Cow-dung house stands strong

It took three years for Ms Iswanti Suparma to erect her sustainable "earthbag house" (left) in Yogyakarta and it was done with much trial and error. The house has no corners and is hence less susceptible to seismic waves.
It took three years for Ms Iswanti Suparma to erect her sustainable "earthbag house" (above) in Yogyakarta and it was done with much trial and error. The house has no corners and is hence less susceptible to seismic waves. ST PHOTO: ARLINA ARSHAD
It took three years for Ms Iswanti Suparma to erect her sustainable "earthbag house" (left) in Yogyakarta and it was done with much trial and error. The house has no corners and is hence less susceptible to seismic waves.
It took three years for Ms Iswanti Suparma (above) to erect her sustainable "earthbag house" in Yogyakarta and it was done with much trial and error. The house has no corners and is hence less susceptible to seismic waves. ST PHOTO: ARLINA ARSHAD
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Two round cylindrical towers with thatched roofs stand out among ordinary brick houses in Indonesia's historical province of Yogyakarta.

Trees and lush plants circle the home. Its interior is bathed in green and orange light thanks to glass bottles slotted into the cow-dung-plastered walls.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on February 09, 2019, with the headline Cow-dung house stands strong. Subscribe