Natural Stone in Jordan: Characteristics, Specifications and Importance in interior Architecture

American Journal of Scientific Research ISSN 2301-2005 Issue 82 December, 2012, pp.83-94 © EuroJournals Publishing, Inc. 2012 http://www.eurojournals.com/ajsr.htm

Natural Stone in Jordan: Characteristics, Specifications and

Importance in interior Architecture

Raed Al-Share Faculty of Engineering Technology, BAU

Wasef Momani

Faculty of Architecture and Design, Petra University

Asem Obeidat Faculty of Fine Arts, Yarmouk University

Nassar Mansour

Institute of Islamic Arts and Architecture, W.I.S.E. JORDAN

Abstract

This study seeks to shed light on the using of natural stone in the Jordanian interior architecture. It also demonstrated its characteristics and importance in the interior designs of the various facilities leading to a balance between the physiological and emotional needs of human being. The results shave showed that inserting the natural stone in the interior architecture of the various facilities gives a unique characteristic in accordance with the requirements of the local environment. Moreover, it provides a technical aesthetic for facilities giving them the comforting sense of luxury and wealth. Keywords: Natural stone, Jordan, interior Architecture, decorations, limestone, granite,

marble. 1. Introduction Natural resources are considered to be an important source of national wealth in the entire the world. Many countries have used their natural resources as a starting point to accelerate the economic wheel and to develop its competitiveness ability. However, experience has demonstrated that natural resources in themselves are not sufficient enough to achieve prosperity and economic progress. Thus, long-term benefits can be made in accordance with the resources’ continued existence and its added value through preparing and developing these resources to be used in the various aspects of life.

Jordan is considered as one of the countries that are rich in their natural resources including the natural stone. Attentions have been greatly paid on natural stone due to its great role in increasing the national income and economic growth of Jordan. Therefore, the natural stone industry has recently received a clear interest by both public and private sectors as well as the companies operating in this area which were about 7000 companies in the early of this century. The increased number of these companies might be due to the abundance of rock layers with specifications appropriate for the purposes of construction in the geographical territory in addition to the multiple types of natural stone including Limestone, Granite and Marble that have been significantly accepted in the local and regional markets, and now they are competing with the natural stone manufactured in Italy or Turkey.

Natural Stone in Jordan: Characteristics, Specifications and Importance in interior Architecture 84

Since ancient times, Jordanians have been famous for using Masonry stone closest to their residential areas for its accessibility. Limestone for example has been used in northern, central and west parts of Jordan, basalt stone has been used in the northeast, and sandstone has been in the far south of Jordan. The successive civilizations that resided in Jordan have left us wonderful architectural and unique models in which some of them were built using natural stone extracted from nearby quarries.

Whereas architecture is a functional art aims to provide pleasure, beauty and psychological comfort for the various facilities, it is difficult to exempt architecture from the environment in which it exists. Therefore, designer should take into consideration studying ratios, types of local materials, different colors and how to employ them in construction providing an internal atmosphere which provides residents with comfort, quietness and serenity. The French architect, Le Corbusier (Le Corbusier), has stated that architecture is associated with the designer’s ability to excite and bring happiness and joy to the viewer through the special relationships between the components of architectural work externally and internally. According to him, this provides the residents a sense of suspense via the use of materials with various colors, and the exchange of shadow and light between tympana and prominent parts. Architects have also paid attention to that using stone in the interior vacuums imparts a sense of luxury, warmth and privacy (Padovan, 1965).

Hence, the interest to conduct this study has emerged, which sheds the light on the natural stone in Jordan, defines its characteristics and features, and highlights the importance of its use in interior architecture in the various facilities. This could contribute in giving the Jordanian architecture a distinctive personality since it conveys a local architectural touch based on compatibility and adaption with the surrounding environment. 2. Research Objective The aim of this study is mainly to highlight the use of stone in construction, how to maintain it, and to encourage its use in interior architecture as a decoration showing the Jordanian architectural identity. This study also aims to encourage architects and interior designers to create new patterns in via using the types of natural stone in interior architecture. The designer has to focus on the interior parts, use the best interior designs, and take advantage of new technologies to achieve this. He should also insert the natural stone from the outside to the inside and reconsider the design calculations, especially if we take into account the return to use the inner courtyard, which is one of the best architectural examples in clarifying the concept of openness towards the inside in the architecture. 3. Research Questions

