Journal of Studies on Iranian Islamic City
Year:2014 | Volume:- | Issue:16|Papers Count:7

Islamic city has a specific space from the viewpoint of the nature and structure. Since early twentieth century, it has been noticed by researchers and it has been received a separate topic among the urban developers and researchers. So far, broad researches have been conducted about an Islamic city by Muslim and non-Muslim thinkers and they have considered certain regulations and standards in accordance with the Islamic principles and values different from other cities. It can be learned from the various verses of holy Quran and Islamic traditions, deep meaning and concepts about the nature of Islamic city. So, the purpose of this article is to elaborate the quiddity and ontology of the Islamic city through putting forth this question: What are the quiddity (understanding the innate dimensions) and ontology (understanding the being aspects) dimensions of Islamic city from the perspective of Islamic texts (verses and traditions)? This article has been developed in the methodology of review-analysis and with the help of field and library tools and using the Islamic texts. The result of the research is that with regard to basic concepts of Islam such as unity, justice, security, privacy, humiliation, naturalism and lack of following the strangers’ models, it is possible to divide the Islamic city from the viewpoint of receiving influence from these concepts into two quiddity and ontology dimensions. The quiddity dimension deals with the study of the identity, attribute and physical dimensions of Islamic city and the ontology dimension, deals with the dimensions of the manifestation of the presence of being elements and individual and collective actions of the Muslims in agreement with the aforementioned principles.

Architecture is the meeting point of human’s need to art and it can be considered as the manifestation of human’s thought and art. What architecture displays to us is an image of society, economy, religion and culture of human society in which the building has taken shape in it. Achaemenid period, is one of the honorable chapters of history of Iranian art and architecture. There is no doubt that their great monument is still a subject of thought for many researchers of architecture, archaeology and history of art. What makes the Achaemenid emperorship specific and glorious is the combination of the arts of the lands of others and their past people with the indigenous elements of the Pars people. This combination, from the viewpoint of some critics is the weakness of architecture of Achaemenid. But with further investigation, it becomes clear that the tactful artist of Achaemenid age grows this elements taken from others and with their combination with the features of Iranian original architecture, finally, creates a glorious style in architecture. In this research, referring to the inscriptions of Achaemenid kings related to the architectural works and also the study and analysis of the findings resulting from the archeological excavations, the authors try to introduce the specific model and style of architecture of the Achaemnid emperorship. The research methodology is using the existing archeological reports and historical -comparative studies of architectural works. What can be mentioned as the outcome of this research is the specific style of architecture in Achaemnid age which includes building platforms under the building, Apadana (columned halls), huge rock columns and the capitals of columns, column bases exclusive of Achaemnid, cornered towers, statute architecture, remembering gates and so on.

The existing challenges in the area of improving the historical sites, is one of the controversial issues of architecture. One of the main factors for these challenges is the difference in existing views in this area. The two main viewpoints on this topic which has paved ground for difference and elaborate the necessity of the present research is the monopoly-based views of restoration advocates and the view of the structure engineers. The special view of restoration is to improve the historical monuments and promote the stability of these sites has weaken the common viewpoint and has increased the growth of monopoly-oriented views. The main question of this research is that: Is there any relation between the view of structure engineers, and the view of the advocates of restoration and architects towards the issue of the improvement of historical sites? Are improvement with the technical and restorative concerns two contradictory attitudes or complementary ones? These two attitudes, are two important features for the preparing of the improvement plans of historical monuments. So, it is necessary to pay attention to both attitudes. Due to the in-between views of architects, the process of transfer of the life of a historical work from the past into the future will find a greater credit. In this article, using library studies and detaching the existing viewpoints, the more deep and precise knowledge about the issue became possible. Then, in an analytical view, the technical and architectural restoration concerns were extracted and using a qualitative questionnaire and interviewing with different authorities, the views of restoration experts, structure engineers and architects on indexes were collected and evaluated. Then in correlation method, the relationship between independent and dependent variables were studied. Various samples of the improvement of historical units in Iran and the world, with regard to the identity, historical and structural concerns were reviewed. Finally, through a convergent attitude, an in-between viewpoint with concentration on maintaining and reviving the heritage of Islamic-Iranian identity to improve the historical sits became possible. The results obtained show that the role of education has an important impact in the promotion of awareness level of interdisciplinary experts and authorities and those who protect the Iranian-Islamic identity towards achieving ideal solutions in improvement and the proximity of experts’ views will be an effective response to the existing problems.

