Investigating the placeness of historical building in Iranian-Islamic cities (Case study: Damghan city)

Subject Areas : Urban planning

Mohammad Marzbanrad ¹ , Mohammad Hasan Talebian ^{2 *} , Eskandar Mokhtari Taleghani ³

1 - Department of Architecture, Faculty of Architecture, UAE Branch, Islamic Azad University, Dubai, UAE
2 - Associate Professor, Department of Architecture, Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
3 - Assistant Professor, Department of Architecture, Faculty of Architecture, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran

Received: 2023-09-27 Accepted : 2024-04-04 Published : 2025-04-17

Keywords: Placeness, Attitude of place, Historical buildings, Urban space, Damghan city,

Abstract :

Placement, preservation and restoration of the principles of attitude to place in historical buildings is one of the most important components of the quality of the urban spaces of any border and landscape, which leads to an integrated perception of the space and environment and its identity. Since the principles of attitude towards the place and placeness of any building are dependent on the four characteristics of body and appearance, order, identity and memory, which originate from mental-internal and physical-external impressions, the present research seeks to reread the principles of placeability in historical buildings. and finding the relationship between physical and perceptual factors with the attitude of place in buildings. In this regard, by using the mixed research method (qualitative-quantitative), the principles of the attitude to the place in three buildings "Borj o Baruye Damghan ", "Shah Abbasi Caravanserai" and "Damghan Historical Mosque" have been investigated. Analysis of data from library studies and field observations has been done using SPSS software. Finally, physical variables obtained from theoretical findings including "materials", "form and proportions", "color", "lighting" and "natural elements", based on a survey among 20 experts and specialists through AHP test and using It is prioritized by Expert Choice software. The findings of the research show that there is no significant relationship between any of these variables, and among the physical variables, "materials" and "form" have the highest percentage of influence on the perception of the building. Although the physical variables in the selected buildings are architectural factors, they are interdependent and all of them together create the mechanization of a space and place. The results of this research show that the physical variables of the building such as form and proportions, lighting with the identity of the building and other physical variables such as materials, color and proportions with the appearance in the body and image of the building, aroused the sensory perceptions of the audience and the principle of identity in They strengthen the building. Therefore, improving the location of buildings depends on valuing the principle of identity and strengthening it.

 

Extended Abstract

 

Introduction

The place is a concrete representation of living in the world; place denotes spatial and temporal stability and consistency of living in the world, which is a meaningful part of space characterized by social relations (Amdu et al. 2016, 152). Thus, the reality of a place always reveals its definition within the heart of a social process. Spatial perception indicates peoples’ link with the place, which is a component of place deeply connected with human values, thereby expressing processes and memories created in the wake of presence at the place (Cheng & Dabiels, 2016, 847). Each place has its specific spirit and characteristics, which reveal its special features. Man needs to perceive a sense of place. As a result, perception of place refers to an intimate and identifiable interaction with a place where man lives. In the meantime, the use of place cannot be reduced to the level of movement behaviors and sensual effects, emotional experiences or rational perceptions because this usage involves all these dimensions at once; however, positivists reduce the concept of usage into its components to try to generalize the place experience, because the place offers a diversity of situations for the establishment of human interactions (Tuan, 2010, 45). A place of this kind is not created in the light of objectivism and by a perspective that measures it simply based on usefulness. Thus, placeness seeks to create an environment that involves ambiguities and an endless level of meaning. Although one of the main components of experiencing space is the understanding of space or content or its message, the human confrontation with the artificial environment and even natural environments is not only limited to the perception of the environment’s meanings (Meesters, 2019, 203). Consistent with the present century developments, modern architecture does not find its roots back in its past, and it does not interact with the local culture, either, which has thus reduced residents’ belonging emotions and diminished the sense of attachment as a factor to turn spaces into environments with specific sensual and behavioral characteristics for people. In this research, the perspective of the place has been investigated through the audience's physical perception of the building and its sensory perceptions. The current research is based on the assumption that there is a two-way relationship between the principles of place perception and the sensory perceptions of citizens, and the physical elements used in Damghan's historical buildings lead to the formation of this relationship. Therefore, by choosing three historical buildings "Borj-o-baro-e- Damghan", "Shah Abbasi Caravanserai" and "Damghan Historical Mosque" as the studied buildings, the following questions are sought: 1) How the attitude of the place in the mentioned buildings affects the sensory perceptions of the citizens Has it affected? 2) What are the factors affecting the attitude of the place in these buildings?