1. What is the historical relationship between the natural stone and the Jordanian architecture? 2. What are the characteristics and specifications of the natural stone in Jordan? 3. What is the relationship between characteristics and specifications of the natural stone and the

Jordanian architecture? 4. What is the importance behind using natural stone in interior architecture in Jordan, and its

impact in vacuums? 4. Research Methodology Researchers have adopted a descriptive approach and the analysis of the study questions through studying the history of the relationship between stone and the architecture in Jordan, highlighting its specifications, and describing the current reality using natural stone in the design and construction processes. To achieve the overall objectives of this study, the following topics are worth to be considered and analyzed: a historical overview of using natural stone in the Jordanian architecture,

85 Raed Al-Share, Wasef Momani, Asem Obeidat, and Nassar Mansour

specifications and types of natural stone and composition and processing methods, and the importance of natural stone in interior architecture. 5. History of using Natural Stone in the Jordanian Architecture Natural stone is one of the most important construction materials used in building. It is used in building facades, concrete, foundations, floors and other architectural elements that form the building. Since ancient times, the human was instinctively guided to use the stone as the main material to build his home. There is no doubt that the art of dealing with stone as a building material in terms of style and technique was developed through historical periods, until it became on what we see today of crusty stone facades which give a beautiful sight, but vary from the bases of the structural pattern.

The results of archaeological works carried out in various areas of Jordan show that the people had used the stone in building since eighth thousandth BC, when they started building simple facilities for accommodation. These facilities were about a group of stone composing a rounded wall that had an identified architectural vacuum, thought it was believed to be ceiled by wood (Banning, 1985). A clear development appeared on the stability and building of ancient man, where he built housing units cemented together with a steady shape. Each one of these units were comprised from a wide yard in front of the housing rooms, built by limestone with homogeneous thickness brought from rock layers deployed in the surrounding region. These architectural gatherings formed the so-called agricultural villages as in Basta Beida villages in the south of Jordan, and Ain Ghazal, Abu Al- Thawwab and Wadi Shuaib villages, which dated to the Neolithic age 8500-4500 BC. M. (Kirkbrid, 1967; Banning, 1985). The architecture of this period is characterized by the use of the unsmooth stone in an interoperate manner connected with layers of mud and small stone. It is also characterized by refining the interior walls and floors with a layer of plasterer consisting of lime and gypsum, as evident in the site of Ain Ghazal, as well as bringing the stones from the rock layers available in the residential area (Kafafi and Rollefson, 1997).

In Chalcolithic period 4500-3200B.C, people continued to use the locally available materials to build their residential places, and to develop techniques that using these substances and taking into account the conditions of the surrounding environment. The archaeological works in Tlelat al-ghasool- which is one of the most important sites of this period - to the north-east of the Dead Sea, revealed houses of rectangular shapes built of stone and bricks, and floors paved with stone, and bleached with lime. It was also noted the use of stone in building the foundations of walls set of mud (Hunbary, 1986).

The Bronze Age 3200-1200 BC, is considered as a new civilized start in using stone, where fortified cities with their defense walls were built, as well as the religious and public buildings. Stone was clearly used as a building material, especially the use of the unsmooth stone. The walls of houses were thick for matters related with construction aspects, the thickness of the main walls in the building was larger than those that serve as partitions between rooms, and the thickness of the city walls ranged between 7 - 12 meters. The best example for sites of this period in Jordan is Khirbet Zarkon located to the north-east of Irbid (Ibrahim and Mittman, 1989).

The classical period (Hellenistic and Romanian) is considered as an architectural revolution in building method. Dealing with building was an art form of aesthetic arts showing the human’s creativity in expressing beauty. The stone was used accurately and beautifully where it was cut and carved in an expressive forms to give religious, social and cultural connotations. It evidently appears in the monuments and buildings such as the buildings existed in Amman, Jerash and Umm Qais and other classic sites built in Jordan during this period (Browning,1982). Over the same period, the Arabs Nabateans were more creative in dealing with rocky interfaces that needs micro suitable accuracy. Nabataeans were famous in the art of building and dealing with rocky facades.

