Potential and Prospects of Renovation of Historic Dwelling Houses in Georgia

თანამედროვე ქართული ურბანული პოლიტიკის ერთერთი მახასიათებელი ისტორიული ქართული ქალაქების რეკონსტრუქცია–რესტავრაციის მაღალი ტემპია, რაც ორგანულად ჯდება კულტურული მემკვიდრეობის შენარჩუნებისა და რევიტალიზაციის მსოფლიო ტენდენციაში. ამ მხრივ ერთ-ერთ საინტერესო მაგალითს ქალაქი–მუზეუმი მცხეთა და მისი საერო არქიტექტურა წარმოადგენს, რომლის რეკონსტრუქციის თავისებურებანი ნათლად გამოკვეთს ამ სფეროში არსებულგარკვეულ გამოცდილებას და სირთულეებს. რაც შეეხება უშუალოდ საცხოვრებლის ტიპს, იგი, გამომდინარე მცხეთის ისტო-რიულ-გეოგრაფიული მდებარეობიდან, პრაქტიკულად ყოველთვის ზიანდებოდა მტრის შემოსევებისას. ამდენად აქ მხოლოდარქეოლოგიური გათხრების შედეგად აღმოჩენილი მცირეოდენი მასალაა შემორჩენილი, როელიც გვიქმნის გარკვეულწარმოდგენას საცხოვრებლის არქიტექტურულ დეტალებზე. სარესტავრაციო-სარემონტო ობიექტების კვლევის, პროექ-ტირებისა და ეტაპობრივი მშენებლობის შედეგად, შეირჩა მეთოდი, რომლის ერთერთი პირობა იყო არსებულ ფონდში დამატებით კომფორტული საცხოვრებელი ფართის გამოძებნა. ამდენად არქიტექტორებს მაქსიმალური ძალისხმევა დასჭირ-დათ სასურველი შედეგის მისაღწევად. მცხეთის საცხოვრებელ შენობათა უმრავლესობისათვის აუცილებელი გახდა სერიოზული კონსტრუქციული ჩარევაც, რაც გამოიხატებოდა შენობათა დაზიანებული სახურავის დემონტაჟსა, გასამაგრებელ რკინაბეტონის სარტყელების და კრამიტის გამოყენებით ახალი სახურავის მოწყობაში. ხოლო ზოგიერთ ადგილას კომპოზიციიდან გამომდინარე საჭირო გახდა ოთხქანობიანის მაგივრად ორქანობიანი სახურავის დამონტაჟება. რასაკვირველია ყოველივე ამან გამოიწვია სართულის (სახლის) სიმაღლის უმნიშვნელო გაზრდა და გარკვეული თავისუფალი ორგანიზებული სივრცის გაჩენა. ამდენად ყოველგვარი მინაშენების და პერიმეტრის დაურღვევლად სახლების უმრავლესობას დაემატა საერთო ფართის 30-40 % რაც ამ პირობებში არცთუ ისე ცოტაა. ვფიქრობთ, ასეთი შედარებით მცირე ჩარევებით საცხოვრებელი სახლების ძველი ფონდის შიდა მოდერნიზაციის გამოცდილება, შეიძლება ნაყოფიერი და პერსპექტიული აღმოჩნდეს არა მარტო მცხეთის ძველი უბნების, არამედ საქართველოს სხვა მცირე ქალაქებისა ან თბილისის ცალკეული უბნების რეკონსტრუქცია–რევიტალიზაციის პროცესში.


