Abstract
A big part of traditional architecture both in rural and urban areas in the Greek territory has been built with raw earth. The aim of this paper is to present earthen buildings’ constructions in Greece and show their important contribution to our heritage. The use of earth as a basic constructing material has given different earthen building cultures and techniques. Earthen construction encloses many varied uses and applications, as walls or as plasters. In different periods of time and historical contexts, from the indigenous inhabitants to the neighborhoods of the refugees of Asia Minor Catastrophe, the earth constructions had a primary role. The existence of earthen architecture was investigated in urban and rural sites in Greece. Building information, documentation, and records of buildings’ design, construction techniques, elements, and systems are presented. Today, there is still a rich architectural heritage throughout the country, which has lasted through the years and withstood seismic activities and poor conservation.
Highlights
The use of earth as a building material has had a dynamic presence and development in Greece throughout time
The documentation is the evidence provided for existing earthen constructions, Figure 1
From this study that has been conducted on the earthen architecture in Greece, it can be concluded that an important percentage of earthen construction in rural and urban areas still exists
Summary
The use of earth as a building material has had a dynamic presence and development in Greece throughout time. Since the earliest ancient Greek civilizations, it has had a central role in the organization of building technology; in combination with other natural materials like wood (more or less processed), straw, cane, and lime, various building techniques emerged and developed. Since the second half of the 20th century, the use of earth as a main building material declined: it lost its importance, was ignored, and eventually forgotten. Contemporary environmental issues have contributed to the re-evaluation of this material and its particular features. The earthen constructions have reappeared during the past ten years in contemporary architecture
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