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Article
Publication date: 9 November 2021

Camilla Mileto and Fernando Vegas López-Manzanares

This research aims to highlight the values, principles and recommendations for conservation in order to establish valid strategies for the conservation of earthen built heritage…

Abstract

Purpose

This research aims to highlight the values, principles and recommendations for conservation in order to establish valid strategies for the conservation of earthen built heritage. This is done following a methodology which uses indirect (bibliography) and direct (case study) sources systematically analysed from different perspectives: the values of Earth as a material and of architectural and vernacular heritage; the heritage conservation principles found in international documents; and the analysis of over 3,000 case studies from which good practices in earthen architecture conservation are extracted.

Design/methodology/approach

Earthen built architectural heritage is found widely in all parts of the world, in archaeological sites and monumental and vernacular architecture, which research centres and researchers are increasingly studying and cataloguing. However, despite its richness and historic and cultural values, as well as its many merits in environmental sustainability, sociocultural and socio-economic terms, the value of this heritage has not been fully recognized in fields with major repercussions in conservation.

Findings

Finally, these data are cross-referenced to establish the broadest possible strategies to guarantee all aspects to be taken into account in the conservation of earthen built architectural heritage.

Originality/value

The text provides an overview of the different methodologies in order to extract specific strategies applicable to the conservation of this heritage, both locally and globally.

Details

Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development, vol. 12 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2044-1266

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 15 January 2019

Laura Balaguer, Camilla Mileto, Fernando Vegas López-Manzanares and Lidia García-Soriano

The purpose of this paper is to identify and characterise bioclimatic strategies of traditional earthen architecture in a specific territory, the Valencian region of La Serranía…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify and characterise bioclimatic strategies of traditional earthen architecture in a specific territory, the Valencian region of La Serranía. These constructions were built in relation to their surrounding geography or climate through several mechanisms facing the action of solar radiation, water, wind, etc.

Design/methodology/approach

The research methodology is based on a comparative analysis of selected case studies representing the constructions and typologies of traditional earthen heritage in a territory with similar geography and climate, albeit with certain zonal limitations.

Findings

The results show that these constructions built with earth offer a global solution to environmental conditioning factors of the region by a series of strategies formalised at urban, architectural and constructive level, either independently or jointly. Although climate variations affect its behaviour, traditional earthen architecture seeks compactness to reach indoor comfort.

Originality/value

Traditional earthen architecture is a valuable heritage in danger which has been devaluated until several years in this remote region. Therefore, prior knowledge of its bioclimatic strategies and formal constitution is essential to establishing heritage intervention criteria and proposals adapted to its geographical, socio-cultural and socio-economic context.

Details

Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development, vol. 9 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2044-1266

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 April 2014

Enrico Fodde, Kunio Watanabe and Yukiyasu Fujii

Salt weathering is one of the most common agents of decay of Central Asian earthen sites and is in function of water evaporation from the wall surface. Soon after excavation the…

Abstract

Purpose

Salt weathering is one of the most common agents of decay of Central Asian earthen sites and is in function of water evaporation from the wall surface. Soon after excavation the earthen walls and the stupa of the Buddhist temple of Ajina Tepa (seventh-eighth century AD) started to deteriorate due lack of protection and surface erosion. The most important issue in the planning of conservation work was to understand such mechanisms and to decrease the effect of salt weathering on structural damage. The purpose of this paper is to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

Evaporation distribution and salts types were studied on selected walls. In addition, three-dimensional recording of the walls and the stupa was undertaken with digital photogrammetric methods.

Findings

It was clearly found that the intensity of salt weathering in the site is high and some salts such as halite (sodium chloride) are thought to originate from groundwater. On the basis of the results obtained, thick shelter coating with mud brick and mud render was designed and constructed as protective measure for the earthen walls.

Practical implications

Those walls that were most affected by salts weathering and erosion at the base (coving) became structurally less sound and eventually collapsed if not conserved.

Originality/value

The work is the first attempt in the design of a methodology for the selection of earthen repair materials and methods.