Potential and Prospects of Renovation of Historic Dwelling Houses in Georgia (Mtskheta Case Study)
Churadze Nana GN Project One of characteristic features of the contemporary Georgian urbanization policy is the high rate of reconstruction and restoration of historic Geor gian towns.This is organically integrated into the world trend of cultural heritage preservation and revitilization.In this respect citymuseum of Mtskheta represents an interesting example.Its reconstruction peculiarities clearly distinguish certain experience and complications existing in this sphere.Georgian chronicles have kept no data related to ancient Mtskheta city planning, buildings, structures, districts and streets.Nevertheless one thing is beyond all doubt -Mtskheta was a properly and correctly planned city from architectural point of view.This is evident from the works by Strabo, Vitruvius, Arrianos and Dio Cassius.They depict an interesting picture of architecture development in Iberia.Quite a number of acknowledged here archeological �indings evidence this too in the �ield of architecture.They enable one to trace city development from time immemorial to late feudal epoch.
According to Strabo Iberia is a prosperous country with numerous settlements, towns and villages that are built in comliance with architectural codes and there are many tiled roofs, "Streets were paved with stone" < N. Djanberidze, K. Machabeli."Tbilisi Mtskheta".Iskusstvo M., 1981, pages 172173 < Ir.Tsitsishvili."History of Architecture of Georgia".Teknika da Shroma.Tb., 1955, page 33 One of the examples of highly developed building culture characteristic of the epoch is Armazi complex and, namely, bathhouse complex structure, heating system, material and etc.Besides archeological material veri�ies that urban quarters existied in the settlement where artisans and merchants lived.
A stele bearing an epitaph in Greek dating back to the 4 th 5 th centuries was unearthed on Samtavro Valley.The epitaph narrates of the architect and archizograph (chief painter) Aurelius Acholis and veri�ies the existence of such a position in Mtskheta.This demonstrates the large scale and development of the city; country's extremely developed artistic life and availability of a properly arranged state system in the �ield of architecture and art.
Neither the selection of the location for the oldest capital city proved to be accidental: both strategic and social economic and natural factors that provided for the prospects of city growth and development were taken into consideration.
Over the Hellenistic period Mtskheta represented a forti�ied fortress constructed with unburnt brick.The fortress had counterforts, 10x11 meter high towers, stone foundation, 45 meter wide and 68 meter high walls.The city was divided into districts -palace, living, economic and trading and etc.They used tiled roo�ing.
< P. Zakaraia "Monuments of the Eastern Georgia", Iskusstvo M., 1983, page 54 < Ir.Tsitsishvili."History of Architecture of Georgia".Teknika da Shroma.Tb., 1955 As far as dwelling type is concerned exceptional features of each location of Georgia characteristic only for this particular spot, traditions and requirements for active defense against enemies have singled out historic and ethnographic regions over centuries.Their peculiarities have remained unchanged almost until now.However based on Mtskheta geographical location it would be actually constantly damaged at the time of enemy invasion.Subsequently there is only small quantity of materials unearthed as a result of archeological excavations, which is preserved.This gives a certain idea on architectural details of dwellings.
The difference between climatic and geographic conditions of each region, comparatively continental climate of the East and high humidity of the West have long before de�ined two dwelling types: earth counter �loor houses in the regions on one bank of the Likht and sloped roof houses in the regions on the other bank.
Roo�ing heavy weight of hall and counter �loor type houses in the Eastern Georgia has in turn determined the necessity to use pillars (framing) within interior space.
According to L. Sumbadze in general traditional dwelling houses in Georgia have gone through several stages of development: 1. Ancient and early Christian period; 2. Interim or mixed period when a home is fully or partially changed to add �ireplaces, windows, �loors, balconies, layout is altered; 3. New period -�loor is separated from the earth, basement emerges, This article is a kind of an attempt to summarize the �irst results of Mtskheta reconstruction, to have the problems revealed and ways of their elimination to be determined.In this connection at the time of reconstruction work commencement the cardinal problem consisted in detecting the facilities within the city with more or less ethnic traits and in restoring and reconstructing them in such a way as to achieve maximum improvement of living conditions and to bring them to match the uptodate standards with-out disturbing the historically formed city appearance.Apart from that the fact that new construction was out of the question in the old city districts from the very beginning was to be considered.A method was to be found that would allow to provide an existing dwelling with modern comfort.