Masjid-i Jahan-Numa Mosque was constructed in the eleventh century (A.H.) and after the construction of New Delhi (Shah Jahan Abad) by the order of Shah Jahan. At that age, there was another Jame mosque in Delhi. The inscription of this mosque, reads that this mosque was built concurrent with the construction of Shah Jahan Abad city (present New Delhi) and at the time of Baberian government under the order of Shah Jahan. This article has been developed aiming at introducing the mosque, searching for its historical and cultural bed ground, a bed ground which expresses the cultural link between Iran and India. The research has been done through historical descriptive method and based on library data and field observations. This monument is one of the largest mosques in the world of Islam and sub-continent. Before Masjid-i Jahan-Numa Mosque, there had been three other mosques, namely, Qobat al Islam in the seventh century (A.H.), Jameh Firooz Shahi in the eighth century (A.H) and Poorna in the ninth century (A.H), until Shah Jahan in the eleventh century (A.H) built the huge Jahan Numa Mosque broader than the previous mosques and so far, the Masjid Jahan Numa Mosque has remained in Delhi. Masjid-i Jahan-Numa Mosque with a vast courtyard and high gates and elevated minarets, is the product of centuries experience in mosque construction in the sub-continent. Its style is a combination of the India rock architecture and Iranian architecture of Islamic period. In its construction, for the first time, the marble stone was used. Whereas before that, mosques, tombs and palaces of India were being built red stones. This mosque has some inscriptions and the highest one of them is on the front of the Qiblah prayer hall and it is in Sols script in Persian. Its text content, like the literature of that age is full of poetic hints. The important point is that in that period, the inscriptions in most of the Iranain mosques is in Arabic. It sesm that the construction of new city of Jahan Nama and its Jami Mosque near Delhi is under the influence of urban development of Iran at Safavid period. The development of Qazvin, Isfahan and Shah mosques of these two cities are outstanding samples. The migration of the Iranian artists and architects at that age to Inda can be a confirmation to this claim.

Leisure is one of the innate needs of human and leisure urban space is a bed for the set of free involvement and associated with pleasure for people at the spare time in cities which unfortunately, it has not been emerged in the cities as it deserves. Because, the physical body, performance and meaning of urban spaces potentially and in effect not only is not in agreement with the general expectations of leisure spaces but it is not also in agreement with the effective features of ecology including natural, social, cultural and behavioral features as well. So, the leisure spaces are fading spaces in which the citizens feel a sense of lack of identity, lack of sense of belonging and pleasure and do not experience the real leisure. Thus, the base of this article is the nature of leisure urban space and the quality of it econcentrism design proportional with the natural and human ecology and developing the design principles of these spaces., aiming at this goal that the quality, joy and construction expected for the optional and social activities of the citizens and gaining pleasure from the leisure time could be met. So, confirming the role of urban design and identifying the features of leisure urban spaces and eco-oriented design in general in the method of content analysis and having awareness of Iranian pervasive eco features, and also Iranian cities and citizens through descriptive method, principles and standards were presented as the guides for the design of leisure urban spaces in Iran in particular. Furthermore, using the survey and comparative method and aiming at analysis of the effective indexes of leisure space joy and comparing these indicators in Qiyam and Dahom Farvardin streets in Yazd city, the research were completed. The results of this study shows that Qiyam street as compared with Dahom Farvardin street, due to the position in the historical texture and neighborhood with traditional markets of city on one side and the physical features, performance diversity and its receiving stance on the other side, has created a more suitable conditions for spending leisure time in the side of citizens. Though the results of this research indicate that even Qiyam Street with certain features, for a more constant and purposeful presence of citizens is in need of adoption of different and more efficient attitudes based on the cultural, ecological and local characteristics of Yazd city.

Diverse and various researches which have been conducted in recent hundred years in the area of Islamic city, has made the accumulation of a great volume of theoretical texts in which the views are diverse, sometimes contradictory with a grave differences. This broadness and diversity and in some cases conflicts, has brought about ambiguity and confusion of researchers in this field in particular the young researchers and also it has made the true understanding of the limits of these studies associated with certain problems. On this basis, in the present research, it has been tried to elaborate and analyze the contents of the main existing and available sources in the area of study of Islamic city and the attitude prevailing on it. This will pave way to remove the problems and will help with detection and selection a proper attitude in the future studies to develop the theoretical foundations of the Islamic city. The results of this research, which has been made aiming at paving grounds for the compilation of the theoretical foundations of Islamic city and in descriptive-analytical and documented based methods, indicate the rule of three main morphologic (form-oriented), structural-oriented and de-constructional (critical) attitudes and some sub-attitudes or tendencies in this area.

Since old times, open spaces have been noticed in the Iranian architecture and urban development and it can be said that no building has been built unless there has been proper redevelopment and formation of open space noticed by the architect in it. The stable principles of Iranian past architecture in the open spaces is also observed such as respect to the nature, attention to proportions, unity between the whole and a part, stability and coordination with the climate, creation of the sense of place and space identity. Amid these, there has always been a specific attention to open spaces in the design of Iranian housing units. Observing the full and empty models in the creation of the Iranian living spaces in agreement with the culture of adaptation with the nature of this nation has been the method of performance in the side of architects in different climates of this country for constant centuries. In recent centuries, unfortunately, with the passage of time and in particular the presence of foreign culture in the housing architecture of this land, paying attention to the creation of dynamic open spaces and in agreement with the life of residents have been forgotten. Limitation of such places to parking, storehouses or moving routes inside the residential units, has practically deleted the application of open spaces as a part of human life environment from the housing complexes. This article has three parts. The first two parts, deals with the features of open spaces in the past architecture of Iran through research process of library and searching in various sources and analyses its formation in the Iranian housing. Then, it deals with the course of change of full and empty spaces models in the Iranian contemporary architecture and challenges ahead of it in creation of open spaces in today’s housing units. In the third part, using the qualitative research methods and based on the existing conditions and present rules of architecture and urban development ruling in the country, and also through compilation of design approaches and suggestions in open spaces, authors have tried to revive the principles expressed in the first part in the formation of these places in the housing architecture.