This is a stylised front of a granary. Like the traditional Batak house, the sopo may be divided into three levels – the base, the interior and the roof. Typical of Toba architecture is the steep roof that extends beyond the substructure. As can be seen here, the Toba Batak were fond of richly decorated facades, with the use of carved Singa heads, horizontal panels, and roof supports. White, red and black were traditional colours that were highly symbolic to them as they represented the three spheres of the cosmos – the underworld, the world of man and the upperworld, of which all aspects of life were a part.
