LUMINOSITY OF PALESTINE: LAND, PEOPLE & ARCHITECTURE

1NAFEZ K.NASEREDDIN, 2GHASSAN J. DWEIK

ALESTINE POLYTECHNIC UNIVERSITY

HOW CAN PALESTINE BE PRESENTED IF NOT BY ITS LUMINOSITY?

Palestine is like a solar system and its light is crucial for life and existence. Palestine is a country that is open to sea and desert. It was inhabited by the oldest of civilizations from the beginning of time. The purpose of the paper is to introduce Palestine and its cities as well as explore its rich culture that is part of Bilad Al Sham or the Levant (, Lebanon, and Palestine). To start with, Palestine has a unique cultural treasure. From a religious perspective, it is a holly place as it is connected with in the Isra & Mi'raj (The Night Journey). It was the first & has the third holiest for Muslims. Historically speaking, the treasure of Palestine is represented by its archeological sites of the great civilizations that existed on this land. In Palestine one can find reins of a monument under a shepherd's feet, or remnants of a temple discovered by chance by a peasant. The sun that covers these treasures under the ground gives its heat for land to grow wheat; barley, grapes, and that Palestinian peasants wait for every year. The style of the Palestinian cities can be viewed in the old city of Hebron as a , where high spreading the sound of Azan can be found. There is the Abraham Mosque in Hebron that has grave tombs of several prophets and patriarchs (Ibrahim and his wives as well as his sons). In the old city of Hebron, one finds streets & alleys connected in a congruous pattern where light & shadow play in harmony.

I. PREAMBLE their spirits, the nobility and elegance of this city which is considered as the basic principle of the city One of the most prominent Palestinian architectural and its architectural identity. When stopping at the and cultural heritage is represented in the old towns threshold of studying the old buildings, they of Palestinian cities such as , Bethlehem, constitute a magnificent painting through what they , and Hebron in which buildings that date back contain from art and architectural models that have its centuries ago are built by stones and local raw own features unlike others, such as those majestic materials. It is always feared for these building to be features we see in the stairs, openings, yards, and exposed to partial or full destruction due to any other elements. In this research, we have uploaded natural reasons such as earthquakes or as a result of some of the buildings and made them our research negligence. topic.[1]

Old areas are considered as linking points between II. PLANNING COMPONENTS past and present times. They combine the nobility and authenticity of the past and express the consecutive The urban fabric of Hebron – especially the Old City civilizations they lived in the areas. They are rich in - is distinguished by the considerable evidence of inherited features witnessed by generations. . Over the centuries, the city has Meanwhile, the houses, through their cohesion that succeeded in preserving this unparalleled urban fabric constitute the identity of the city with its past and and architectural composition. Relative harmony and current times, confirm cohesion and cooperation consensus exist between the architectural content and between people, and that the old house reflect on its fabric on the one hand, and everyday use and citizens the principles and morals of their lives functions on the other, turning the city into a unique through cooperating with their neighbors, in addition museum. Prominent evidence of Islamic architecture to other Islamic values reflected on houses by is preserved in the Old City, including the Wakala Muslims. The old area also show how each element market, the , Sultan’s Pool and the Khan, of the building is a reflection of an Arab architect and is evident in two old centers of the city. artist of whatever he feels and achieves for others the eternal rest that disappears with the demise of these The city of Hebron has a number of , the great and majestic buildings. main one being the Ibrahimi Mosque, which is a religious landmark for all religions. The Ibrahimi The city of Hebron and other Palestinian cities are Mosque has given the city its religious significance distinguished by their civilization, history, and since the days of Ibrahim Khalil and the Mosque is elegance among all international historical cities also renowned for its architectural features and which is reflected in its old city that reserves a prestigious history. Hospices and shrines support the memorial for all civilizations and to which our aim of religious aspects on which tourism is based in Hebron this paper is to reveal, analyze, and document these and there are around 30 such sites in the area of the valuable elements so as to reach all interested people Ibrahimi Mosque and throughout the city. and coming generations so that they can touch, by

