Author(s)

E. Koshi, T. Tsuchimoto

Abstract

Munamochibashira (base-to-ridge-posts) are posts that rise from the ground to directly support the ridge. They are an important object of study in examining the origin, transformation, and spread of an architectural culture. It is already known that buildings with base-to-ridge-posts exist in vernacular architecture from research in Asia and Europe, but this type of building in Central America has not been discussed in previous studies. In 2013, we conducted a field study in Central America and observed this type of building. In Mexico, we frequently found buildings with base-to-ridge-posts in vernacular architecture. Moreover, we found buildings of this type: 1) among wooden buildings designated as UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites on the American continent; 2) in villages around Tapalpa, about 120 km from Guadalajara; and 3) in academic books and research reports in Spanish that we obtained in Mexico and reports in Spanish or English collected afterwards.

In this paper, we report the findings of our field and literature studies concerning buildings with base-to-ridge-posts among structures made by the indigenous people of Mexico. We will also demonstrate that the origin of buildings with base-to-ridge-posts on the American continents could be Asia or Europe. Since we directly observed buildings with base-to-ridge-posts in Mexico and established that there are base-to-ridge-post styles of architecture on the American continents, we claim that the continents are part of cultural areas that have buildings with base-to-ridge posts. Consequently, we maintain that Central America is a highly important field of study in investigating the history of buildings with base-to-ridge-posts from the prehistoric era on a worldwide scale.

Keywords

Mexico, munamochibashira (base-to-ridge posts), Indio, continents, transmission and culture, origin