Bhutan’s Traditional Building Materials

Local construction materials and building materials used traditionally in Bhutan to build bridges, chortens, dzongs, houses, palaces, temples, monasteries and even utilitarian items mostly consisted of stone, rammed earth, local timber or wood and bamboo. The construction of the outer walls of palaces, temples, monasteries, stupas and large fortresses along with other buildings used masonry and stone arts. Wood and timber is easily available in Bhutan and is used extravagantly for structural elements including windows, doors, stairs, balconies, columns, beams and ornate decorative cornices to be placed around the upper edges of the structure, just below the roof and above doors and windows. On the lower floors, you will often find very narrow timber windows while larger three-lobed windows can be found at the top floor.

Bhutanese often paint windows and doors profusely in bright colors giving a colorful and festive appearance to their houses and buildings. Colorful paintings using floral, animal and religious motifs are quite common. Wooden flooring and ceilings are quite popular in Bhutan. The ‘flying roof’ is unique to Bhutanese houses. This type of rood is high and made of wooden shingles kept in place with small stones, thus, leaving a large, open and breezy space just under the roof. Staircase often consists of a single log of wood with ledges cut on one side. Murals and carvings on Lord Buddha and other deities can be seen on walls and altars of religious places in Bhutan and almost every house in the country has a wooden altar with statues of the Buddha and the great gurus.