Proceedings of Research World International Conference, Marrakech, , 13th-14th April 2018 1 Luminosity of Palestine: Land, People & Architecture III. URBAN ELEMENTS division and subdivision into the segmental residential quarters that surrounded the various public 1. The Mosque: areas. There is no absolute separation of residential The mosque is considered the spiritual, religious and and other elements in the city. Houses can be found cultural centre of the city. Usually, the mosque is above shops. In relatively quiet access streets there situated in middle of Islamic cities, but in Hebron the are often numerous workshops and shops, and Abraham Mosque is situated at the main axis of the sometimes above some spaces which were used as West-East main market street, and in front of it is the houses. [3] biggest open space in the city. The main relationship between the Mosque and the open space is characterized by educational, social, economic and recreational activities which take place there. With the population growth of the city other mosques appeared in the old city to serve other more distant quarters. High minarets and the big of the mosques in the city show the great importance of mosques in old Islamic cities, due to their religious significance. [2] The open space concept applied in the majority of the Islamic cities, and was defined according to the form, size and function of the open space. The old city of Hebron was characterized by a sequence of hierarchical spaces, each differing in form, dimension and even in function: a) Public open space (square): This was used for commercial, political, economic and social activities. It is situated in front of the Abraham Mosque. These days this big open space is used as a tourist space with a small park, some traditional shops and a small restaurant which was built just 10 years ago by Jewish authorities. b) Semi-public open space: This is for social and economic activities, acting as a Figure 1:The Abraham hospice which is located to the south of space for a group of buildings which overlook it. It the Abraham mosque,HRC..jpg was used for neighbors to meet and for their ceremonies. The women here socialize with men, but only through their windows. c) Private open space (courtyard): This is the smallest and the most common open space, and is used only by the households for their daily activities. The key design elements are the open spaces, and they are the principal factor in the creation of the form of the city and its urban fabric.

2. The Suq (Market): Hebron was considered one of the biggest commercial centers in the south of Palestine and Bilad Al-Sham (Syria, Jordan and Palestine) and the majority of its population worked in commerce. This fact is reflected in the planning of the city with its big Suq (market) which runs from the north-west to the south-east. In addition, there are outside seasonal markets at the cross-roads.

3. The Residential Areas: The location of residential quarters in traditional Islamic urban settlements was guided by a concern to protect and to exploit natural elements: water, sun and wind. The balance of the old Islamic cities is the Figure 2: Al Sawakna Neighborhood’ open space which is used structure, which was always achieved through as a playground for the residents in the old city of Hebron, HRC.

Proceedings of Research World International Conference, Marrakech, Morocco, 13th-14th April 2018 2 Luminosity of Palestine: Land, People & Architecture where study groups took place on topics like canon, the traditions of the Prophet, the Quran and the language of science. It seems that the large number of faith schools bridged the gap left by the scarcity of regular schools.[4]

One of Hebron’s famous schools is the Ibrahimi School, founded in 1911. It is a two-storey building: the first floor includes a library, theater, classrooms and an internal staircase leading to the second floor, which has classrooms, a teachers’ room and a room for the principal. The windows of the school overlook the Sultan’s Pool.

C. Health & social services buildings The architecture of health and social services Figure 3:The Suq (Market),HRC..jpg buildings (, baths) represents a key part of the urban fabric of Hebron. These buildings are IV. ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS usually found near the city center for easy accessibility. A count of the baths in Hebron – Buildings constructed in Hebron during previous according to references- revealed that they are five in periods are classified according to function. In number, bearing in mind that the population -until periods prior to the modern era, these classifications recently- was only around 4500 people. There were fall into seven main types as follows: only a few hospitals.

A. Religious Buildings - Hospitals () Islamic architecture of mosques, hospices and faith is a Persian word of two syllables (‘bimar’ schools in Hebron represent a variety of architectural and ‘stan’), which literally translates as ‘sick’ and styles defined by the period. Prominent examples ‘location’ respectively, or simply ‘’. It is include the Ibrahimi Mosque, Sheikh Ali Baka’a known that the first to establish Bimaristans under Mosque and many faith schools like Zawyat Abu Islamic rule was Caliph Al-Walid Ibn Abdul Malik in Errish in Qaitoun, Zawyat el-Adhami near the Sultan the Levant. The classification of hospitals by illness Pool, Zawyat al-Ashraf el-Magharbah near the was introduced in the fifth century AH. Large Ibrahimi Mosque, and Sayyedna Ibrahim Khalil hospitals usually contained beautiful and peaceful Hospice (Summat) (photo 3.1). groves.

