Journal of Researches in Islamic Architecture

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Introduction

Privacy is known as one of the most basic features of Islamic architecture. Home is the most private places for the person so it is essential to provide confidentiality and privacy in it. Islam, Quran Verses and Hadiths of Prophet Mohammad and imams have focused on creating privacy in the houses. In this way, the privacy has been the basic principle on traditional architectures of Iran especially in housing.

Literature Review

Creating privacy is necessary point for people and providing this principle in the home is more important than the other places. Privacy In traditional architecture of Iran has created in both audio and visual kind. This principle has been used in traditional architecture of Iran before Islam but in Islamic architecture has been emphasized it more than before. Quran verses and Hadiths of imams and Prophet Mohammad are the most important references of Islam. So this article has reviewed these references to find the ways of creating privacy in the house.

Methodology

This article is tried to define and understand these objects: the meaning of privacy, reviewing the factors that create privacy in Zinatol Mulk historical house as a distinguished building in Shiraz city, recognizing the confidentiality principle in organizing spaces of this house and introduce the special strategies that used in making privacy. So the privacy principle, Quran verse and Islamic hadiths are reviewed at the first part of the article. This part is used by library resources, articles and internet sites. After that, checking the case study is done with using interview and direct observation from the Zinatol Mulk building. So at first part of article a brief introduction of Zinatol Mulk house has been said then the elements that create privacy in Zinatol Mulk house are reviewed in both audio and visual type.

Discussion

By studying the Quran verses and hadiths can be said that Islam insists on creating privacy especially at home into both audio and visual kind. So providing the privacy is necessary in Islamic architecture. Although this principle was used in Iranian buildings about 6000 years ago in the courtyard houses but the most use is in Islamic architecture. Therefore the successful case study in traditional architecture of Iran has been reviewed to understand the privacy principle. Zinatol Mulk house in Shiraz city was selected for evaluation. Zinatol Mulk house was chosen because of two reasons, first because Shiraz residential architecture is unique and it has productive and rich houses in its traditional architecture and second because this house is one of the most distinguished historical houses in Shiraz. The results also show the special features of confidentiality in this house. The factors that make visual and audio privacy in this house are divided into 4 main methods. These methods are location, proportions, introversion and the hierarchy. Each of these methods have special role in creating privacy in this house.

Results

Audio and visual privacy will be appeared as the introversion, hierarchy, location and proportions principles in the framework of the building. Each of this principles use special ways to provide the confidentiality. The privacy has important role in in Zinatol Mulk house design. So the architecture has emphasized on making privacy in this house. Therefore the hierarchy is much stronger and has more steps than the other houses.

Conclusion

By Checking the Quran Verses and Islamic hadiths that related to privacy and Compliance them with the architectural of Zinatol Mulk house (a distinguished case study in Shiraz city), it obtain that creating confidentiality in the main spaces of this building are as below:

Entry spaces in this House:

The privacy in the entry space has been created by these factors: existence of high walls around the buildings, losing the height of the corridor than the vestibule, the lack of windows in the exterior elevation, retreat the entrance to the alley, increasing the thickness of the around walls and entrance space.

Yard of house:

Privacy in the yard has been provided by these elements: using high walls around the building and in second floor to block the neighbor’s view on the yard, separation of two inside and outside yards and communicate them through an underground connection between Narangestan Qavam and Zinatol Mulk buildings, creating a separate yard for the toilet.

The rooms of house:

The factors that make privacy in the rooms are: locating the entrance perpendicular to the main axis of the yard, using larger and more windows in the gusts room (Shah Neshin) and smaller windows in living room (3 doors room and 5 doors room), recessing the windows of 3 doors room and 5 doors room, locating the 3 doors rooms apart from the public spaces of Home, providing the entrance spaces and patio in front of the rooms, communication between the rooms by the doors, increasing the thickness of walls in more private rooms, lack of openness in the closet room, creating the space hierarchy in the entrance of all the rooms.

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Introduction:
The Transparency is a basic principle in Iranian architecture that has reached prosperity during the time. Isfahan is an important city in architecture because it has been as the political capital in the two important periods. So many valuable buildings have been built in these periods that the houses are more important between them.
 
Literature review:
The architecture was more transparent until the Qajar era but after that in Pahlavi era and contemporary architecture, it be used in different way and has lost the Iranian Islamic patterns. Unfortunately, this principle that has been improved fundamental and theoretical principles of Iranian architecture today will be ignored or less used in design and architecture. If these principles are also applied, its concept and appearance in architecture has changed and has been forgotten Iranian Islamic models. The authors try to answer these questions: How the transparency become manifest in the form of Isfahan traditional houses? How the transparency has been manifested in different era and in which era it has been more evident? Thus, due to this point that the Isfahan homes architecture has become more transparent during the time and different eras, this article studied the transparency principle in the houses forms of two important Isfahan eras.
 
Methodology:
This paper contains the parts are as follows: the theory part that introduces and defines the fundamental of transparency, and the field part that reviewing the principals that make the buildings more transparent in two different periods. So the theoretical part of paper, accomplished by using the library resources and the field studies is done by using authentic maps, direct observation of these houses and interview with experts. Numerous of significant historical houses related to Safavid and Qajar era has been reviewed because the transparency in Isfahan’s architecture is more manifested in these two eras. This comparison between these houses shows the difference of transparency in different periods. The collection of historic homes that have been registered with the National Monuments insist of 83 houses of the Qajar period, 38 houses related to the Safavid period, five houses related to Safavid- Qajar era and 12 houses from the Qajar- Pahlavi era. Among these houses, the buildings those are more impressive in architecture and their plans and map are existed, has selected to review. So 14 houses were evaluated.
 
