Buckminster - Fuller Geodome

The Cae Mabon family of structures include three elegant tents placed on three terraces that circle the Roundhouse. These are the Geodesic Dome (made by Geoff Geodomes, the Yurt (made by GreenJack Keith Matthews) and the Shavan (made by Brian Melrose). The Geodesic Dome is a modern design based on the work of Buckminster Fuller. It is strong, simple and supple and provides a cosy nesting place for two or three people.

The Geodome

Picture - Dome shaped yurt frame on stone terrace

Yurt frame on the new terrace

Mongolian Yurt

The Yurt is based on the nomadic Mongolian felt tent. With a canvas covering it has proved very adaptable to the British climate. It is constructed from a stunningly elegant steam bent ash framework with a wheel in the centre of the roof providing a source of light. Our Yurt has amazingly beautiful doors, quite possibly the finest doors on any yurt this side of Kazakhstan!

Iranian Shavan

The Shavan is a nomadic Iranian tent designed for the desert. It is something like a cross between a yurt and a bender, with steam bent oak laths fitting into a central dome shaped wheel which is anchored to the ground by a rope and sturdy peg. It is covered by one tailor made piece of black canvas with red stitching and a separate ?hat? for the dome. Unfortunately we have found that it?s hard to keep tents up and dry for seven months of the year when used sporadically by visitors unfamiliar with their idiosyncrasies. So in 2003 and 2004 it is planned to replace the tents with more durable weatherproof structures. (See ?Projected Work?.)

Picture - Black dome tent with two people in forground

Shavan newly erected by Brian