Sustainability lessons learnt from traditional architecture: a case study of the old city of As-Salt, Jordan

Abstract

Architecture is the art and science of designing which involves the manipulation of space, materials, program and other elements in order to achieve an end which is aesthetic, functional and sustainable. In the past, when the building envelope was the main element man used to protect himself from a harsh climate, he had to depend on passive energy which involves the use of natural energy sources for environmental, healthy, and economical reasons in our buildings. Traditional architecture, in Jordan, represents a living witness for the suitability of this architecture to the local environment, which incorporated the essence of sustainable architecture.The current study is aimed at investigating the elements of sustainability within the Jordanian traditional buildings based on the Jordan GBI rating key criteria, including: Energy Efficiency, indoor Environmental Quality, sustainable Site Planning and Management, material and Resources, water Efficiency, and innovation. Various typologies of six historical cases (i.e., Abu Jaber, Mouasher, Sukkar, Khatib, Toukan, and Qaqish buildings) in the old city of As-Salt were selected for this study, from a more comprehensive analysis. Findings of the study indicate uniqueness of the overall traditional As-Salt's architecture parallel with the current issues on sustainability. Furthermore, this As-Salt's traditional architecture is so beneficial as a case study for contemporary design, as a template for not only practices that are environmentally friendly, but also the process of sustainable thought.

The Urban Profiles of Peace Tourism in Arab Cities: Opportunities for Change Towards Sustainability. Case Study: As-Salt (Jordan) and Constantine (Algeria) Cities

“…As-Salt and Constantine cities attributed by their mountainous sites which had a great impact on the nature of their interrupted urban fabric between its morphological units. As-Salt city is located on three main mountains, namely: Jabal Al-Qalaa, Jabal Al-Jada'a and Jabal Al-Salalam, that surround the central square "Al-Ain" of the city, which reach the Valley of the Kurds and Wadi Al-Salt that has a great impact in dividing the city of As-Salt into distant neighborhoods, located on the peaks, slopes, and feet of the mountains, which make them different in their height and in the proportion of slope, as it effectively affected the construction of roads, their extension, and direction (Almatarneh, 2013). It took paths in line with the valleys and the nature of the prevailing land slope in them, which led to the allocation of these roads for vehicles and for men and that have many stairs due to the slope, the floor areas allocated for construction are very small, which made the various uses of the land in the city overlap among them, as the buildings differ in their height in terms of the number of floors and their spatial distribution, and the morphology of the city appears in three coexisting forms between them.…”

Green Architecture and Sustainability in the Complex Transformation of the Built Urban Environment in Jordan

“…Other traditional ways to achieve thermal comfort in vernacular buildings included Mashrabiyah (wooden lattice screens), the most effective orientation of buildings in relation to the climatic conditions, sheltering devices to create shade and shadow, and designs wherein small openings reduced exposure to strong sunlight. In addition, the compact urban form, especially in villages, decreased the direct sunlight in summer and heat loss in winter [11].…”

The Role of Public Spaces in Reviving the Historical Areas: The Case Study of As-Salt City in Jordan

“…The file was submitted to UNESCO and rejected many times in the 1990s, 2004, in 2016, and in 2018. Accordingly, a Road Map was initiated by the UNESCO office in Amman to prepare a practical document outlining the required steps by the Government that leading to a future nomination of the site [18]. Reviewing the UNESCO report by the authors confirms that the International Council on Monuments and Sites "ICOMOS" has some worries about the capability of the eight components to be understood or read as fragmented parts of a coherent whole [18].…”

“…Accordingly, a Road Map was initiated by the UNESCO office in Amman to prepare a practical document outlining the required steps by the Government that leading to a future nomination of the site [18]. Reviewing the UNESCO report by the authors confirms that the International Council on Monuments and Sites "ICOMOS" has some worries about the capability of the eight components to be understood or read as fragmented parts of a coherent whole [18]. It is obvious that it is unclear to ICOMOS how these isolated components can be understood well separated from a central element that connect them, and how can the visitor appreciate the urban fabric during the late Ottoman period and of the rise of modernity in the Arab world without having a certain core that connects these fragments.…”

“…It is obvious that it is unclear to ICOMOS how these isolated components can be understood well separated from a central element that connect them, and how can the visitor appreciate the urban fabric during the late Ottoman period and of the rise of modernity in the Arab world without having a certain core that connects these fragments. Therefore, ICOMOS asserts that an enveloping buffer zone is essential to linking the nominated buildings and integrating them together [18]. ICOMOS records that the nominated buildings is authentic as the architectural forms, styles, designs, decorations and materials reflect the Levant architectural style, however, ICOMOS has some concerns about the urban landscape and the manner that the modern usages will admire the original use of the buildings [18].…”