This classical architecture method has spanned in less agility during the Byzantine period, where it was used in building churches, digging and processing rock tombs as in the city of Um Al-Jemal (De vries, 1982). It should be noted that the builders dealt with masonry stone in its mechanical


characteristics since they instinctively knew its characteristics and used it in the right place. The basalt stone was used in places that needed for strength and durability while the marble was used in humid places because of its resistance to water absorption. Limestone was beautifully carved used in building facades.

During the earliest Islamic period, natural stone was used in building several religious and civilian facilities. The Umayyad caliphs, led by Abdul-Malik bin Marwan and his followers, began to pay more attention a of architecture and especially the religious one. They built the Dome of Rock and Al-aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem in 692 AD, they also built the Great Umayyad Mosque in Damascus in 715 AD. Moreover, the Umayyad caliphs built many palaces and baths and they took a good care of them as in Amra Palace, Al-Mashtta and Qastal Palace in Jordan (Al -Asd; Bisheh, 2000).

Stone continued to be used in building until this day and before the entrance of technology in dealing with stone such as carving and cutting. The builders and sculptors were forming the stone manually and they were concerned in the aspects of doors, corners, and windows openings. The rest of interfaces’ vacuums were built from unsmooth stone covering with mud and rock. The walls’ thickness ranged between 60-80 cm, and they were bleached from inside by a mixture of mud with lime and straw as can be seen in many of the heritage buildings built in different cities and villages in Jordan (Fig. 1).

Figure 1: The use of natural stone in heritage buildings (Madafet Qwaider – Hartha village - Irbid)

This sequence shows the historical depth of using stone in Jordan in building various types of buildings with fine architectural elements built with stone such as barrages, vaulting and arches. The prevalence of regional style can be seen in the Jordanian architecture showing the compatibility between building and region local, social, natural and climatic conditions. 6. Natural Stone Specifications Stone: Every rocky material used for building purposes and industry in its natural state without any changes in its chemical or physical properties. For geologists, stone is any rocky or small piece formed in a free state (Dradkh, 2003). The areas of limestone, Granite and Marble are distributed in several regions in Jordan, as the area of Ma’an, located 210 km south of Amman, Al-Azraq, 90 km east of Amman, and Ajloun 50 km north of Amman, in addition to Aqaba and its surroundings in the far south (Sultan,2007) (Map:1)


Map1: Areas of Natural Stone in Jordan (Naghoj and others, 2011).

7. Preparing and forming Masonry and Decoration Stones Decoration and masonry stones are prepared and formed through several stages such the concretion process, in which stones are extracted from their position in the rock layers. These process require the right knowledge of stone properties and validity to be used. It is also important to make sure that stones achieve the purpose in terms of strength, rigidity, possibility of manufacturing, continuity, color, porosity, ease of concretions process, accessibility, the size, transporting, and depth of concretion, and the layers’ closeness from the surface. These factors are important for studying the validity of stone for building, moreover, the installation of layers and joints play an important role in the possibility of concreting in strong suitable masses, where the stone must be free of defects such as cracks and vulnerable joints. Some of other processes of preparing and forming natural stone are cutting, manual and machine sawing, as well as carving and sculpturing. 8. The Most Famous Types of Natural Stones used in Building in Jordan 8.1. Building Stones

The Names of natural stones in Jordan are known from where they are extracted, and distinguishing the good from bad stones also depending on the area. The following are the most important of these names:

Ajloun stone: It is a very solid stone and its colors include white (milky) and yellowish (beige), and it also includes nice brown veins in its structure. Ajloun stone is extracted from different areas in Ajloun which was named according to the area where it was found in, such as, Anjara Stone, Ashtafina Stone, Sakhrah Stone, and others.

Hayyan Stone: The name of the stone is related to the village of Hayan in Mafraq Governorate, and because of its moderate price and its acceptable moderate physical specifications , it is considered as the most common and wanted stone. It is generally less solid and more absorbent of water compared to the other types, but it whitens and unites colors. (Naghoj and others,2011).

