SITE ANALYSISNADA SALAH

NOURHAN NASSER RANA HAZEM

UNDER SUPERVIS ION OF DR . MAGED GEORGE

Architecture Department

Design 5

LOCATION • Minya is located approximately 245 km

(152 mi) south of Cairo on the western bank of the Nile River, which flows north through the city.

THE NAME OF THE CITY IS DERIVED FROM ITS ANCIENT EGYPTIAN NAME MEN'AT KHUFU , MEANING THE NURSING CITY OF KHUFU, LINKING IT TO THE PHARAOH KHUFU OR CHEOPS, BUILDER OF THE GREAT PYRAMID AT GIZA.

Historical Background

HISTORY OF MINYA (EARLIEST HISTORY)

• During the Predynastic Period (before 3100 BC), the area encompassing modern day Minya and its surrounding lands formed the 16th nome (district).

• It remained an autonomous city-state until the ruler Menes unified Egypt around 3200 BC.

• At the time of its unification, Egypt was divided into 42 nomes. The 16th nome was also called the Oryx nome, probably due to the prevalence of the Oryx, one of the antelope species that inhibited the area

HISTORY OF MINYA (OLD KINGDOM) • After the unification of Egypt,

the 16th nome emerged as an important center of trade. It was opposite a trade route to the Red Sea along which the Levantine traders carrying their goods from Sinai and Canaan travelled.

• Like Pharaohs, rulers of the Oryx nome were deeply concerned with their lives after death. Because the pyramid building age was over or maybe because they could not afford to construct their own pyramids, the rulers of Mena'at Khufu chose the limestone cliffs of the eastern desert overlooking a gentle curve in the Nile as an ideal spot on which to carve their tombs. These chapel-tombs at Beni Hasan are the only remnant of the era when Minya rulers wielded power and wealth.

Beni Hasan tombs

HISTORY OF MINYA (MIDDLE KINGDOM)

HISTORY OF MINYA (MIDDLE KINGDOM)

The Beni Hasan tombs are extremely important as their walls reveal more information about life in Egypt 4,000 years ago more than any other monument in Egypt. In fact these tombs provide more insight about daily life in Egypt than about the rulers who constructed them.

HISTORY OF MINYA (MIDDLE KINGDOM)

• Zawiyet el-Mayyiteen,The city of dead

HISTORY OF MINYA (MIDDLE KINGDOM)

• During the Second Intermediate Period, Minya with the rest of Lower and Middle Egypt fell under the control of the Hyksos. It appears that Minya's rulers actually supported the Hyksos 15th Dynasty rulers against the native Egyptian pharaohs of the 16th and 17th dynasties. Towards the end of the Second Intermediate Period when the Theban Pharaohs started their struggle to expel the Hyksos out of Egypt, Minya was the site where the first major battle of this conflict took place. In 1552 BC,

GRECO-ROMAN HISTORY• El Ashmunein (Hermopolis Magna) was

the capital of the region during this period. It was the main center of worship of the god Thoth. Today, the ruins of a Greek temple, similar to the Parthenon, can be still found.

• The tomb and chapel of Pet osiris and Greece queen Izadora are found near the modern village of Tuna el-Gebel.

• Antinopolis was built in 130 A.D. by the Roman emperor Hadrian in memory of his favorite cup-bearer Antinous.

BYZANTINE HISTORY• The Monastery of the Virgin Mary at

Gebel el-Teir is an important Christian site near the city of Samalut. Its church was built by Empress Helena, mother of Constantine the Great, in 328, on one of the sites where the Holy Family is believed to have stayed during its Flight into Egypt.

• remains an important archaeological source for papyri from the Byzantine Egypt.

ARAB ISLAMIC HISTORY

• El-Amrawy Mosque, built in the 11th Century, an outstanding example of Fatimid Islamic architecture of the time, with a remarkable structural and decorative use of stonemasonry

• Muslim conquest has reached in time of Caliph Omar ibn al-Khattab, Islam spread rapidly became a vast majority of people embrace Islam and built many mosques in its parts, and this continues to increase during the reign of Caliph Uthman Caliph Ali ibn Abi Talib, covenants judgment that followed the modern era.

MODERN HISTORY• During Muhammad Ali's rule, Minya

gained importance due to its fertile lands and its large agricultural production. The importance of the City increased during the reign of Ismail who owned large cotton and sugar cane plantations around Minya. Ismail constructed a royal residence in Minya and beginning with 1870 he started modernizing the city and constructed its first residential extensions. In the year 1873, the Ibrahimiya Canal was built to provide perennial irrigation to Ismail's vast lands. The canal led to a noticeable development in the urban growth especially in the western areas of the city. Improvement of the transportation network, particularly the introduction of the building of bridges across the Ibrahimiya, permitted developments of housing to grow haphazardly on private agricultural lands of the west suburban banks of the canal.

MODERN MINYA

• Around the start of the 20th Century, land speculations and a general building boom marked the beginning of Minya's dramatic 20th-Century expansion.

• the establishment of the railway to join Cairo began. • the city extended east and west on the railway sides,

which penetrated the current city. • By that time, Great Britain established a consulate in

Minya mainly to promote cotton trade. In 1907, the Ottoman Bank opened a branch in the city in recognition of its increasing economic importance. Utilities, serving mainly the new developments, were introduced under long-term franchises granted to foreign enterprises: a courthouse in 1927, the fire department in 1931, the city council and the administration building in 1937. The wide paved streets of the modern city diverted commercial activity away from the old city.

