Hammams and the Contemporary City: the Case of Isfahan, Iran

International Journal of Heritage Studies iFirst article, 2012, 1–19 Hammams and the contemporary city: the case of Isfahan, Iran J. Sarmentoa,b* and Z. Kazemia,c aDepartment of Geography, University of Minho, Guimarães, Portugal; bCentre for Geographical Studies, University of Lisbon, Lisbon, Portugal; cDepartment of Tourism Management, University of Sheikh Bahaei, Isfahan, Iran (Received 22 February 2012; final version received 1 October 2012) Hammams, or public baths, are an essential part of the social life in urban Islam. Often, they have a rich and inspiring architecture. In Iran and, in particu- lar, in Isfahan – a large and historic city in central of Iran – numerous hammams were built since the Safavid dynasty (1501–1722). Social and urban changes have resulted in a significant decline in the number of hammams over the years. This paper starts by describing the multiple dimensions of hammams, such as their main architecture features, their role in health, society and culture. This is followed by an analysis of hammams in Isfahan, using a modified version of Büyükdigan categories for Ottoman baths: (i) ‘baths in ruins’; (ii) ‘baths continuing their original functions’; and (iii) ‘baths readjusted for new uses’. Anecdotal evidence from a survey conducted in 15 hammams is used through- out this paper. The main conclusions relate to the rapid deterioration of hammams in daily life, coupled with the lack of detailed documentation, which would allow proper planning and development, and the deficient use of some of these magnificent buildings and places for tourism development. Keywords: hammams; ruins; new functions; Isfahan; Iran Introduction Hammam, ‘spreader of warmth’ in Arabic, also named ‘Garmabeh’ in Persian which literally means ‘hot water’, became synonymous with steam baths and bathing. Hammam is not only a specific type of building with distinctive architectural Downloaded by [J. Sarmento] at 10:46 13 November 2012 features, relying on the use of abundant amounts of water, but also a critical site for hygiene and health care, and an important place for social and cultural relationships and performances (Kilito 1992). Due to the quick changing patterns of urban life in Iran, hammams have been going through rapid transformations and many struggle to continue functioning (Bakhtiar 1974). Numerous hammams have closed down and are mere ruins, while others have been transformed, having various new public or private functions. This paper aims at contributing to the discussion of the contemporary role of hammams, and at stimulating the debate of the possibilities of uses of hammams in Isfahan, Iran. Firstly, it provides a brief account of the various dimensions of hammams and attempts to introduce public baths and the development of hammams in the Islamic world. Secondly, it builds on Büyükdigan’s (2003) work on the new functions of Ottoman baths, and uses three different *Corresponding author. Email: j.sarmento@geografia.uminho.pt ISSN 1352-7258 print/ISSN 1470-3610 online Ó 2012 Taylor & Francis http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13527258.2012.736873 http://www.tandfonline.com 2 J. Sarmento and Z. Kazemi categories to discuss hammams’ present uses and possibilities of change in the contemporary city of Isfahan, Iran. While this is done based on a survey of 15 hammams in Isfahan, the paper does not intend to describe them in detail. Visits to all hammams described here were made between February 2010 and 2012. These visits included observation of the spaces, transect walks and regular visits, photographic registration, and whenever possible, informal conversations with hammam owners, managers, workers and users. In brief, the paper argues that hammams are a key part of contemporary Islamic cities and may have an important social, cultural and touristic role to play, if properly planned and developed. Hammams Hammams have existed since the Hellenistic period and flourished with the Romans and Byzantines (Sibley 2006). Whereas the bathing tradition died out in the west, it continued in the Levant after the arrival of Muslim Arabs, and the period following the rise of Islam witnessed a rapid development in public baths and some modifica- tions from Roman to Islamic bathing. Hammams were mostly established within the framework of a charitable endowment – Waqf – with personal property to serve the needs of Muslims. Established during Safavid times and cloaked as a religious/ charitable act, this is a system that supports perpetual charitable activities through the periodical revenues generated from fixed assets such as buildings (Habashi 2008), and used primarily as an economic development stimulus. The spatially gendered nature of hammams acquired a great significance during the Islamic period. Yet, while structurally the majority of them have two baths with ‘gendered quarters or men’s and women’s hours’ (Aksit 2011, p. 1), and are often symmetrically built and organised, the complexity of the gender dimension in hammams goes well beyond