Details

Structural Survey, vol. 32 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-080X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 October 2021

Masoud Nakhaei Ashtari and Mariana Correia

The aim of this research is to evaluate the vulnerability of earthen heritage when facing climate change, by focusing on Tchogha Zanbil site as a case study – an outstanding…

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this research is to evaluate the vulnerability of earthen heritage when facing climate change, by focusing on Tchogha Zanbil site as a case study – an outstanding example of an earthen site that recurrently faces extreme climatic events. Moreover, the adaptive capacity of traditional knowledge and ancient systems is also evaluated, in order to contribute for future climate change adaptation planning.

Design/methodology/approach

The vulnerability of cultural heritage to climate change was considered as the degree to which an identified cultural heritage value was susceptible to, or would be adversely affected by, the effects of climate change, including climate variability and extreme temperatures. In order to establish a vulnerability assessment, this paper will assess different definitions regarding vulnerability, exposure and sensitivity, crossing it with indicators of physical parameters, in order to propose an adaptive capacity for the site, based on ancient traditional knowledge.

Findings

Nonetheless, the entailed research helped establish a framework that contributes to outline the vulnerability and the potential for adaptive capacity of World Heritage properties, especially earthen sites located in regions exposed to rising climate change impact.

Research limitations/implications

The research faced some limitations regarding access to data and to site visits, due to COVID-19 restrictions that were in place.

Originality/value

This research presents a methodological assessment of climate change risk in Tchogha Zanbil, a World Heritage earthen site in Iran, representative of a property highly exposed to risk and vulnerability.

Details

Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development, vol. 12 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2044-1266

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development, vol. 12 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2044-1266

Article
Publication date: 6 February 2017

Oriol Domínguez Martínez, Marta Colmenares Fernández and Alejandro García Hermida

The M’Hamid Oasis is the last of the palm groves in the Drâa Valley, in Southern Morocco. The 13 villages (ksar/ksour in Arabic) in M’Hamid share many sociological, urban, and…

Abstract

Purpose

The M’Hamid Oasis is the last of the palm groves in the Drâa Valley, in Southern Morocco. The 13 villages (ksar/ksour in Arabic) in M’Hamid share many sociological, urban, and architectural similarities with the ksour located in the pre-Saharan valleys. These similarities range from environmental threats, such as extreme climate, to the current social and economic model. As a result, the settlements are being abandoned, and the tangible and intangible heritage of the Drâa Valley is in a progressive disappearance. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

To deal with the complexity of this problem, a progressive approach beginning at the territorial scale must be developed. In this regard, a lasting solution can be found only by promoting development that integrates nature, culture, and architecture, as well as by finding a new balance of these elements within the current social and economic requirements.

Findings

This paper presents part of the research conducted by the team of the Terrachidia Association, which allows an overall understanding of the place. To this aim, the new social and economic context of the Drâa Valley is pointed out, as well as the characteristic features of M’Hamid architecture and urbanism. In this regard, the principles and requirements of its conservation are presented, and the project of the Terrachidia Association is also described. Finally, the project’s impact is assessed and the results of the set of interventions are evaluated.

Practical implications

Since 2012, the activity of the Terrachidia Association has focussed on the study, promotion, preservation, and restoration of the architectural and cultural heritage of M’Hamid. The main activity of the association focusses on the organization of workshops, which are attended mainly by university students and professionals from around the world.

Social implications

In total, 13 workshops were organized since 2012, thanks to the engagement of the local population. In this period, around 300 participants from more than 15 different countries attended these workshops, working with approximately a 100 local craftsmen. All of them share a similar commitment to the work that Terrachidia is developing. These workshops allow the participants to know places and people in a way hardly achievable through conventional tourism. At the same time, this awareness is also achieved in the local population, and cultural exchange strengthens its identity.

Originality/value

The purpose of the workshops organized by Terrachidia is manifold, and the participants actively take part in the restoration works while they interact and exchange experiences with a reality that is generally unknown in western societies. The local population also benefits from this cultural exchange by strengthening their identity, which is linked to architecture, and demonstrating the economic possibilities of conservation through responsible tourism. And these aims are achieved through a self-managed project, which benefits all involved.

