Transformation Analysis of Traditional Mosques: The Case of Quzzat Quarter of Herat Old City, Afghanistan

Abstract

This study examines the traditional mosques in the Quzzat quarter of Herat Old City, Afghanistan, after WWII. The study discovered urban developments, typology of mosques, as well as destructions, changes, and transformations of the traditional mosques. It involved compiling data, conducting a field survey, examining historical maps, reviewing published works to explain constructions, and finding out how transformations took place. Twenty-nine mosques are constructed in the study area. Twenty-five of them were originally constructed before WWII with traditional local material, and four were constructed after WWII; of these four, three are modern (concrete) and one is made of traditional material. Twelve out of the twenty-five traditional mosques still exist in traditional form, while twelve have been transformed, and one has been damaged. Modern mosques are found to the northwest of the quarter, where the city wall was razed, flattened, and transformed into residential area. Transformations started after WWII and have occurred mainly in the southern parts of the quarter. The majority of the mosques in the northern areas are preserved, while in the southern regions they are transformed, and modern constructions were carried out in the newly urbanized areas.