#chaqchan

The Government of Pakistan has listed the inclusion of the Chaqchan Mosque as a Pakistan’s Heritage Site.

The mosque is currently in use after restoration and preservation works.

Building 

The building is a two storey square complex with an attic atop, is constructed using wood and clay. The Tibetan style of half-timbered Construction in which the perimetral walls are composed of wooden slab stacked forming a frame in which the spaces are daubed with clay or mud. This method is one of the oldest known for making a weatherproof structures. Infact the half-timbered walls is more or less similar to the roman construction practice of opus craticium in which a wooden frame was erected first which was eventually filled with stones.

The mosque is constructed on a sloping ground, therefore the ground floor is partially buried into the ground westward.

An external stair from ground floor leads to the first floor to veranda that is connected throuh an overhanged slab, support by a pilar, to east side. The veranda wraps around all four sides of the central prayer hall. 

The veranda at the entrance (east) and west side have the same width of 3.8 meter and at south is 1.6 and north is one meter wide.

The veranda ceiling is supported by perimetral walls and at the other edge by 13 pilars at each side. 

The central hall of the mosque  is 8m long and 7m wide, the ceiling of the hall is supported by loadbearing half-timbered perimetral wall and four central pilars.

The construction style similar to the roman opus craticum is used to build the masonary walls that is quite suitable and effective construction style for regions with harsh winter season.