Pathological Study and Evaluation of Integrity and Authenticity of Tamghachiha Neighborhood in Kashan

Tamghachiha is one of the historic neighborhoods of Kashan, which has a special place in the historic urban area because of being located next to essential elements of the city such as Suq Gate and Bazaar, as well as the existence of valuable buildings. This neighborhood has been damaged due to urban changes such as urban development, new constructions, and especially the construction of Bab al-Havaej street. Therefore, this article struggles to answer following questions. What changes were made to this neighborhood because of the construction of the aforementioned street and its following consequences. What is the extent of these changes and what secondary damages did they have, especially to the authenticity and integrity of this urban region? The method of this research is descriptive-analectic and the data were mostly collected through library and field research. The purpose of this study was to analyze the destructive effects of the aforementioned urban development on Tamghachiha neighborhood. The conducted study, which is based on the charter of urban conservation, show that the integrity and the authenticity of this historic neighborhood have been destroyed. This destruction is particularly evident by comparing the current situation of the region with the last genuine recorded aerial photos. This comparison shows how changes in the composition of elements that form an urban area, as well as changes in the features that represent the identity of a historical region, have ultimately affected and severely undermined the neighborhood authenticity. Accordingly, with the destruction of its original values, the neighborhood these days lack the eminent qualities which forged its identity. In addition, this study shows that because of the changes made to this neighborhood due to the construction of Bab al-Havaej street, undermined the integrity of this urban region in such a way that the neighborhood has lost its situation in the urban area and has become isolated.