Ma’an Stone: it is known as this nam in relative to Ma'an area, and it is one of the best types of stones in Jordan in terms of its physical specifications . There are different names for this stone regarding the sites where it is extracted from, such as Ma’an Surface stone, Al-Jazeera Stone, Jardanah


Stone and others. These stones are available in the local market by several degrees of quality; it is classified as first and second class and cobble. (Abdel-Qader 2002)

Ruweished Stone: this stone is extracted from Rowaished area east of Jordan, and it has different varieties of quality and solidity, and the best that is extracted from the same level of Ma’an stone which it has the same physical properties, but Rowaished stone is less in whites, stiffness and the increase in the proportion of salt in its composition (Akroush, 1994).

Alsamk Stone: This stone is extracted from Alsamk village and the areas around it. A species accepted locally and regionally, and it is known for its common color and large mass (block), which is sawed by its composition according to outsize upon request (Abed, 2000). 8.2. Ornamental, Decoration, and Flooring Stones

Marble: A natural amorphous limestone rock results from the turning of limestone rock by warming. The pure marble is a white one; however, if it contains small amounts of impurities, it becomes red, pink, yellow, or brown. All of these are produced because of the presence of iron compounds. The gray and black are produced because of the presence of organic carbon compounds or graphite while the green ones are produced because of the presence of chromium. The marble located in Dab’a, Maan, Karak, Zarqa Irbid, and Ajloun (Ghannam, 2001) are examples of these colored rocks. In general, Jordanian marble is characterized by its multiple colors including brown, black, pink, gray, and green.

Granite: Igneous rocks that are clearly crystallized. This includes Granite, gneiss, Cyanate, and Mazzonit, Diorite, petrochemistry, Alanortozi and Gabbro. These are characterized by different colors including pink, gray, brown, and green while the dark species are called black. Granite might be found on multiple locations in Jordan, the most important of these locations is the Youtm valley and Imran Valley in Aqaba (Abed, 2000). Granite is used inside buildings as ornamental blocks, since it is used in coating the walls and floors, and in manufacturing of various kitchen tables.

Travertine: A sedimentary high porous rock results from the deposition of calcium carbonate from the esoteric water around fountains and hot springs saturated with calcium carbonate. The pure Travertine is a white one; however, it is executed in various colors ranging from (yellow to brown) due to the presence of impurities in its components. Travertine is existed in limited quantities and places in the world. In the Middle East for example, it is located in both Turkey and Iran in addition to Jordan, where Travertine is extracted from Damyah Valley situated in the Jordan Valley, 2 km south of Al-arda Triangle (Abed, 2000).

Basalt: Volcanic igneous solid black rock containing less than 53% of silica. It is an impulsive rock in black, dark, gray or dark green color, and consists of molten igneous rocks emerging from depths ranging between 10-100 kilometers below the earth's surface (Abed, 2000). 9. Specifications of Building Stones Building stones are classified according to the specifications and standards adopted by the Royal Scientific Society and the Ministry of Public Works into 3 categories (A, B, C), from the finest to lowest quality respectively. These specifications include the following characteristics:

Stone solidity: The best types of stones used in construction are the solid stones. The limestone is characterized by the purity of clay metals and the crystallization process. These two characteristics increase the stone solidity and the cohesion between the stone components (Standards and Metrology Organization, 1992).

Color: The white stone is the most desired and demanded by the owners of construction projects. The white color contains more geometric characteristics compared with limestone in particular. Nevertheless, some people prefer to use other colors including purple, yellow to brown.

Unified Color: The stone is considered as a natural material that is difficult to control its physical properties. However, the multiple colors of the stone in the architectural facades decrease its


beauty, and thus good quarry is the one that provides unified color stones with a relatively high percentage.

Stone’s Water Absorbing: The best stone is the less absorbent of water. This results from the increased porosity of stone or the increased the proportion of clay minerals in it leading to a change in the color after being constructed due to the absorbing the water of cement concrete at the construction process.

Relative density: There is a correlation factors between the stone’s relative density and the percentage of absorbed water. In most cases, the absorption of water inverses with the relative density proportionally.

