Cave building techniques (cave building techniques in Northern Shaanxi)

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: cave building techniques (cave building techniques in Northern Shaanxi)

Applicant: Baota District, Yan'an City, Shaanxi Province

Item No.: 963

Project No.: VIII - 180

Time of publication: 2011 (the third batch)

Category: traditional art

Region: Shaanxi Province

Type: Extension Project

Applicant: Baota District, Yan'an City, Shaanxi Province

Protected by: cultural center of Baota District, Yan'an City

Brief introduction of cave Building Technology (cave building technology in Northern Shaanxi)

Applicant: Baota District, Yan'an City, Shaanxi Province

Northern Shaanxi is the birthplace of Chinese civilization, where mountains are large and valleys are deep. Deep loess and rich sand and stone provide unique natural conditions for the construction of caves. The ravines on the plateau are magnificent, desolate and barren. In the cruel struggle with nature, the bold and uninhibited people in Northern Shaanxi have been created. At the same time, the unique loess architecture cave in Northern Shaanxi has been born.

It has been 4500 years since the formation of the cave prototype. In the Zhou Dynasty, the half underground cave style was formed, and in the Qin and Han Dynasties, it developed into the whole underground cave style, which is now the earth kiln. The most brilliant period of cave building was in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasty. Due to the characteristics of cave dwellings, such as warm in winter and cool in summer, energy-saving and land-saving, convenient for construction and operation, cave dwellings are accepted by the majority of people in Northern Shaanxi. They are the most important residences of residents in Northern Shaanxi, and they are still in use today. They are called "living cultural relics" of raw soil buildings. Due to the high applicability of cave building in the local area, cave building skills have been inherited from generation to generation in Northern Shaanxi.

The construction technology of original ecological culture is closely related to the loess cave. Therefore, cave dwelling is not only a simple "living" space environment, but also the origin of culture and art in Northern Shaanxi. People in Northern Shaanxi have created unique Cave Dwelling Architectural skills.

Cave dwellings in Northern Shaanxi have practical values such as moisture retention, material saving, environmental protection, longevity, disaster reduction, preservation, storage, durability and so on. Whether as an individual or as a settlement group, it has its unique aesthetic value.