Fujian Tulou
1 min readFujian Tulou is a property of 46 buildings constructed between the 15th and 20th centuries over 120 kilometers in southwest of Fujian Province. Set amongst rice, tea and tobacco fields, the Tulous are earthen houses.
The Tulous are several stories high, they are built along an inward-looking, circular or square floor planning as housing for up to 800 people each. They are built for defence around a central open courtyard with only one entrance and window to the outside above the first floor.
Housing a whole clan, the houses functioned as village units and they were known as “a little kingdom for the family”or “bustling small city.”They featured tall fortified mud walls capped by tiled roofs with wide over-hanging eaves.
The most elaborate structures date back to the 17th and 18th centuries. The buildings were divided vertically among families with each disposing of two or three rooms on each floor. In contrast with their plain exterior, the inside of the Tulous were built for comfort and were often highly decorated.
They are considered as special examples of a building tradition,a particular type of public living and defensive organization, and outstanding examples of human community in terms of their harmonious relationship with the environment.
