Photo Archive: Diaojiaolou architecture

A typical village house, built of wooden pillars and boards set on an above-ground stone foundation and with a tiled roof. Diaojiaolou is the term used to describe the characteristic side-wings which are built to project out at first-floor level. In this example the ground does not slope all that steeply, so the side-wing has had to be raised artifically high to produce the standard effect. In the foreground a pig is being prepared to celebrate Tujia New Year.