Hurghada
Our second location is Hurghada, situated in Egypt, near the Red sea. The climate is warm, with temperatures exceeding 41°C with sparse rainfall. The minimum temperature is around 3°C.
EGYPT VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE:
- Materials: Due to the scarcity of wood,the two predominant building materials used were sun-baked mud brick and stone, mainly limestone, but also sandstone and granite in considerable quantities.
- Labour skills: simple dry stones techniques to a limited extent
- Dwellings: typical settler lived in a rectangular one-room of sun dried Nile mud, shelters and huts from reeds and rushes
- Social status: Egyptian society was highly stratified and social status was expressly displayed
- Culture: close connection with religion and architecture
- Climate: warm, with sparse rainfalls
Nubian architecture:
The earliest Nubian architecture used perishable materials, wattle and daub, mudbrick, animal hide and other light and supple materials.
As a response to the harsh conditions of the Arid desert environment, dwellings are generally characterised by being compact in shape for minimizing the amount of building surface exposed to the direct radiation of the sun and the alleys in between are narrow and often covered and shaded streets to avoid the heat of the sun and extreme brightness and provide ventilation shaft.