San Antonio College Library

Discusses seventeen examples of unusual construction throughout history, including the Tower of Babel, the Globe Theater, igloos, log cabins, the Great Wall of China, and a lost city of the Incas.

"Commonsense Architecture depicts indigenous architecture's responsiveness to human needs and to the environment, with examples from all parts of the world. The book is not a treatise against technology, but rather a catalogue of commonsense principles that can help us use technology as an efficient tool instead of as a cloak for inefficient designs." --

All over the world there is a reawakening of interest in local, traditional approaches to architecture. In Mexico, nearly five centuries after the Spanish Conquest, the descendants of the Aztec and the Maya may no longer build pyramids, but their rural dwellings reflect the past in other ways: perfectly adapted to their environment, they incorporate natural materials such as palm for thatching, wattle, stones, adobe bricks and wood. They include...

A study of farm houses from across the country, their exteriors and interiors. Includes more than 250 colored photographs.

Looks at hand-hewn wooden houses, barns, chalets, and storehouses in Switzerland, Germany, Austria, and Scandinavia.