Examples include a Bimaristan in the Zajjajin quarter, The Ibrahim Hospice (Summat Khalil) was founded which was basically a clinic dating back to the late more than 1020 years ago in the Fatimid period and Ottoman period (post-1860), and another in the near to the Ibrahimi Mosque. It contained a kitchen, Jewish quarter (established 1100 AH). The latter was grain store, an oven, and a grain harvester. It was turned into a ‘Barr’ (mill) for in 1170 AH, and located near the Jawili Mosque to the north, where then to shops for rent up until construction ended 150 dashishah soup was prepared and served to travelers years ago. There was also the Khalil Bimaristan near and residents in the morning, noon and evening. to the Khalil Hammam underneath the Sharabati Drums were beaten to signal serving time. Bread was house, and Al-Bimaristan Al-Mansouri near the also made in a section called the tabil khana or where southern stairs of the Ibrahimi Mosque in front of the the drums were beaten. The hospice included three Hebron castle. This has one big room and a yard and ovens and six millstones; above there were shops dates back to the Crusader period and the time of where wheat and barley were stored. Sultan Al-Malik Al-Mansour Saif Edin Qalawoun Al- Alfi. It was renovated and turned into a Bimaristan in B. Educational buildings the same year that the Rabat Mansouri was renovated Schools started to appear in Hebron hundreds of years (686 AH). ago, even before the Ottoman period. There were many schools, especially during the Ayyubid and One of the existing buildings classified under health periods. Examples include the Qaymaryah services was the Caranteena Building, a steep square- School near the Ibrahimi Mosque’s northern gate shaped stone wall that has a number of buildings and (now occupied by Jewish settlers), Fakhryah School rooms with a yard in the center to facilitate access and Sultan Hasan School, which was initially part of between buildings and rooms. This building has only the Rabat Mansouri station. The focal point of one gate and consists of many rooms such as a academic life in Hebron was the Ibrahimi Mosque, store, clinics, and services.

Proceedings of Research World International Conference, Marrakech, Morocco, 13th-14th April 2018 3 Luminosity of Palestine: Land, People & Architecture attackers. The methods of protection varied from castles, walls supported by an urban network, and arbitah (stations) (photo 3.5).

- Stations (Arbitah) Stations are military constructions introduced to Islamic architecture and termed thus as they remain in situ for the word of God. Inside stations, soldiers were trained religiously, spiritually and military for jihad and defense. Allah Almighty said in the Quran: “O you who have believed, persevere and endure and remain stationed and fear Allah that you may be successful” (Ali Imran). Stations were proportional in Figure 4:the Caranteena Building,HRC..jpg design architecturally and had rectangular shapes and dual stone walls equipped with defensive - Baths towers. Internally there was a vast yard surrounded by rooms for soldier dwellings, a mosque and public The Muslims paid special attention to baths. Their facilities. style followed the Roman pattern and the exterior layout assumed a square shape. The interior angles Examples of stations in Hebron include the Rabat include additional buildings containing supplies for Mansouri, which is believed to have been established the baths. The main building itself was a rectangular during the Fatimid period. It was mentioned by Nasir shape in the middle of the inner yard of the square. Khusraw in his book Safar Tamih as t The Castle. Buildings with square angles comprise a main The castle was built in 496 AH (1099 AD) after entrance, changing rooms, warm inner yards used for Hebron had fallen to the Crusaders, who named it the , and the furnace. Saint Abraham Castle. It consisted of a lower floor There were few baths in Hebron due to the traditional (stable) and upper floor as dwellings for the Hebron and conservative outlook of the population. These garrison, and had towers to the south and north (the baths included: latter still exists today). A large part of the Castle was Baraka Bath (Sultan Pool): established in the demolished in 1965-1966, but the northern wall Ottoman period, particularly during the reign of remains standing. It was used in the early days of the Levant governor Amir Rajab Pasha (1311 AH). Ottoman period as a dwelling for soldiers and, over 1- Katebah Bath (Bader): near the west side of the time, families came to live there. Qazzazen Mosque, established in 1943. 2- Na’im Bath: owned by Dari al-Qasrawi, built circa 1925. 3- Abu Aqafeh Bath: located near Tawashi Spring and established circa 1190 AH. It was owned by a member of the Herbawi clan called Abu Aqafeh, but it no longer exists today. It was bought from Ahmad Bin Saleh in 1200 AH by Sheikh Mohammed Budairi. 4- Ibrahim Khalil Bath: built during the Mamluk period (around 668 AH). The cornerstone was 5- laid by Amir Aladin Kiklari. The strange thing about this bath is that the Amir was blind, but he had an architectural mind. Figure 3.9 shows a bird’s-eye view of the bath.[5] Figure 5:the Rabat Mansouri 1965-1966,HRC..jpg

