Dai: Or the Tai and their Architecture & Customs in South China, The

Bangkok : White Lotus, 1992. Paperback. Good/no dj. 1.0. Zhu Liangwen. This book is the first of its kind in the English language to deal extensively with the architecture of the Dai peoples of South China. It includes sections about Dai customs, ceremonies and beliefs, animistic as well as Buddhist, which are presented in parallel with physical descriptions of houses, villages and monasteries. The evolution of the houses on stilts, characteristic of Dai and indeed all Tai people, is discussed both in functional terms and in relation to aspects of the Dai mythology of Sipsong-panna. The cultural comparison between Dai and other Tai groups extends to symbolisms and the role of cosmology in determining the forms of monastic architecture. The authors produced a technically precise work which is stimulating and exceptionally well illustrated. Architects in the region may well draw lessons from the array of design �grammar� contained in these pages.