Erdbodenhaus

To achieve a circular, material-minimised design, the building relies on a limited palette of elementally joined materials: rammed earth, timber, glass, concrete, and metal. The massive external walls are constructed entirely from regional soil, creating a living rammed earth facade that naturally weathers and shifts in appearance over time. This exterior is protected by a deeply projecting timber roof. The unbaked earthen construction ensures complete circularity, allowing the external walls to be returned to the earth at the end of their life cycle without any sorting or separation effort, reverting back into the soil from which they were sourced. The structure rests on a functional plinth of cast stone that extends outdoors to form a continuous bench. To minimise the ecological footprint, the use of concrete was restricted to the absolute structural minimum, while the building systems follow a rigorous low-tech philosophy. A green roof integrates the building directly into the adjacent soil educational trail, creating an immediate functional and visual synergy between the architecture and its natural landscape.

Through this uncompromising material reduction and the complete circularity of its primary structure, the Earth House elegantly demonstrates how scientific education and a radical circular economy can merge into a clear, unified architectural form.

Text: ZAB | Source: Brückner & Brückner Architekten