E. Commercial buildings D. Administrative and military buildings Commercial buildings reflect the magnitude of trade in Hebron, which was a key commercial center famed Military and administrative buildings such as castles for trade in fruit, grape derivatives, wool, and leather. and forts were not important in Hebron. Measures It was also famous for leather bottles and the pottery taken for the city’s protection were purely defensive industry, plus many handcrafts. Hebron was as it is surrounded by hills on all sides, as well as renowned for its commercial markets and variety of irregular walls. Inside the city, the haphazard street goods. The commercial movement was at its peak planning and roof hatches within streets were crucial during the Mamluk and Ottoman periods, when many for surprise and to pour burning materials on markets emerged.

Proceedings of Research World International Conference, Marrakech, Morocco, 13th-14th April 2018 4 Luminosity of Palestine: Land, People & Architecture Key markets include the Lahamin (butchers) market (the museum) and near to the arch that leads to and Husur (mats) market, which were an extension to the central grocery market. The khan has a total area the Ibrahimi Mosque. Then came the Zayatin (oil of 5665 square meters. sellers) market towards the Ibrahimi Mosque, through the arch of the Khalil Hammam up to the end of Ibn There is no known date of construction, especially as Othman Mosque; the Ghazal (textile) market faced the transcript on the gate is illegible due to stone the door of Ibn Othman Mosque – the start of the decay, but the date may be deduced from main market to Alakabh quarter- and then the Laban architectural elements such as low-rise domes and (dairy) market. [6] cross vaults, which date from the Ottoman period. The variety of markets in the city shows the Unfortunately, sections of the inn were removed in substantial role they played in the fabric of the 855 AH and the Islamic Waqf Department building Islamic city center. Specialization was one of the was constructed in its place. The Hebron foundations for planning in Islamic cities. In addition, Rehabilitation Committee (HRC) finished renovation there were many trade-oriented buildings, including of what remains of the khan in 885 AH and rented the the following: residential section. The whole area became a closed military zone during the Al-Aqsa intifada (uprising). V. WAKALAH MARKET The HRC offices moved to Dweik Palace because access to the khan became impossible without special The name ‘wakalah’ (which translates as ‘agency’) is permission granted by the Israeli occupation usually given to buildings used as a dwelling for authorities.The architectural design of the khan is that foreign merchants and to store their goods. It is a of a two-storey building. The ground floor is accessed square-shaped construction accessed through one through a gate called a ‘khan arch’ from the east, a wide gate, to allow entry to camels and horses, and gate called a ‘Waqf arch’ from the west, and a third consists of separate warehouses on a ground floor gate called a (hammam arch) in the north-eastern overlooking an open yard. They have all the corner. The first floor is accessed through stone stairs necessary services and facilities, while upper floors from the inner courtyard.[8] also have suites for merchants overlooking the yard. These wakalah were established by the government The ground floor consisted of a number of shops, and many individuals who had their own wakalah. probably used to store goods and used as stables in They were usually established by a senior merchant the past. The first floor was for sleeping and had who had gained the ruler’s trust and acted as an agent bedrooms, a living room and other facilities; this was for foreign merchants. This is where the term the place where travelers and merchants went to wakalah or ‘agency’ comes from and their existence spend the night. denotes the state’s status and economic prosperity.[7] It is no secret that Hebron was an important commercial location and became a central stop on the The Wakalah market building was used to commercial route between north and south and for accommodate visitors and junior merchants who neighboring areas. arrived from different villages in the vicinity to spend the trade season in the city. They sold goods on the ground floor and resided on the upper first floor. Rooms were then used in different ways, with stores on the ground floor used to manufacture traditional furniture and upholstery. Sections of the first floor were turned into residential apartments for families in 1970 and rooms were used as bedrooms, kitchens and living rooms. Concrete brick spaces were added to meet new needs. Today, the building is abandoned, except for some parts of it.