Discussion:
So this paper has studied and compared the principle of transparency in the design of Safavid and Qajar's homes to recognize and reuse the transparency principle in the contemporary residential architecture. Reviewing different opinion and studies have been done about transparency; show that there are different aspects about this issue. The transparency in Europe and Islamic architecture is different but there are common in some concepts and factors. So it is necessary to set a clear definition. In this article transparency is a kind of design that contains “Reducing the Materials and Lightness”, “Opening the Space”," Permeability and Reflection", "Fluidity and Dynamism "," Hierarchy and Sequence” and “Visual Continuity”.
 
Results:
The transparency is appeared in Isfahan historical houses as the concepts such as “Reducing the Materials and Lightness”, “Opening the Space”," Permeability and Reflection", "Fluidity and Dynamism "," Hierarchy and Sequence” and “Visual Continuity”. Different strategies applied in designing the forms and body of building during the Qajar and Safavid period to create the transparency. So the transparency as a Basic and effective principle in Isfahan architecture, has become more obvious during the time and different periods
 
Conclusion:
The design of the historical houses of Isfahan becomes more and more transparent during the time. Models and strategies that are used in each period are derived from the previous strategies. But these strategies will be completed and more visible in the next period. An obvious example can be seen in the porch (Eivan) of these houses. During Safavid period the porch in addition to climate issues, has been created to opening the space, visual continuity, fluidity and dynamism and lightness in the building. This space applied and with small size in some walls of Safavid houses. But in Qajar houses, these patterns are more completed and developed than previous periods. The size, number of columns, width, height and even decoration of these spaces has increased and become more developed in Qajar houses. These two eras are common in some strategies that applied to make the building transparent. Some of these solutions are: using multiple courtyards, Eivancheh, Mahtabi, Hozkhaneh, and numerous vaults.
Finally; if the transparency is defined as “Reducing the Materials and Lightness”, “Opening the Space”," Permeability and Reflection", "Fluidity and dynamism "," Hierarchy and Sequence” and “Visual Continuity”, the Qajar architecture is considered as the evolved architecture. So it can be said that, Qajar architecture has improved the theories and patterns that applied in the design of Safavid houses and even in some cases has been created innovation in the forms of buildings.

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The use of proportions has always been considered in traditional Iranian architecture, and especially after Islam, because of the creation of an architecture that is far from Individual Interests and the impact that has on the quality of  building conceptual understanding. The purpose of the present study is to examine the proportions in the courtyards of the historical houses of Behbahan city and to express their characteristics in order to provide a true picture of the proportions governing them and to provide a starting point for future research in the field of proportions. According to the studies that have been done so far, the architecture of major buildings and even the architecture of famous cities such as Kashan, Yazd, Isfahan and Shiraz have been used in some way, However, there has been no research on the use of proportions in the traditional architecture of smaller cities. However, examining the suitability of buildings in each area over different time periods can help to complement the architectural information of traditional buildings. And finally, by completing the information, check that the proportions used are the same or different in different regions. And basically what are the reasons of their differences and similarities. That represents a new window into Iranian architecture. The first step in achieving this is to examine the proportions in different areas. The city of Behbahan is no exception, due to its several thousand years history and its role in all historical periods. In addition, Behbahan was once a major commercial city and dock (base) of Khuzestan, Pars and port cities. And its historical texture has more than 40 neighborhoods, with many valuable buildings in terms of architecture. However, less research has been conducted about the architecture and features of traditional houses in Behbahan. And, except in books such as the Book of "Identity of Behbahan", and some travel logs and memories such as " Travelogue of  south iran ", it has not been done in detail as a comprehensive study. Hence the choice for this research. But due to the wars and wreaks that took place in the Khuzestan region, and also the warm weather conditions of the region, and also the lack of attention of organizations, landowners, unfortunately, today few of these historic houses remain, that  most of which belong to The Qajar and the first Pahlavi era. It is necessary to check the proportion in different buildings But since the house is considered as an essential part of any period building and the courtyard has always played a central role in the structure of traditional homes, This research tries to study the proportions in the courtyard of Behbahan houses. In order to answer the main question of this research, "Which of the proportions has been used in the traditional architecture of Iran in the courtyards of Behbahan houses?" 

To answer the above question, a descriptive - analytic method has been used in this research. Today there are many houses in the historical context of Behbahan that Mostly remained from the Qajar and Pahlavi periods. There were 31 homes available for researchers based on documents available,that 10 were selected.On the condition that in choice of samples for each period, criteria such as appropriate historical value, specific construction period, healthy architectural framework, and no interference, have been taken into consideration. Of these, 8 are listed on the National Heritage List. Firstly, using library studies tools, different types of architectural ratios and architecture of Behbahan houses are studied. Then, by gathering documents and using field studies and the direct presence of researchers in the houses, their general characteristics, including the period of construction, the neighborhood and the components of the houses, were extracted, Finally, the dimensions required for analysis were extracted from maps using AutoCAD software and based on the graphical scale size of the maps. In the last step, using descriptive-analytical method by Excel software and in some cases by geometric analysis, the data is analyzed based on architectural proportions. The results show that, Among the existing proportions used in the Behbahanchr('39')s courtyards in both Qajar and Pahlavi periods, most of them follow the Iranian gold and square geometry, and the 1.618 golden ratios are less of a concern for architects. In general, the use of √2 and √1.25 ratios is more commonly used in construction and measurement because of its proximity to square form and its simplicity and speed. Some homes may also had been fitted to a part of facade that is more important than other parts or has symmetry such as a porch or three-door and five-door rooms, This confirms the importance and application of proportions in the main spaces of traditional homes. In addition in some aspects, the combination of two proportions is used side by side.