ECONOMY

• The public sector predominates in industry, controlling most of the production of capital and intermediate goods. Among the state-run industries are cement, chemicals, mining, fertilizers and agricultural industries. The private sector is active in manufacturing of consumer goods, particularly in small enterprises in and around the city. The principal private industries are food products, furniture, and metal

and woodworking. Although rich in history, tourism plays a trivial role in the economy of Minya

MINYA BECOME A HUGE SOURCE OF CULTURE FOR WHOLE EGYPT …!

SITE OF PROJECT

M I N YA , E G Y P T

SITE

N

New Minya

The Nile

Space Area

(Eastern

desert)

MidMin

yaAg

ricu

lture

region

View

SITE AREA

SITE TOPOGRAPHY

SITE PICTURES

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDY

WEATHER

ANNUAL WIND ROSE

MONTHLY WIND ROSE

TEMPERATURE

HUMIDITY

SOILLANDSCAPE

PLANTS

TYPES OF SOIL IN MINYA

TYPE OF SOIL IN OUR SITE• Our Soil is Rocky Sandy Soil

PLANTS THAT THRIVE IN SANDY SOIL• Sandy soil has its advantages. It drains well, is easy to

dig in and warms up faster in spring than clay soils, meaning that plants start growing earlier - but there are fewer species adapted to it compared to other soil types. Sandy soil is relatively uncommon in nature and has several distinct disadvantages - it does not hold on to either water or nutrients for long.

LAVENDER• Lavender is hard not to love. Originating in the dry, rocky hills

of the Mediterranean basin, it is not only tolerant of sandy soil, it actually requires the excellent drainage provided by sandy soils. Plant it in full sun and water it only enough to get the roots established. Lavender is especially effective in long rows that can be used as a low garden border.

ARTEMISIA

• These low-growing perennials have the grey foliage that characterizes many of the most drought tolerant plants. The leaves are finely cut and incredibly soft to the touch; when you brush up against them a delicious fragrance is released. Artemisias are primarily a foliage plant, as the flowers of most varieties are inconspicuous, but they add a unique texture and color to perennial borders or can be used en masse as a groundcover.

ROSEMARY• Rosemary is another familiar herb that thrives in dry, sandy

soil. It never needs water once established and blooms in late winter when most other plants are still waking up from dormancy. Try one of the prostrate varieties, like Lockwood de Forest or Irene, for use as a large scale groundcover in sandy soil.

SEDUM

• There are an incredible diversity of sedums available in nurseries these days. They are succulents, so by nature they are adapted to dry, sandy soil. Most are tiny groundcovers that make great rock garden plants. There is also a taller variety called Autumn Joy that is a good choice for its extremely late bloom.

ANNUALS AND BULBS

L I V I N G I N A S A N DY R E G I O N D O E S N ' T M E A N YO U H AV E T O S A C R I F I C E C O LO R F U L P L A N T S I N YO U R YA R D .

SALVIA• Annual salvias add a strong shot of color to summer flower beds -

crimson red, deep purple, and electric blue shades are all available. They grow quickly to one or two feet in height, depending on the variety. The blooms last for weeks, but once they fade, cut them back and they will bloom again until the first frost of fall. They are relatively drought tolerant for an annual bedding plant and are adored by hummingbirds.

GIANT ALLIUM• This is an unusual specimen for flower borders - it is closely related to onions, but is grown for it enormous purple pom-pom flowers that rise on a single stalk three to four feet above the sparse foliage. Giant alliums will bloom year after year in sandy soil with little care, making them a good choice for a semi-naturalized meadow planting.

SWEET ALYSSUM• This bedding plant is adored by butterflies and smells like honey.

It grows in sandy soil and is likely to seed itself in cracks in the driveway, bringing color to the harsh, hot concrete. Sweet alyssum forms a low mat four to six inches tall and spreads up to two feet across. Pink, purple, and white varieties are available.

SHRUBS• Shrubs are excellent choices for privacy, and flowering

varieties make beautiful additions to any garden in sandy soil.

BUTTERFLY BUSH• Butterflies flock to the elongated purple flower cones of this

upright deciduous shrub. Butterfly bush adapts to most soil types, including sandy ones. White- and pink-flowered varieties are also available.

ROSE OF SHARON• A trouble-free plant for tough conditions, rose of Sharon

produces two- to three-inch hibiscus-like blooms in late summer - rose, purple, and white are the most common colors. In sandy soil, be sure to give it plenty of water to support luxuriant growth and stimulate profuse flowering.

TREEST R E E S A R E A F O C A L P O I N T F O R M A N Y H O M E O W N E R S , R E G A R D L E SS O F S O I L T Y P E .

SILK TREE• Also known as mimosa, this fast-growing deciduous tree is

one of the best for sandy soils. It typically grows to about 30 feet, not quite what is normally considered a shade tree, but it does provide some shade and it doesn't take decades to do it - five to seven years to maturity is typical.

BLACK LOCUST• This is a tall, upright hardwood tree that also grows at an

unusually fast rate, even in sandy soil. Fragrant white flower clusters emerge from the bare branches in early spring, followed by finely cut foliage and then decorative seed pods in fall. Purple Robe is a popular variety that sports magenta blossoms, instead of the typical white.

THANK YOU