When people mention tulous, they probably think of round tulous. As the round tulou has distinct characteristics. It is high, giant, and complex. Generally speaking, round tulous can be divided into small, medium, and large types. Small round tulous are normally two or three storeys and consist of a single ring; medium round tulous are three or four storeys high and have wide diameters or two rings; large ones are four or five storeys with two rings or even three rings. However, even the smaller round tulous have at least 12 divisions. Lu Bingjie divided round tulous into five categories according to the divisions.
Minium size: divisions 12-18
Small size: divisions 21-21
Medium size: divisions 30-40
Large size: divisions 42-58
Maxium size: divisions 60-72
Different sizes round Tulous
The small round tulous are seldom seen, A large number of round tulous are of medium size. The tulou is not a single building it is occupied normally by a kin group. As a result it is more like an apartment or a small village rather than a single building.
Round tulous normally have only one fortified door. Behind the door is the foyer. This is not only the major access, but also the public space for the occupants. Because of its south orientation. The natural ventilation is ideal. No matter what size and how many storeys of round tulous, the room sizes are the same at the same location on each floor. The ground floor is always the kitchen. If there are only two storeys, the first floor becomes the bed-room. Most round tulous are three or four storeys. The first floor becomes a storage room for food and furniture. The storage room does not have any windows. The second floor and above are bedrooms in this case. They have small windows, which open to the outside, and a larger widow opening to corridor. The corridors are built on the extension of the beams of the lower floor. As a result, the ground floor is free of columns, and creates a large open space. The interesting thing is the small eaves on the second or third floors. The obvious function is for drainage. However, the space created under the eaves can be used as a storage place.
refering to Huaiyuanlou Plans
The number of stair cases in a round tulou is normally four. The location of staircases is chosen by the Fengshui master. Sometimes there are not evenly distributed. In the very center of the round tulous is the central hall. It could be a family shrine, meeting place or even the teaching place. There are one to three wells in the central void according to the size of the the tulous. There are also agricultural facilities set up in the void. But the livestock and toilet are normally built outside the tulous.
Large Multi-ring round tulous (click
for large image)