Details

Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development, vol. 7 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2044-1266

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 July 2021

Imon Chowdhooree and Kanu Kumar Das

Mud architecture as one of the expressions of vernacular architecture illustrates the success of indigenous knowledge of traditional communities. Due to the pressure of…

Abstract

Purpose

Mud architecture as one of the expressions of vernacular architecture illustrates the success of indigenous knowledge of traditional communities. Due to the pressure of industrialization, urbanization and globalization, the trend of using non-traditional measures guided by the Western-Euro-centric knowledge and technologies considers the traditional practices as expressions of backward past, under-development and poverty. Though mud as a building material is usually assumed as a fragile and ephemeral material that cannot survive against natural hazards, the surviving traditional mud buildings are needed to be investigated to know their performances during and after different types of natural hazard incidents.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper intends to study the available cases of mud architecture of Chattogram, Bangladesh to trace the history of their survival despite of experiencing multiple natural hazards and to understand their status and prospect of resisting hazards. Three individual homesteads are chosen as cases for conducting physical survey as well as engaging inhabitants and local masons of the locality in semi-structured interviews in a story telling mode to know the construction process and histories of experiencing natural hazards. Available literatures are reviewed, and experts are interviewed to understand the causes of their performances and possible ways to improve the quality.

Findings

Collected information on mud architecture demonstrates their quality of surviving against many natural challenges and this hazard-resilient quality can be enhanced through using contemporary building technologies and materials, promising to co-exist with the global trend.

Originality/value

This study as an attempt to reinvent the vernacular architectural heritage endorses the need of appreciating indigenous knowledge for enhancing community resilience against natural hazards.

Details

International Journal of Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment, vol. 13 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1759-5908

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 November 2021

Jorge Asencio Juncal, José Manuel López-Osorio and Carlos Rosa-Jiménez

This study aims to present the uniqueness of the mountain oasis at the High Atlas (Morocco) and is part of a more extensive study about the landscape, the architecture and the…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to present the uniqueness of the mountain oasis at the High Atlas (Morocco) and is part of a more extensive study about the landscape, the architecture and the tourist development in the Mgoun Valley. Several natural and anthropogenic factors, such as new environmental conditions and socio-cultural realities, are testing the balance of the system and its adaptive capacity. A sustainable use of water, a key element of the oasis and source of life in the region, and an optimal management of farmland will allow this culture to be perpetuated. The study of the values of this territory and its transformation vectors constitute a first step for valuing this ecosystem and being able to establish management and conservation policies.

Design/methodology/approach

The research is based on the fieldwork carried out over six campaigns, between September 2011 and January 2020, when interviews to the local population and graphic and photographic records of the Aït Mrau oasis were carried out. The work started from the literature review and the study of the origin of the settlement, analyzing the transformation processes, both in the cultivated plots and in the built habitat, where the urban evolution of the settlements and the characteristics of the architecture have been analyzed.

Findings

The study has revealed the existence of social, environmental and economic imbalances that affect the status of the oasis, the landscape and the architecture of the study area. The research has characterized the habitat and has identified those elements that must be preserved to guarantee the permanence of the heritage values in a way that the future development of the region was not conditioned.

Originality/value

The research delves into the study of a case that is paradigmatic in the context of the Moroccan High Atlas, since it shows the dynamics of transformation of a region directly affected by the climate change and by the abandonment of the traditional habitats.