VI. IBRAHIM KHALIL KHAN (INN) The word ‘khan’ is of Persian origin and means an inn or a house that serves food and beverages and accommodation. It is briefly occupied by merchants, pilgrims and others, and is also a big store. The idiomatic meaning of khan is that of an inn resting en route for different convoys travelling between cities or located at wall gates.

Khalil Khan is located in front of the east gate of the Bani Dar quarter, south of the Ibrahim Khalil Bath Figure 6: The main of the Abraham bath and it is loaded on arches and stalactites,Dr. Ghassan Dweik..jpg

Proceedings of Research World International Conference, Marrakech, Morocco, 13th-14th April 2018 5 Luminosity of Palestine: Land, People & Architecture the houses were white in color with green edging around them. He made this remark almost one hundred and twenty years before Al-Hanbali (photo 3.10).

Houses from the Mamluk period were cared for lovingly by residents and owners as a source of comfort and shelter. The mountainous nature of the area was significant in determining the building material used: an extremely strong limestone that gave the city its special character. The houses of Hebron have unique domes that result in an attractive skyline visually. They also have wide backyards where wells are dug to store rainwater throughout the year. These houses are mostly single or dual floors; the entrances to the backyards are low and no big doors were located onto the streets, except for a few houses. The houses are usually dark and in the shape of foyer that ends with a wide yard called the patio or the courtyard, one corner of which has a reservoir to Figure 7: Khan Al Khalil and its square in the old city of store rainwater. Inside the house, there are residential Hebron, Dr.Ghassan Dweik.jpg units and a large room called the hall (for guests) that overlooks the patio or courtyard.

Houses built in the late Ottoman period in particular were close to each other, which led to vertical rather than horizontal expansion. Houses formed the city wall and have three floors (basement, central floor and sometimes an attic). This indicates the abundance of construction material (stone, lime, clay) and the extended families that led to an expanding Figure 8: Al wakala market and its square in the old city of Hebron, HRC..jpg population.[9]

VII. TRADITIONAL RESIDENTIAL HOUSES REFERENCES IN HEBRON [1] Ghassan, J.D, Revitalization of the old city of Hebron. PHD research, Bukarest, Romania, 1998. Some of the residential houses in Hebron’s Old City [2] A group of researchers, Old Hebron, The Charm of a date back to the late Mamluk period, at least those on Historical City and Architecture, HRC, Hebron ,Palestine, the ground floor, and other architecture elsewhere 2009. dates from the Ottoman period (1517-1917). [3] Amro, Dr Younis The Arab City of Khalil Al-Rahman, City Has a History 2nd Ed. , Hebron University, 1987. [4] Hakim, BasemSalim - Islamic Cities – Building and During the Mamluk period, Al-Hanbali described the Planning Principles, London, 1986. houses of Jerusalem and Hebron as: Buildings in Bait [5] Abu . Rmeiles, Salah Musa The Ibrahimi Mosque . First al-Maqdis are clinch and professional; all of them edition, Bait AL-Maqdes for publishing –Palestine 1985. [6] Dweik, G. J. & Shaheen, W. S. 2017. Classification Of have been constructed with carved white stone, and Residential Buildings In The Old City Of Hebron. Structural the ceiling is a cross-vault with no clay or wood. Studies, Repairs and Maintenance of Heritage Architecture There are no better buildings in cities in Palestine XV, 171, 111. than those in Bait al-Maqdis or the city of al-Khalil [7] Hebron Rehabilitation Committee., RAWIQ., Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA). (PBUH). The buildings of Jerusalem are well- Survey of the Traditional Town Neighbourhoods and mastered, and nothing came close to them except Buildings, HRC, Hebron, Palestine, 2001. those in Nablus.” Al-Balwi Abu el-Baqa’a Khalid ibn [8] Baker, David Living in the past, The Historic Environment, Issa (died 780 AH/1378 AD) described the houses of Roydon Press, Luton, 1983. [9] Hebron municipality,2010, http://www.hebron-city.ps/ Hebron and may be the only one of the Muslim or foreign explorers who visited the city to mention that

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