Using Three- Dimensional Modeling Techniques in Digital Preservation of Urban Plans for the Old Walled City of Shibam Hadramawt

Abstract

Historic cities have great importance in our time because they represent a cultural, social and urban wealth for societies, where historical cities gain their importance through the values ​​and principles that are reflected on the reality of the city, its personality, its social and topographic components, its planning and urban form. The traditional methods and paths of preservation have taken long periods of time and have been affected by the political and economic situation of the country which until our current situation, still living a period of instability. The study object is to create a vision for a preservation digital platform of the historical city of Shibam, Hadramout using 3D modeling techniques. The study importance is that using 3D modeling techniques and a set of metadata associated with each graphic object of historical urban elements would help in digital preservation. The research followed the descriptive inductive approach in studying the theoretical concepts and the practical approach in creating the digital platform for the three-dimensional modeling technologies.