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Rethink Society

Architecture · 50+2 series · Sacred Space

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late 7th century onward

When Wood Became Monumental

Horyu-ji

The five-storied wooden pagoda of Hōryū-ji in Nara.
The Five-Storied Pagoda at Hōryū-ji, Japan.Daderot · CC0 1.0 · Wikimedia Commons · Source record

The Moment

Sophisticated timber construction produced some of the world's oldest surviving wooden buildings.

The Rethink

Architecture did not need stone to achieve monumentality and longevity.