this materiality. Cichocki (2005), for example, argues that hammams have historically been thought of as a public masculine space where revolts and other subversive actions were planned. Aksit (2011) explains how women’s quarters of the historical hammams run contrary to the definition of public spheres that are associated with men and rational dialogue, and are characterised by being spaces where women formulate discussions on urban contexts and history. Water is the cru- cial element in hammams in countless ways. It is central in hygiene, in health, in Downloaded by [J. Sarmento] at 10:46 13 November 2012 the sacred and the sublime (Anderson and Tabb 2002), at times in the propagation of diseases (Afkhami 1998) and has an important social role. Ancient medicine was strongly connected to ideas about water and to the equilibrium it provided to any system, religious or physical (Kosso and Scott 2009); religion not only shapes the ways in which people transform space and construct meaningful places (Mazumdar and Mazumdar 2004), but also embeds them with specific practices. Major and minor ablutions bring Muslims to hammams at certain moments. Generally, Iranian hammams have a threefold structure, spatially and function- ally sequential: the Sarbineh (the dressing room), the Miyandar (a connecting corridor) and the Garmkhaneh (the hot bathing room). Sarbineh has a polyhedral base (octagon, hexagonal, rectangular or quadrilateral), which includes a duplicate base inside it. Normally, the platforms around Sarbineh are the places to change clothes and relax. Spaces under these platforms serve to deposit shoes. In some cases, there are several fountains around the Sarbineh, which people use to wash their feet before moving to the next compartment. In addition, several stone pillars are located under the Sarbineh’s central dome and some lower ceilings also cover the side International Journal of Heritage Studies 3 platforms. The Miyandar exists to reduce the heat waste and to avoid direct views into the bath. Finally, the Garmkhaneh is the hot washing room with a polyhedral base, which is generally divided into different parts by stone pillars. In fact, on the centre of the Garmkhaneh, there is usually a dome with stone pillars. In larger hammams, the Garmkhaneh can be divided in various bathing rooms, like Khazineh, Khalvat and Chal Howz. Khazineh, a small pool used for ablution, is usually located in front of the entrance to the Garmkhaneh. Also in some cases, adjacent to the Garmkhaneh, there is a Khalvat room, or solitude room, which is used by the owner or special guests. Chal Howz refers to a swimming pool inside the big Garmkhaneh (Rohol Amini 2007, Neyestani and Amirhajloo 2010). In some hammams, there are two large and two small baths connected to each other, which aim at reducing heat waste. All different parts of the bathhouse have geometrical bases. Often, the entrance to the small bath is located on the opposite side of the hammam. In addition, next to many hammams, there is a long corridor – Gavro – leading to a well, from which an ox pulls water buckets. Foot-operated wells were also found in smaller buildings. Apart from these common structural features, varia- tions in design and decoration are immense, and hammams constitute a rich heritage. Dumreicher (2008) has illustrated how hammams are a vital part of the Islamic city and are normally well embedded in the historic urban fabric. Their position is never prominent, with blind facades, and with discreet entrances often in a back lane (Sibley 2006). Usually, the women’s entrance, often a much smaller door than the men’s entrance, is even more unnoticeable (Aksit 2011). Hammams are conspic- uous when viewed from the air, since their vaulted dooms are impossible to over- look. Due to their central location, hammams can be desirable development sites, and newly designed hammam facilities may develop from traditional ones. These developments may find expression in the architectural solutions chosen to accom- modate the additional activities to the core function of the hammam. Hence, many newly developed bathhouse complexes are designed using local materials (such as bricks and stones) for the structure and incorporate the distinctive domes and vaults, as seen in traditional historical practice. Sibley (2006) conducted a survey within historical hammams in Damascus and Fez. First, she established a guide for design- ing hammams based mainly on the dynamics of transformation within Islamic society. Secondly, she highlighted the characteristics of this building type not only as a Downloaded by [J. Sarmento] at 10:46 13 November 2012 sustainable urban facility which promotes social interaction, but also as a support for a rich intangible heritage. In fact, hammams’ intangible heritage relates to urban narratives and experiences. It is lodged in conversations, in social life, in the gendered nature of the space it produces and reproduces, in the secrets and intrigues it conceals and in the compliance with beauty norms.

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