Symbolic Meaning

Vernacular architects have at their disposal not only what they have assimil­ated from books, travel and the work of their ancestors but a lot of hard-wired knowledge as well. Human beings have an innate understanding of certain forms. We are born liking some shapes more than others, and our favorites turn up frequently in the art of young children and in every culture. Among these is the icon representing our collective idea of home. Everyone will un­doubtedly recognize the depiction of a structure with a pitched roof, a chim­ney accompanied by a curlicue of smoke and a door flanked by mullioned windows. Children draw this as repeatedly and as spontaneously as they do faces and animals. It represents our shared idea of home, and, not supris — ingly, it includes some of the most essential parts of an effective house. With little exception, a pitched roof to deflect the elements, with a well-marked entrance leading into a warm interior, with a view to the world outside are ex­actly what are necessary to a freestanding home. For a vernacular designer, any deviation from this ideal is dictated by the particular needs posed by local climate.

The symbolic meaning of common architectural shapes is as universal as the use of the shapes themselves. Just as surely as we look for meaning in our everyday world, the most common things in our world do become meaning­ful. That the symbolism behind these objects is virtually the same from culture to culture may say something about the nature of our less corporal desires. It seems necessary that we see ourselves as part of an undivided universe. Through science, religion, and art, we strive to make this connection. On an intuitive level, home reminds us that the self and its environment are inextri­cable. Archetypes like the pierced gable are not contrived, but rather turn up naturally wherever necessity is allowed to dictate form and its content.

It just so happens that the most practical shapes are also the most symbolic­ally loaded. Those forms best-suited to our physical needs have come to hold special meaning for us. The standard gabled roof not only represents our most primal idea of shelter, but also embodies the most universal of all abstract concepts, that of All-as-One. This theme has been the foundation for virtually every religion and government in history, and there may very well be an illustration of it in your purse or wallet at this very moment.

The image of the pyramid on the back of the U. S. dollar represents the four sides of the universe (All) culminating at their apex as the eye of God (One). The phrase "E Pluribus Unum” (from many, one) appears elsewhere on the bill along with no less than three other references to the archetype.

The common gable with a window at its center is vernacular architecture’s one-eyed pyramid. The duality of its two sides converging at their singular peak represents divinity, and is again underscored by a single central win­dow. All of this rests on four walls, which are universally symbolic of the cosmos.

Form and Number

The meaning of numbers and shapes is as universal as the use of the shapes themselves. Those that turn up in nature most often, like circles, squares, 1,1.6, 2, 3, 4, 12 and 28 tend to be the most sym­bolically loaded.

One is a single point without dimension, typically represented by the circle created when a line is drawn around the point with a compass. One symbolizes the divine through its singularity.

Two adds dimension through the addition of a second point. It is commonly depicted by the Vesica Piscis shape that occurs when two circles overlap. It represents duality and creativity.

Three brings balance back to two. It is represented by the triangle and symbol­izes variations on the Trinity.

Four, as embodied by the square, typi­cally represents the world we live in, with its four cardinal directions.