privacy.

Out of the various techniques of wall construction available, such as cob,

wattle and daub, teroni and adobe, cob was used in the dwellings illustrated here.

2) Houses of Thar, Sindh :

These huts are called “Chaunras” – one hut rooms with roofs that are thatched and
the rest of the building is made out of mud.
 3) Houses of rural Punjab :
Rural Punjab caters to simple blocked mud houses with wooden entrances – such is
the condition of almost all of Pakistan’s rural areas.

4) Houses of rural Balochistan :

The only difference between mud houses of rural Balochistan and rest of Pakistan is
that the mud is carved in traditional Balochi embroidery as shown in the picture.

CONCLUSION :

The mud architecture is a great resource that focuses on architecture constructed of mud
brick, rammed earth, compressed earth block and other methods of earthen construction. The
proliferation of the concept to use mud and improved techniques in order to raise the level of living in the
population is a very welcome idea and we in Pakistan need that. This can go a long way not only in the
form of changing the look of population centres, rural as well as urban, but also in solving environmental
problems and problems related to the use of energy and other finite resources.