"Balcão" and the Goan manor houses: anatomy of a singular architectural element

Santos, Joaquim Rodrigues dos; Carita, Helder; Kandolkar, Vishvesh

http://hdl.handle.net/10400.5/101693

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Authors

Santos, Joaquim Rodrigues dos

Carita, Helder

Kandolkar, Vishvesh

Abstract(s)

The Goan balcão is one of the most striking elements of Goan residential architecture and one of the attributes that is usually mentioned regarding the “Goanness” of Goan houses both for its architectural characteristics and the enormous cultural and social burden associated with it. The balcão precedes the main entrance to the Goan manor house and usually consists of a staircase of greater or lesser apparatus that offers access to a space flanked by masonry benches that can function as a semi-outdoor living space. Its importance in the context of Goan Brahmin Catholic houses can be seen in the individualisation and independentisation of this architectural element within the overall ensemble of the house, having taken on its own forms and expressions that have been replicated, reinterpreted, and reinvented over time.

Keywords

Goa Casa senhorial

URI

http://hdl.handle.net/10400.5/101693

Citation

SANTOS, Joaquim Rodrigues dos, CARITA, Helder, KANDOLKAR, Vishvesh. “The «balcão» and the Goan manor houses: Anatomy of a singular architectural element”. In: PESSOA, Ana, CARITA, Hélder (org.). Casas senhoriais e suas vivências: Portugal, Brasil & Goa. Rio de Janeiro: Fundação Casa de Rui Barbosa, 2025, pp.249-280