Design characteristics of architectural ornamental shapes: A comparative case study of houses in Baghdad in the monarchical era

This work provides insight into the enduring importance of traditional Iraqi architecture in addressing contemporary design challenges. It represents a step towards preserving Baghdadi heritage specifically, as well as local architecture in general. The research aims to study the ornamentation of closed and open-style houses in the Royal era, exploring the architectural complexities of two traditional Baghdadi houses. It highlights the formation and formal relationships of the ornaments within the two houses. The research problem is defined by the knowledge gap regarding the formation and formal design characteristics of ornaments in open Baghdadi houses compared to closed houses in the royal era. The research analyzed an open house and a closed house located in Rusafa, Baghdad, and investigated the classification of ornaments based on their formation methods and formal relationships through detailed documentation. This study revealed the integration of vegetal, geometric, and Islamic ornaments created in various forms and relationships. Finally, the research found that “The characteristics of the formal design of the ornamentations in the open-style houses of Baghdad vary to a limited extent compared to the ornamentations of the closed-style houses in the Royal era’’ as the architectural design of these houses blends to some extent traditional and modern ornamental elements with some minor differences in the methods and relationships of formation and location within house context.