Abstract
Historical buildings are one of the physical testimonies of early settlements and civilizations. The creativity of space, form and order of their houses, the techniques and technologies they have used, the methodologies of construction and building material selection is a mirror of the society’s knowledge and wisdom. But, those traditional houses that are heritages of Aksum are not documented yet. In order to document those traditional historical houses, identifying whether it is on its original fabric or transformed is a critical lesson. Therefore the main aim of this study is to investigate the physical condition of the selected vernacular houses and to assess their conservation practices. Using field visit, observations, structured and non-structured questionnaires and interviews, cross checking different data sources are used for qualitative data collections and the data has analyzed. From the selected case studies, most of them their physical structure is not at a good condition because of ownership issues and improper conservation practices due to need of modernization and urbanization like cement plastering, chemical paint, electricity installation and others that affect its original fabric. Responsible parties like governmental offices, universities, professional experts and stakeholders should document the vernacular houses and the conservation practices at different time and they should prepare conservation management plan or guidelines for the specific site to manage the conservation activities and practices. The responsible parties should work with the community in awareness creation to preserve those vernacular houses.
Highlights
The vernacular attempts to define a common architecture of a people; Vernacular houses or traditional houses are buildings which have not been professionally designed
Conservation of Heritage buildings can be defined as Routine, cyclical, non-destructive actions necessary to slow the deterioration of a historic place
In order to document heritage buildings or traditional historical houses, identifying whether it is on its original fabric or transformed is a critical lesson
Summary
The vernacular attempts to define a common architecture of a people; Vernacular houses or traditional houses are buildings which have not been professionally designed They are “buildings of the people”, by the people but not for the people “accommodating the values, economies and ways of life of the cultures that produce them” [1]. Conservation of Heritage buildings can be defined as Routine, cyclical, non-destructive actions necessary to slow the deterioration of a historic place It entails periodic inspection; routine, cyclical, nondestructive cleaning; minor repair and refinishing operations; replacement of damaged or deteriorated materials that are impractical to save [7]. In order to document heritage buildings or traditional historical houses, identifying whether it is on its original fabric or transformed is a critical lesson. Observations, structured and non-structured questionnaires and interviews, using photographs, Drawings, cross checking different data sources are used for qualitative data collections
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