Comparative Study on the Structure of Islamic Urban Space : Particularly on the Garden and Mosque

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

The main field research of the last year of our project was carried out in September 1993 in Tunisia after the separate research in each member's field. Principal activities of the field work of this year in Tunisia are the followings :1. Investigation on the urban plan of Tunisian main cities such as Tunis, Kairouan, Sfax, Souse, Mahdiya and Monastir. Locality and distribution of the religious institutions such as Mosques, Madrasas and Mausolea were our principal interests. The location of doors of such religious institutions was recorded on the city map as well.2. Investigation on the suq (market), one of the characteristics of the "Islamic City". The distribution of shops, the lease contract of each shop (owner-tenant relation) and the carrier of the shop owner were our main themes.3. Investigation on the traditional urban dwelling in the medina of Tunis.4. Examination of the process of building and re-building of Zaytuna Mosque in Tunis and the Great Mosque in Kairouan from the point of view of the architectural history.5. Examination of the remains of garden and research on the role of gardens in urban society.6. Visit to the Center of Islamic Studies in Kairouan and the Center d' etudes et de reserches Ottomanes, Morisques, de documentation et d' information in Zaghouan. Collection of documentation in these centers.7. Confirmation of the distinction between Morocco and Tunisia which are generally considered as having a common cultural background.After putting in order the collected materials and analyzing the obtained results of this three-year project, we intend to organize another field research project centering on the religious institutions in various Islamic countries.