 

Methodology

This research fell under fundamental research aimed at authentic and innovative exploration to increase the scientific load and better understand the concepts of the discipline and professions. This research is also a developmental-applied study that provides the necessary scientific context for resolving current and future issues. The present research uses an interpretive method in the data gathering section. Here, descriptive methodology reviews the concepts, theoretical perspectives, and previous studies. In this method, credible foreign articles, books and articles are first measured, and then the note-taking method is used to extract appropriate content and develop the theoretical sections' content structure. Also, the present research uses the interpretive-historical method to read theoretical basics and selected places. Also, logical reasoning and content analysis are used to analyze the principles of attitude to place at the Damghan's historical buildings. The statistical population of the research is made up of two groups of historical monuments and experts, thinkers and specialists, in this research the statistical sample of the first group includes three historical monuments in the city of Damghan (Borj-o-baro-e- Damghan), (Shah Abbasi Caravanserai and Damghan Historical Mosque) and the second group, includes 20 experts, thinkers and experienced and informed experts about the subject of research. After distributing the questionnaires among the statistical community and receiving their opinions, data analysis was done using SPSS software and AHP method to evaluate the mechanical components identified in the studied buildings.

Results and discussion

The findings from the measurement of the studied variables in Damghan's historical monuments revealed that among the physical variables, the material and form variables have the highest percentage. Although the physical variables in the selected buildings are architectural factors, they are interdependent and all of them together create the mechanization of a space and place, also the findings show that there is no significant relationship between any of these variables and the attitude of the place In these buildings, which is faced with destroyed and damaged forms upon arrival; Through the physical elements of these buildings, especially the imagination and development of traditional materials (clay and brick) and then simplicity is manifested. Also, the results of the surveys show that, the main component of the physical elements in the attitude of the place to the historical monuments of Damghan city is the material element (X2) and this component has the greatest impact compared to other components. In the study of the physical variables measured in the architecture of historical buildings, based on the experts' responses to the researcher's questionnaire with a Likert scale, it was determined that the materials used in all the selected historical buildings of the selected city of Damghan are clay and brick, as well as the type of internal materials of the buildings and New floorings have 80% usefulness when restoring these works, while the rest of the experts and experts considered the usefulness of the materials to be moderate due to the lack of proper restoration of these buildings and the use of replaced materials in the damaged parts. . According to the dominant color of the historical buildings which is brown and brick and the combined and combined forms of rectangles and squares with different dimensions and with different angles of rotation, the respondents considered this type of composition and coloring in terms of providing visual comfort, shade Appropriate setups in the area and creation of a favorable atmosphere, harmony with the context and the context of the design of coordination with the surrounding environment have been highly praised. In terms of proportions, the selected historical monuments in Damghan city have a greater length-to-height ratio, and this elongation is important for security, shading, and the type of lighting in the interior spaces.

 

Conclusion

The results of this research show that in the phenomenology of place, the studied buildings have the components of "spatial meaning", "giving soul to the place through physical components", "reception and sensory perceptions", "combination with memory" and " "Identity through physical elements" has been able to play a role in the location of these buildings. Therefore, in order to explain the principles of attitude towards place and its perception, it can be stated that the principle of identity through physical elements in buildings such as geometry, form and proportions, light and decorations along with the principle of figure and appearance through physical elements (materials, color combinations) and proportions) which have aroused the perceptions of the audience of this space, are one of the most important principles of attitude towards the place and location of historical buildings, which can be improved by restoring these two important places of buildings.

 

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