India · Dry Stone Masonry; Timber-Laced Construction; Vernacular Architecture; Architectural Craft
Kath-kuni (Kathkuni); also kath-kona; kath-ki-kanni (Sarahan area); related term dhol-maide
A building method of the western Himalaya in which thick double-skin walls are made by alternating courses of dry stone with pairs of horizontal deodar (Himalayan cedar) beams, tied together by timber dovetail cross-pieces (maanwi) and corner dowels (kadil), without mortar. The gap between the two beams is packed with small stones, rubble or straw. The heavy stone base is topped by lighter timber storeys, and the roof is slate or wooden shingles on a timber frame. Doors and windows are few and small, with heavy wooden frames. The method is credited with the survival of Naggar Castle and other buildings in the 1905 Kangra earthquake, and is documented as ductile and earthquake-resistant. It is built by local carpenters and masons, knowledge passed down from generation to generation, and is now rare among new construction.
Risk level: Endangered · Not listed by UNESCO. No national or state heritage-craft listing was found in the sources consulted.
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