Some Fancy Architecture in Sumatra

The roof design of the 'Minangkabau' houses were said to be taken from that of the two pointed ends of the buffaloe horns and some say that they were also designed as a deterent to wayward spirits that might try crash landing into the homes.
Whatever the reasons or origin maybe the roof of these homes stood out on their own as a symbol,of a distinct cultural heritage of the Central Sumatran people known as the Minangkabaus.

As elegant as the design may be for the roof the ornate design for the rest of the building structure itself is no less creative in colors and textures.
Here i sat with one of the owners ofone such colorful building worthy of being adopted as a world heritage.

I am sure there more well decorated buildings around that I have missed on my trip but still just to see one such work of beauty and love poured into a structure just as thought it is a piece of sculpture is heart warming.

Standing against the backdrop of palm trees the Minangkabau roof is like an ancient temple.

In Indonesia, the construction of the house symbolizes the division of the macrocosm into three regions: the upper world, the seat of deities and ancestors. The typical way of buildings in Southeast Asia is to build on stilts, an architectural form usually combined with a saddle roof. Another characteristic of Southeast Asian houses is the forked horn on the roof, which is considered to be a symbol of the buffalo, regarded throughout the region as a link between Heaven and this world. The most famous stilt houses of Indonesia are those of the Dayak in Borneo, the Minangkabau and Batak on Sumatra, and the Toraja on Sulawesi.

Mosques are pretty much standard in design wherever you see them in Sumatra

The houses have dramatic curved roof structure with multi-tiered, upswept gables. According to Minangkabau tradition, the roof shapes was meant to mimic the horn of buffalo. Shuttered windows are built into walls incised with profuse painted floral carvings. The term rumah gadang usually refers to the larger communal homes, however, smaller single residences share many of its architectural elements.

The Batak communal house or perhaps a church is no less as exciting is design as the Minangkabau homes. An ancient story was told of the rivalry of the two that ended in the adaptation of the present designs used in the designing of the roofs.

Click on the picture to see better!