Breaking strength and shear strength: Whenever the stone is solid whenever the breaking and shear strength is the highest.

Corrosion resistance: This characteristic reflects the stone’s resistance against weathering, erosion, land, and wear factors. 10. Engraving and Forming Stone Stones are engraved in various forms to give the aesthetic appearance, and get rid of the effects of cutting and preparation. The Jordanian sculptor has used different methods and tools to engrave the stone since the ancient times. Engraving processes has the following various labels depending on the proportion of roughness and texture:

Tabzh: The stones decorated in this form are prepared through leaving the stone’s face prominent without any dressing except for removing the in appropriate tapered headers in that the face prominence does not exceed the 9 cm edges. It is worth noting that this kind of pattern has been little used in construction recently after the using of machine saw since it consumes large quantities of rough stone and thus increases the cost of stone (Fig. 2).

Figure 2: A model for Tabzh

Msemsm: This type of stone is prepared through engraving the outer face of the stone by chisels to create equal and parallel lines horizontally or vertically. It is taken into account that engraving processes should be in and intensive manner, with an inclination angle of 45, and the drilling depth does not exceed 3 mm (Fig. 3).

Figure 3: A model for Msemsm


Mufjur: It is prepared by mortising the surface by a pointed chisel known as a fork. The mortising diameter is big and (rough) relatively compared to the previous type, and with depth of no more than 3 mm (Fig. 4).

Figure 4: A model for Mufjur

Almtabh: It is engraved after settling its face by Chainsaw, and then engraved by the manual matabh intensely according to demand. The face of the stone should be free of any cavity, and the matabh engraving can be finely or coarsely (Fig. 5).

Figure 5: A model for fine and coarse Matabh

11. Natural Stone and its Impact on the Jordanian Architectural Style Natural stone in Jordan is considered as one of the most important materials used in construction. Architecture in Jordan has become closely linked with natural stone, and architectural identity of Jordan has been understood through the stone material, giving Jordanian architecture the expressive distinctive personality.

However, we see today a strong tendency in the non-residential buildings where the facades rely on modern materials like Alalekopond and tempered glass giving a new character into the Jordanian architecture. Trends toward using these materials as a substitute for natural stone that characterizing the Jordanian architecture over the ages. This new approach is due to two important things: the first is the limited availability of natural stone in the ideal specifications and characteristics and the high prices of these stones since the natural stone used in the construction is less efficient and solid as what was in the past. Thus, the stone became affected quickly by the weather fluctuations and air pollution, which cause rapid dirt and difficult cleaning of stone (Fig. 6). The second thing relates with the flexibility and ease of handling in terms of the formation, maintenance and cleaning, with modern architectural materials alternative, where these materials seem nicer than dirty stones in addition to that they are easy to be maintained and cleaned (Fig. 7).

Figure 6: Soiled interfaces in Amman because of weather factors and car exhausts


Figure 7: The use of modern materials in the city of Amman as a substitute for natural stone

Although it is important to maintain the natural stone to remain the main feature in the Jordanian buildings, keep the Jordanian architectural identity prominent through natural stone, and to maintain the popular architectural culture in Jordan, we must think realistically to find the right solutions to the crisis of getting clean stone and maintain it through the imposition of specific strategies for ways, places and quantities of extracting from quarry. We must also legalize the use of alternative materials for stone. We don’t mean to enter into the pros and cons of this extraneous material on the architecture, but we have to look for ways in which they can maintain the first and distinctive identity of Jordanian architecture. 12. Importance of the Stone in the Interior Architecture For the beauty and the status of the stone, designers turned to use it in exterior and interior design for homes. They use it to give their homes a character, exclusivity, and luxury since they consider the stone as a sophisticated way to bring luxury to the interior design. The turning from using the natural stone in the internal interfaces accompanied by sing it in the external interfaces is considered to be a positive shift that enabling the designers to prepare internal designs of various facilities in a distinctive and individual manner.

