The 73-year-old carpenter built a small wooden house of more than 30 square meters in his home in the city. It took him half a year and spent less than 10,000 yuan.
This old carpenter’s name is Peng Zhejun, and he comes from Guiyang, Guizhou. He has many "special powers", such as building a house without nails, his brain can "make" construction drawings, he can see good wood at a glance, and he can build a house without power tools...
"I want my grandson to Let’s see what the houses we lived in in the countryside looked like before, and let them understand the culture of mortise and tenon construction.” With this original intention, Peng Zhejun, who is nearly 70 years old, spent half a year building this log cabin.
"Make" construction drawings in your mind
Different from the construction of modern buildings, you need to make repeated measurements and draw drawings. "It's all here." The old man proudly pointed to his silver-haired head, "We carpenters always use our brains to build houses."
Before starting work, he "drawn" the drawings in his mind Li: He has to think about the appearance, the internal structure, and the details many times and constantly revise them.
Then mentally estimate the amount and type of wood based on the "drawing". "The wood used to build a house is very particular. Fir is the best for beams. It won't get infected by insects or rot. Catalpa wood has a tight structure and can be used for windows." After everything was calculated in his mind, he Construction started.
Good wood can be seen at a glance
The old man went to the scrap market to buy the wood for this cabin. He spent less than 10,000 yuan and bought about 5 cubic meters. Meters of cedar material. Among them, he also found a piece of golden nanmu worth 300,000 to 400,000 yuan. He bought it for only 700 yuan and built it into a long table at home.
The whole house does not require a single nail
The wooden house built by Peng Zhejun uses a traditional mortise and tenon structure, and the parts are firmly fixed together through various nesting structures. No need to use a nail. This kind of structure is strong and durable, and there is no problem of hardware rust and corrosion. Barring accidents such as fire, this kind of wooden house can last for sixty or seventy years.
Building a wooden house is also a laborious job, not to mention that the old man is now 73 years old. But he insists on using traditional tools. He feels that they are more convenient to use, and the operation is less noisy and will not disturb the neighbors.
On the day when the beams of the cabin were erected, the old man’s relatives and friends came to help. The children also found it interesting and ran forward and backward.
But most of the time he completed the work alone: ??making doors, carving windows, and making furniture. The completed cabin is a smaller version of Peng Zhejun's ancestral home in his hometown.
The end of the carpenter's career
This cabin is likely to be the last elevated carpentry work of Peng Zhejun's carpenter career. He said that he is old and can no longer do it. , can only do fine carpentry work.
In addition to being unable to work anymore, Peng Zhejun found that the number of carpenters in his hometown was also gradually decreasing because people preferred to live in cement houses. The carpentry industry has gradually been forgotten by people living in reinforced concrete high-rise buildings.
Although it feels like a pity, the old man feels that this is understandable. "Times are developing, technology is advancing, and people are willing to live a modern life that is quick and easy." He said, "In building this cabin, I just hope that the skills of our craftsmen will not disappear in the future."
The soul of wooden architecture - mortise and tenon joints
The wooden house built by Peng Zhejun used mortise and tenon joint structure, which is the main structural method of traditional Chinese architecture. Ancient people did not use nails or glue when building houses, but used mortise and tenon joints to connect different building components. As shown in the picture below, the protruding part is called a tenon and the recessed part is called a mortise.
The essence of thousands of years of Chinese traditional architectural culture is condensed between tenons and tenons. Later, this craft was spread to Japan and passed down from generation to generation by Japanese craftsmen. In Japan, this craft is called "Kawai Step Hand".
The possibility of mortise and tenon joints in modern architecture
Today, mortise and tenon structures are still used in the manufacture of some wooden furniture, but in the construction process of modern housing, this tradition of building structures have been replaced by reinforced concrete. However, the famous Japanese architect Shigeru Ban ingeniously used mortise and tenon joints in the construction of modern buildings. He built a mortise and tenon structure building in Zurich, Switzerland, which amazed the world.
In the tamedia building, the mortise and tenon structure is perfectly combined with modern architecture. From this, we also see the possibility of traditional handicrafts being revitalized in modern life.
Going back to the cabin built by the old man at the beginning of the article, it seems a bit lonely among the reinforced concrete houses in the city. However, it is precisely because of these "Peng Zhejun" who adhere to traditional craftsmanship that ancient wisdom and culture can be passed down and remain standing in the rolling tide of the times.
(Source: Global Network, JianE Interior Design Network, Dalang Aisha Blog, Zhulong.com; NetEase Home Comprehensive Collection)