Details

Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development, vol. 12 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2044-1266

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 27 April 2020

Marwa Dabaieh, Nargessadat Emami, Jukka Taneli Heinonen and Björn Marteinsson

Over the last eight years, the Middle East has experienced a series of high profile conflicts which have resulted in over 5.6 million Syrians forced to migrate to neighbouring…

Abstract

Purpose

Over the last eight years, the Middle East has experienced a series of high profile conflicts which have resulted in over 5.6 million Syrians forced to migrate to neighbouring countries within the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region or to Europe. That have exerted huge pressure on hosting countries trying to accommodate refugees in decent shelters and in quick manner. Temporary shelters normally carry a high environmental burden due to their short lifespan, and the majority are fabricated from industrialised materials. This study assesses the carbon impact for a minus carbon experimental refugee house in Sweden using life cycle assessment (LCA) as tool. SimaPro and GaBi software were used for the calculations and the ReCiPe midpoint method for impact assessment. The results show that using local plant-based materials such as straw, reeds and wood, together with clay dug from close to the construction site, can drastically reduce the carbon footprint of temporary shelters and even attain a negative carbon impact of 226.2 kg CO2 eq/m2. Based on the results of the uncertainty importance analysis, the overall global warming potential impact without and with sequestration potential are mostly sensitive to the variability of the GWP impact of wood fibre insulation.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodology is designed to calculate the GWP impact of the refugee house over its entire life cycle (production, operation and maintenance and end of life). Then, the sensitivity analysis was performed to explore the impact of input uncertainties (selection of material from the database and the method) on the total GWP impact of the refugee house with and without sequestration. The ISO standards (International Standard 14040 2006; International Standard 14044 2006) divide the LCA framework into four steps of Goal and scope, inventory analysis, impact assessment, and interpretation.

Findings

This study has shown an example for proof of concept for a low impact refugee house prototype using straw, reeds, clay, lime and wood as the principle raw materials for building construction. Using natural materials, especially plant-based fibres, as the main construction materials, proved to achieve a minus carbon outcome over the life cycle of the building. The GWP of the shelter house without and with sequestration are found to be 254.7 kg CO2 eq/m2 and -226.2 kg CO2 eq/m2, respectively.

Originality/value

As there are still very few studies concerned with the environmental impact of temporary refugee housing, this study contributes to the pool of knowledge by introducing a complete LCA calculation for a physical house prototype as a proof of concept on how using low impact raw materials for construction combined with passive solutions for heating and cooling can reach a minus carbon outcome. The GWP of the shelter house without and with sequestration are found to be 254.7 kg CO2 eq/m2 and -226.2 kg CO2 eq/m2.

Details

Archnet-IJAR: International Journal of Architectural Research, vol. 14 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2631-6862

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 5 April 2011

Colin Williams, Steve Goodhew and Richard Griffiths

The purpose of the paper is to explore the structural feasibility of substituting traditional thick joint mortars with earth slurry mortars modified with varying amounts of sand…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of the paper is to explore the structural feasibility of substituting traditional thick joint mortars with earth slurry mortars modified with varying amounts of sand. Thin jointing of earth blocks would reduce the cost of sustainable earth construction.

Design/methodology/approach

Compressive strength of earth‐block cubes was determined. Flexural strength was measured using the BRE electronic bond wrench, which enables block couplets to be tested quickly and accurately. Three samples of earth block, one from southwest England and two from East Anglia, together with nine examples of earth slurry mortar jointing were studied, including the effect of reinforcing the joint and or the block using hessian.

Findings

The 28‐day cube characteristic compressive strengths were determined for Appley soil, Norfolk lump and Beeston soil, the last with 0 per cent sand, 25 per cent sand and with 25 per cent sand with hessian. The flexural strengths of Appley and Beeston earth slurries were determined, along with Thermalite thin jointed cement and cement mortar for comparison. The Beeston soil flexural strength increased with increasing sand content. Earth slurry with 40 per cent sand and hessian present in the joint gave the greatest strength. It is important to use blocks and slurry mortars of the same soil. Extruded and compressed earth blocks are best suited to slurry jointing.

Originality/value

This work successfully demonstrates the structural feasibility of carefully reducing the thickness of earth mortars when constructing sustainable earth block walling. Characteristic flexural strengths are suggested where the test results were sufficiently consistent, and of a magnitude likely to be useful in design.

Details

Structural Survey, vol. 29 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-080X

Keywords

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