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Welcome to ARCHNET, an open access, interdisciplinary, intellectual resource focused on the built environment of Muslim societies.Focused on the built environment of Islamic civilizations past and present, we seek to:<ul><li>Facilitate excellence in scholarship and professional work by&nbsp;providing reliable information and ready access&nbsp;to vetted, high-quality textual and multimedia resources&nbsp;focused on architecture, urbanism, environmental and landscape design,&nbsp;heritage&nbsp;conservation, economic and environmental sustainability, community development and resilience in the face of rapid change, and related topics.</li><li>Enable teaching and learning in these domains by providing educators with reliable, effective pedagogical material and teaching aids.&nbsp;</li><li>Serve as a platform through which scholars, practitioners, and institutions can bring their work to new global audiences.&nbsp;</li><li>Promote intercultural understanding and dialogue through reliable, high-quality, peer-reviewed material on the diversity of and pluralism within Muslim societies and the interaction between Islamic and other religious, cultural, and philosophical traditions as it relates to architecture and urbanism.</li><li>Enable easy access to a wide variety of resources via a custom-built, web-based, mobile-friendly platform optimized to minimize financial, infrastructural, linguistic, and other barriers to access.&nbsp;&nbsp;</li></ul>Launched in 2002 after several years of development, ARCHNET is a pioneering digital resource that has proven a reliable authority on the built environment of Muslim societies, past and present.&nbsp;ARCHNET is a partnership between the <a href="https://www.archnet.org/collections/1342" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Aga Khan Documentation Center, MIT Libraries</a> (AKDC@MIT) and the <a href="https://www.archnet.org/authorities/1903" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Aga Khan Trust for Culture</a> (AKTC), with support from the <a href="https://www.archnet.org/collections/50" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture</a> at Harvard and MIT.&nbsp;ARCHNET is developed and maintained by <a href="https://www.performantsoftware.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Performant Software Solutions</a>.

About

 Sana'a

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IAA707965

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caravanserai

The <a href="http://www.akdn.org/architecture/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Aga Khan Award for Architecture</a> is given every three years to projects that set new standards of excellence in architecture, planning practices, historic preservation and landscape architecture. During the selection process, an independent Master Jury selects a shortlist of projects for further study and in-depth review. On-site project reviewers are commissioned to examine each of the shortlisted projects in detail, verifying project data and seeking additional information such as user reactions. The projects in this collection have extensive documentation, including images, architect and client reports, presentation panels and in some cases videos. Projects are listed in the order, by cycle, in which they were selected.

Aga Khan Award for Architecture  On-site Reviewed and Shortlisted Projects 1980-2025

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IAA708361

Yemen

Part of the wider Old Sana'a Conservation Programme, the restoration of this carvanserai transformed it into a commercial centre filled with retail shops specializing in traditional handicrafts and copper products.

adaptive reuse

restoration and conservation

Aga Khan Award for Architecture On-site Reviewed Project

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slide

IAA13443

Nuhas Caravanserai

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IAA13444

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IAA13445

Recipient of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1995.<div> </div><div>Since its founding 2,000 years ago, Sana'a has been a major trading centre for south-eastern Arabia. Once a seat of government for the early Islamic caliphs, it is today the capital city of Yemen. Typical houses in Sana'a rise to as many as nine stories. The lower levels are usually built of stone, and the upper ones of lighter brick. The windows are outlined in white gypsum and have fan lights of alabaster or coloured glass held in gypsum tracery. Because the urban expansion of the 1970's and 1980's had begun to threaten and eventually destroy the old city, in 1984 the Republic of Yemen created the General Organisation for the Preservation of Old Sana'a. By 1987, it extended its responsibilities to all of Yemen and became the General Organisation for the Preservation of the Historic Cities of Yemen (GOPHCY). UNESCO and UNDP assisted the preservation planning process, while technical assistance and funding were provided by the Yemeni government and by Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, North Korea, Norway, Switzerland, and the U.S.A. About 50 percent of the city's streets and alleys have been paved with patterned bands of black basalt and white limestone, and the repair continues. Old water supply and drainage systems were upgraded, and craftsmen are restoring the city's mud walls. Numerous buildings dating from the 14th, 17th, and 19th centuries have been restored. The jury notes that "this project has saved old Sana'a." Source: Aga Khan Trust for Culture </div>

Old Sana'a Conservation

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Nuhas Caravanserai
Sana'a, Yemen

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Nuhas Caravanserai
Sana'a, Yemen

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Nuhas CaravanseraiSana'a, Yemen

Location

Images & Videos

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Associated Collections

Additional Names

Site Types

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Nuhas Caravanserai
Sana'a, Yemen