CIU Lecturer Publishes International Article on Cypriot Architectural Heritage

CIU Department of Architecture lecturer Asst. Prof. Reyhan Sabri published research on the work of the Ottoman Evkaf organization and its work maintaining and covering architecture during the British Colonial period. The article was published in the International Journal of Heritage Studies, a leading international publication based in the United Kingdom.

In her analytical work based exclusively on original documents, Dr. Sabri examined the changes in the traditional conservation system reserved for buildings administered by Ottoman Evkaf. Sabri focused on the need for maintenance works on Evkaf buildings, the preparation of necessary projects, the issuance of relevant authorization, and the realization of the repair works.

Speaking on the researchundertaken in the article, Dr. Sabri said that the analysis of perceptions and attitudes prevalent in the British colonial era shed light on the past. Sabri pointed out that the work had also established a guideline for a sustainable model of protection and renovation that could be adopted by the Cypriot Evkaf Office.

According to the findings established in the work, the Evkaf Office was taken over from the Ottoman administration in 1878. Pointing out that a sustainable system of renovation concerning the foundation buildings had been in Ottoman practice for centuries at the time of the administrative transfer, Dr. Sabri said “the end-user society had quite an active role within the system. The need for renovation would thus be timely detected, and pressure would be exerted on relevant authorities in instances where the required maintenance was not carried out. Necessary funds were endowed for maintenance purposes”.

...Read more

Credit: CIU Ajans