THE TRADITIONAL CORAL BUILDINGS OF THE RED SEA COAST: CASE STUDY OF HISTORIC JEDDAH

Abstract

The structural systems of the traditional buildings have been developed as a result of climatic and cultural responses, availability of material, and according to the level of builders’ skills as well as the advancement of construction techniques at that time. The Coral Stone is a distinctive traditional structure that is found in the old buildings along the Red Sea Coast. By taking the Historic District in Jeddah as a case study, where the hundreds years old coral stones buildings are still preserved, this paper will demonstrate the elements and materials of the these traditional structures and the used construction techniques. The structural system’s role as a climate responsive architecture and the reasons that led to their deterioration will be investigated in order to understand how to conserve this world heritage structures. 

Keywords

• Coral stone,traditional structural system,red sea coast,Jeddah,heritage

References

1. [1]. King, G. R. D. "Building Methods and Materials in Western Saudi Arabia." Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies. Seminar for Arabian Studies, (1989).
2. [2]. Ketin, İ.; Genel Jeoloji, Ankara.(1977)
3. [3]. Küçükkaya, A. G.; Taşların bozulma nedenleri ve koruma yöntemleri. Birsen Yayınevi.(2004)
4. [4]. Akbaş,S.; Aykaç, S.; Sağıroğlu, Ö. The technical report on the historical heritage of Swakin Island of Sudan State. (2018)
5. [5]. Kamal, M. A. "The morphology of traditional architecture of Jeddah: Climatic design and environmental sustainability." GBER 9.1 (2014): 4-26.
6. [6]. Al-Lyaly, Sameer Mahmoud Z. The Traditional House of Jeddah: a study of the interaction between climate, form and living patterns. Diss. University of Edinburgh, 1990.
7. [7]. Bagader, Mohammed Abubaker A. The evolution of built heritage conservation policies in Saudi Arabia between 1970 and 2015: the case of historic Jeddah. Diss. University of Manchester, 2016.
8. [8]. Orbasli, Aylin. "The Conservation of Coral Buildings on Saudi Arabia's Northern Red Sea Coast." Journal of Architectural Conservation 15.1 (2009): 49-64.

9. [9]. Bayt Nassif; https://archnet.org/sites/3794
10. [10]. Abbas, H. "Al-Jami ‘al-‘Atiq, the Oldest Mosque in Jidda." Journal of Islamic Thought and Civilization, 4(II): 9-21. (2014).