Visiting Hakka Tulous

YONGDING, HAKKA TULOU 14
Originally uploaded by AuRoRiN & MoOoK.

The round hakka tulous were built using mud bricks and wood, without nails according the a chinese 'ba gua' format (round on the outside, octagonal in the inside) which makes it a truly remarkable feat considering the durability and functionality of the architecture. The unusual structure helps it to retain heat in the winter and keep things cool and ventilated in the summer.

Each 'octagonal' side within the round tulous are reinforced with bricks, which serves as a natural firebreak, hence one section of the building can be burned down (accidents or during war time), the other parts can remain intact. The damage area can be easily rebuild to connect to the rest of the structure again.

It is really quite majestic when viewed from the top though most tulou cannot be more than 4 or 5 stories high due to the foundations. When looked from the side, the other walls of the round tulous actually curved slightly inwards which helped in creating a natural incline for the inside roofs to shelter each floor from the damange of sun and rain. The foundations are usually around 3m deep with the width at the bottom of the other walls around 1.8m while the top is around 1.2m. Due to the thickness of the walls, despite the years of sun & rain, the buildings remain sturdy though cracks and erosion occurs.