India: four canonical city plans
Drawn up around 500 AD, these four plans are based on the Mandala principles of organizing space and have religious symbolism.
Interestingly, they show studied variations on an undelying grid.
Also, though attempting to interpret a conceptual cosmological order, they share many practical elements with other plans of their time: Moat, embankment, perimeter wall, four gates and towers, two main traversing avenues and a central space for civic functions. Streets form a hierarchy by virtue of position and width, in three of the four plans.The known traffic at the time was mostly on foot, on horse or horse and cart ,which existend in the Hindus valley since at least 1500 BC
Earlier, Roman castra e.g. Timgad (100 AD) followed similar organization, though with a uniform simple grid. Around 1500, Renaissance architects will draw analogous plans for ideal cities. (See Palmanova).
Curioulsy, there has not been a sigle buit example of these plans since they were drawn.
(these drawings were redrawn from:Jan Pieper ,1975. Three Cities of Nepal - in Shelter, Sign & Symbol, ed. Paul Oliver , 1975 Barrie and Jenkins Ltd, UK)
.
India: four canonical city plans
Drawn up around 500 AD, these four plans are based on the Mandala principles of organizing space and have religious symbolism.
Interestingly, they show studied variations on an undelying grid.
Also, though attempting to interpret a conceptual cosmological order, they share many practical elements with other plans of their time: Moat, embankment, perimeter wall, four gates and towers, two main traversing avenues and a central space for civic functions. Streets form a hierarchy by virtue of position and width, in three of the four plans.The known traffic at the time was mostly on foot, on horse or horse and cart ,which existend in the Hindus valley since at least 1500 BC
Earlier, Roman castra e.g. Timgad (100 AD) followed similar organization, though with a uniform simple grid. Around 1500, Renaissance architects will draw analogous plans for ideal cities. (See Palmanova).
Curioulsy, there has not been a sigle buit example of these plans since they were drawn.
(these drawings were redrawn from:Jan Pieper ,1975. Three Cities of Nepal - in Shelter, Sign & Symbol, ed. Paul Oliver , 1975 Barrie and Jenkins Ltd, UK)
.