Facades of Historic Shop-Cum-Houses in Colonial Cantonment Towns in Bengal Presidency, India

Abstract

The historic quarters are an integral part of the urban fabric of a city and grant identity and character to it. These are the containers of both tangible and intangible cultural heritage. The market places of Colonial Cantonment towns in Indian sub-continent are one such type of settlement which are the display houses of architecture, art, social interactions, community participations and life style habits of the occupants at the time of their establishment. These historic urban landscapes are hubs of trade and commercial activities and showcase their transformation over the years. One of the unique typologies of structures which evolved with Colonization were the shop-cum-houses. This paper focuses on the shop-cum-houses as built heritage within the market places of Colonial Cantonment towns in the Bengal Presidency of India. This research paper studies the architectural elements and features on the facades of these structures within the Sadar Bazaar areas and analysis the evolution of the architectural style over the decades. The analysis is done through the survey of level II and III during which physical features were documented. The study reveals the impact of global architecture on the local craftsmanship and styles along with some characteristic features that were found persistent throughout granting identity to these historic landscapes.