Rites of Passage: Topological and Formal Representation

An attempt is made to define the use of both topological and formal measures within the organisation of the built environment and to demonstrate the necessary integration of the two measures for understanding the social use of the built environment. Topological measures are here defined as all relational representations of built space such as relational maps, whereas formal measures are defined as transformational attribute-based representations such as shape grammars. Although these two aspects of the built environment are seen as separate in analysis, it is argued here that each aspect cannot be defined without reference to the other and they are, therefore, separable only in analysis and not in practice. In practice, social interaction takes place not just in space (relational structure) nor just in formal environments (formal structure), but within built structure as a whole. Therefore, through the integration of the two aspects, a deeper insight into the significance of built organisation may be gained. A compromise is offered to bring congruency between these two measures into the analysis of several megalithic tombs from Scotland. Though no complete integration of the relational and the formal is achieved, it is hoped that this paper will act as a catalyst and a challenge for work towards such an integration.