Marefat...
almost 85% of Bam’s housing, mostly of adobe construction, was destroyed
in the earthquake. Early on, it became clear that people were reluctant to re-
locate for any length of time to camps with intermediate shelters. (Figure 6)
They responded best when temporary tents and intermediate shelters were
on or near the sites of their destroyed homes. Prefabricated intermediate
dwellings of lightweight, earthquake resistant design, typically consisting of
one room of 16-20 square meters, were quickly constructed and required
little maintenance. (Figure 7) In some cases, people modified shelters to fit
their way of life, improving them to harmonize with typical Bam dwellings
where several families may live under one roof. Other ideas that emerged from considering conditions in post-seismic
Bam stressed the importance of developing architectural solutions that take advantage of both rubble and surviving walls
to construct intermediate and permanent buildings.
A key fact was that most of the homes destroyed by the earthquake were
no more than 30 years old and lacked proper structural bracing, a fact like-
ly due to the desire to reduce building costs. Preserving Bam’s housing in
the future will require building strategies that are both cost-effective and
earthquake-resistant. The experience of addressing Bam’s permanent hous-
ing reconstruction highlighted a clear need for the future: more sustainable,
seismic-resistant, and creative alternatives to the steel-frame and masonry
(either solid fired brick or lightweight, hollow air-entrained ceramic block)
plans then available.
One flexible approach to reconstruction is the Superadobe system developed by archi-
tect Nader Khalili. This earth and fire construction system incorporating Iranian ver-
nacular earth building methods answers both temporary and permanent needs. Barbed
wire laid between circular courses of earth-filled sandbags establishes stability as well
as quake- and flood-resistance. (Figure 8) The earth itself provides insulation and fire-
proofing. The courses are corbelled near the top to form a dome, an aerodynamic design
that stands up to high winds. Residents without sophisticated technical training can
build Superadobe inexpensively, thus empowering people to create their own homes
and community structures. Because the buildings use local resources, they are entirely
sustainable and easily become permanent housing. Blending smart technology with
tradition, this method of construction relies on timeless forms — arches, domes, and
vaults — to create strong, safe, beautiful single and double-curvature shell structures
honoring the ancient mudbrick architecture of the Middle East. (Figure 9) This is also a robust enough approach — tech-
nically, structurally, and aesthetically — to answer the immediate needs of communities as devastated as Bam for new
Figure 3
Figure 4Figure 5