HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVIES OF DOMESTIC ARCHITECTURE IN KANCHIPURAM

by J. Sumathi

ISBN: 978-9385459092

About the Book

“The author has discussed persuasively how the domestic architecture associated with caste, profession, and social status has influenced city planning in ancient Kanchipuram. Her research is of exceptional quality, outstanding, well-balanced, and innovative in an area never really studied before in its entirety. She has assembled diverse information from various Tamil literature like Perumpāṇāṟṟuppaḍai in Pattuppāṭṭu, Kanchipurāṇam, etc., on Brahman houses, multi-storied houses, houses of peasants, thatched huts, sheds for animals, dwellings meant for different professions like traders, weavers, fishermen, salt merchants. The ground floor plans are very accurately drafted which shows her talents in architecture and understanding of the organization of space. The work is of exceptional quality supplemented by annexes that detail precisely on various aspects of her research. The study of sculpture and painting on domestic architecture is admirable. Aware of the difficulties of the subject, I can only pay tribute to this work, which required extensive knowledge and a good mastery of ancient languages, notions of archaeology, art history, and above all architecture.”

– Osmund Bopearachchi
Director of Research (Retd.)
French National Centre for Scientific Research (C.N.R.S), Paris, France
Visiting Professor at the Yale University and University of California, Berkeley

About the Author

J. Sumathi obtained her Doctorate from the University of Madras for her research work on “Historical Perspectives of Domestic Architecture in Kanchipuram” under the guidance of    Dr. Nanditha Krishna. She did her post-graduation from the Department of Indian History, University of Madras. She works as an Assistant Professor at C.P. Ramaswami Aiyar Institute of Indological Research, Chennai.