Shelter is considered to be one of the most important necessities alongside food and clothing which is exactly why improving the building of a shelter will further improve the productiveness and usefulness of the building as it will help not just shelter but perform necessary activities. [1]
Apparently, the oldest house, which is possibly predicted to be the first house, was built 1.5 million years ago, called the Oldupai Gorge. Gorge is home to many discoveries of human ancestors and the technology used for survival at that time. This apparent shelter is located in Tanzania. [3, 4]
A picture take of Olduvai Gorge. all rights to the owner
Houses or at that time called, shelter, used to be no more than that; a shelter. or that is what human kind thought before they started the evolution from the stone ages. Shelter used to be simply a place that helps protect the person from weather, predators, and also being simply a place to rest in. the forms of these shelters were places that easily adapt to the environment. The two obvious examples of shelter are trees and caves. Trees have been the ultimate form of shelter for humans as the animals couldn't climb them but they couldn't protect the humans from extreme weathers. Caves are also the ultimate shelter for humans as they provide protection from extreme weathers and animals most of the times.
A picture of a cave located in a mountain rock.
As time went past and human kind began to evolve, Man started finding ways of creating shelters with stones, bones and tree branches.
An image of a shelter made of bones
As humans evolved, they started creating tools that would help improve the structure of their shelters with the use of clay brick and wood. Clay bricks started evolving a lot in the Greek and Egyptian times and was soon evolved by the Romans as they started inserted pipes in the roofs and walls as a source of heating the house during the cold weather. [5]
A picture showing the ancient architecture of houses in Egypt.
The chinese found their own creative way of building which consists of three components: the foundation platform, the timber frame, and the decorative roof. They have created their own unique cultural shelter by making their buildings at sharp angles, layering brackets that cross each other and making a four angled roof at the top of the building. [5]
A picture of The Songyue Pagoda, one of the few surviving sixth-century pagoda.
By the time it has reached the middle ages, shelters started being improved with the use of heavy timber wood and the gaps filled with clay to support the structure of the building as well as its stability. Some of those structures started to have stone walls made of brick or stone, smeared with clay. that allowed the person to live in and where rooms were built based on the needs such as stables for horses, shops for weapons, kitchens and prisons. [5]
Picture taken of Vieux-château, built in the 14th century.
People after the middle ages, started to become more modernized and more interested and intrigued by the designs therefore there started to be more focus on the aesthetics of the building therefore architecturally using materials that become easy to use such as bricks and iron to give the buildings an aesthetic vibe. People made large amounts of glass windows to be used in the design as technology started to improve. People started to put more effort into thinking what could be more brought of the idea of it being a shelter. [5]
A picture showing how people started think architecturally of buildings.
Nowadays, or in this contemporary era, shelters aren't just shelters but more than that, but mostly highly towered buildings built with concrete and steel to give a modern vibe and make them more stabilized. Man will continue to explore the ways of what a shelter is and could be. [5]
References: [1] http://sheltertwc.weebly.com/history-and-evolution.html. [2] http://sheltertwc.weebly.com/history-and-evolution.html. [3] https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/who-built-the-first-house-and-what-even-is-a-house/. [4] https://www.maropeng.co.za/news/entry/olduvai_gorge_the_home_of_early_stone_tool_technology. [5] http://sheltertwc.weebly.com/history-and-evolution.html . [6]
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