Building Technologies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Building Technologies - Essay Example Social shaping of a building technology is related to the ways and customs, in which the physical structure, apparatus, and modus operandi used, cooperate with the social needs and customs of the community. The characteristic plan of the medieval cities was built with a spacious design, which was always enclosed by city walls, reflecting a grid arrangement. The most idiosyncratic feature of the medieval cities was the colossal community locales or edifices. These edifices were brought into use for the purpose of water supply, amusement, business, and administration. The average income families lived in open areas as compared to the rich who resided in high raised apartments. A medieval city could be called as a "densely congested network of narrow winding streets, lined with high house fronts, a pattern relieved only occasionally by open squares and marketplaces." (Friedrichs, in Chant, p147) enclosed by closely fortified barricades with shielded entrances and fortified towers. The building technology used up for military also affected the lay out of the medieval cities. When the military had to settle in populated areas, they used to build their own towns that were typical of the military model. The basic form of these medieval cities were in the fortified walls and castles shaped directly to help the military and weapon siege techniques. Stone city walls restricted external city development, hence the affinity for houses and buildings to be intimately packed together and to be built high. The material of walls used was concrete, which was used in combination with brick and mortar which made the walls strong to defend the city in times of invasion. Since the supply of land was restricted within the walls, concrete buildings were allowed to 5 storey. The medieval cities also used up a large quality of natural materials, like wood and stone for the construction purposes. Lime-mortar and wall reinforcement through the use of sandstone columns allowed Islamic cities to expand when mud-bricks did not allow buildings above a single storey (Chant & Goodman, 1999: p137). In addition, the religious buildings in a medieval city were the focus of the common people. The structure and design of these buildings involved the forms of Roman Basilica but adapted to hold a larger audience. At times, new technologies were also experimented which allowed for the establishment of very high cathedrals that subjugated the perceptible room of medieval cities. In medieval cities, the use of horse for transport purposes soon replaced the use of ox, for the agricultural use. This was necessary, as the crowded cities were not built to allow for the passage for wheeled vehicles. To conclude, the medieval building style imposed a level of universality of beliefs, speech, and administration outlines. The communal areas for use or entertainment and religious buildings brought reputation to the head of state. Thus we can say that the medieval cities were socially shaped. Bibliography 1. Alsford, Steven, "Florilegium Urbanum", http://www.trytel.com/tristan/towns/florilegium/flor00.html [27 April 2003; consulted on 26 June 2004] 2. "Armenian Architechture - Virtual ANI", http://www.virtualani.freeserve.co.uk/