The use of natural stone is not only limited to interior design in facades and walls, but it may also include many modern ideas including councils, lounges, arches, columns, cornices, ceilings, and fireplaces, as well as in the work of sculptures and various cosmetic accessories. Natural stone plays a major role in giving a sophistication and excellence on homes internally or externally, in addition to its role in giving a richness and sophistication through different designs which may combine past with present, especially with the use interior lighting appropriate for the nature, color and texture of the stone. However, it is difficult to use stone in certain internal voids like kitchen for the difficulty of cleaning, and in children's rooms for danger behind contacting by children.

We believe that it is the time to return to the internal parts and to pay attention for internal interfaces, especially as the stone used in these architectural interfaces is least hardness limestone. This stone is affected by the environment variables, climate and vehicle exhausts, which makes natural stone looks differently from initial color, and gets dirty after three or four years of construction, especially in major cities in Jordan like Amman, Irbid and Zarqa, where overpopulation and the continuous increase of cars numbers take place. It could be said that the best means to be used in solving this architecture dilemma is the returning to the theories of Arab-Islamic architecture. This is due to that these theories are dominated by the idea of going to the inside with more focus through ornamenting the internal interfaces and especially residential houses, which are considered in the Islamic perspective as a social unit where the building is inseparable from the family living in it. The content of Muslim family requirements is the one that determines the internal space of the dwelling, which was built from inside into outside and not the other way around. Islamic architecture seemed to be rich with its Plastic and aesthetic supplements depending on decorative unity and geometrical relationships stemming from the structural foundations, technical craft and construction materials.


Knowing that natural stone used in the interior spaces will maintain its properties and natural qualities, in contrast to with being used on the external facades of buildings where it will be exposed to air pollution and car exhaust. It should be noted that the inner courtyard heavenly arena can be considered as the most important climate solutions that have been used in the architecture of most previous world civilizations. By going inside, we might be out of street noise and intriguing passers and neighbors while creating privacy and calmness. Architectural and reformulation of the concept of the inner courtyard can enhance the idea of using natural stone on the inside (Fig. 8,9,10).

Figure 8: The beauty of the internal interfaces through using natural stone.

Figure 9: Use of basalt in the internal interfaces - Raif Muhanna House– Daraa

Figure 10: Uses natural stone in various interior spaces


13. Conclusion We can conclude from this study that the Jordanian architects have paid much interest in interior architecture of the different buildings. This trend supports the use of natural stone in architecture since it is one of the best building natural materials available in the local environment. This would increase the importance of interior architecture, award it a distinctive and expressive personality, in addition to that the natural stone is one of the eco-friendly materials as it is resistant to heat and moisture, a good soundproofing, and easy to be cleaned. We believe that if the natural stone is classified by qualities and solidity, it is possible then determine its uses internally and externally. Thus, it remains the strongest and competing choice for modern building materials, and ensures to keep the natural stone in the Jordanian architectural identity. 14. Recommendations

We need to maintain the architectural identity of Jordan, through keep using natural stone, which is available in various rock layers deployed in Jordan.

We must take into account the kind of natural stone appropriate in interior architecture. Hence, the stone must be rated according to its hardness since the hardest stone is used in exterior facades, due to its hardness and weather-resistance, poor humidity permeability and durability of the pressure. On the other hand, the least hard stone can be used in building internal interfaces for being less susceptible to various weather factors, i.e. it can keep its beauty for a long time.

We should pay more interest in interior architecture in Jordan, and study the natural materials that can be used.

We should work to increase the creation of harmony between inside and outside in the design, and make the internal space of various facilities more vibrant and beautiful.

Encourage homeowners to use natural stone in internal ornamenting operations, due to the high standard of living for its beauty and, and introduce them to the extent of natural stone resistance to heat and moisture, stains and scratches.

Inform citizens of the importance of returning to the use of the inner courtyard in their different buildings, and perhaps we can here draw the attention to the need of developing the necessary legislation to issues of reducing building defections that contains an interior courtyard adjacent buildings.

Designers should study the theories of Islamic architecture, use them to guide the interior construction, and develop them as much as possible to go with the current reality.

W should stay away from manufactured goods and chemicals in interior architecture materials and to use natural materials and raw materials.

We should make further studies in this field to demonstrate the importance of the use of natural stone in interior architecture.

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Natural Stone in Jordan: Characteristics, Specifications and Importance in interior Architecture

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