As a result of investigation, design and phased construction of the facil ities to be restored and renovated a method was selected, which assumed finding additional living space in the existing conditions.In particular, over 95% of the dwelling houses rehabilitated by us were depreciated.Some of them required demolition and construction anew.However the companies directly addressing this problem considered this to be an extreme measure and that one was to do everything in one's power to preserve and rehabilitate the existing facades.Therefore architects had to do their best in order to achieve the desired results.
The majority of Mtskheta residential buildings required serious struc tural work.That comprised arrangement of reinforcedcocnrete belts for houses, demolition of the damaged roof and laying new roofing tiles.It's worth mentioning that their slope angle was not to be below 27 degrees.In some locations depending on the composition layout it became necessary to install a gable roof instead of a hipped one.Surely this all caused heightening of floor (house) and providing for certain free space under roofing.These ac tivities in turn required organization of this space, its lighting and in some cases balcony construction.
Thus without any annexes to buildings and with perimeter remaining as it was 3040% of total area and comfort as well were added to the majority of houses, which is in this conditions not quite little.
Reconstruction of a house owned by a writer Makhvala Mrevlishvili can be taken as the most distinct example of the advantage of the problem solu tion in similar way.
The building is a selected example and the only dwelling house of Mtskheta urban heritage that was erected in the mid of the 19 th century.It belongs to en�ilade type Georgian dwelling dating back to the Middle Ages.It is characterized by re�ined proportion, high artistic value and construction skill.The twostorey dwelling house �inds itself in the city center, eastward of Sveticxoveli.Cobblestone and brick are used as building material.Horizontal belt of a brick course is included in cobblestone masonry at a certain interval.House plan has a rectangular outline.The rooms are laid out in two en�ilade type.Northeastern room of the ground �loor was designed for utility purpose.It has no �ireplace and it is partially embedded into the earth.Round wood column rises in the center of the room.It supports beam �lat ceiling.Each room except for the utility one has a �ireplace.The rooms are provided with shelving in the walls.There is an ornamental wall detail retained in the southeastern corner room.Ground �loor openings are rectangular.First �loor openings have arched insertions, supported by doublestephorizontal belt.Arches and belt are brick.Staircase ascending from the ground to the �irst �loor is embedded into the wall depth.The steps are brick.The �loors are seperated from each other by a wood horizontal belt on the façade.There were open wood balconies on the southern and eastern facades in the centre of the �irst �loor but they are now demolished.The building has a high attic and a gable tiled roof.The building is likely to have originally had earth counter �loor.Westwards a late annex was added to the house.Physical condition of the building was rather poor.
With the objective of building rehabilitation following works were performed: < Archival data of various years were found.Correction of details in the course of construction occurred according to them; < The building was reinforced, a �ixing belt was installed; < Wall quarrystone masonry, shape of openings, balconies, décor and material of the existing building remained unchanged; < Brick colonnade and a covered balcony were restored on the ground �loor of the eastern façade; < Hanging balconies with tiled roo�ing on the southern and northern facades were also restored; < Staircase on the southern façade was covered with tiled sloped roof; < In view of spontaneous annexes and needs of the population the west ern façade was brought to conform to the existing street facades.
< Same ornament was used to decorate wood column arcade and railing of the house; < A mansard with lucarnes was arranged within the existing attic; < Roo�ing material was completely replaced, tiles were used for roof cover as a result of which the house �inally acquired this appearance.
This case study gives us grounds to consider that despite the diversity of Mtskheta housing stock facilities its reasonable and purposeful use will give us opportunity to quite a number of interesting solutions.The implementation of the latter will be affordable and feasible for virtually any person.In particular by means of arranging mezzanine, movable partitions, builtin cabinets, appropriate color and lighting selection and other seemingly minor correction within the existing buildings, living space may be both visually and physically increased by up to 3040%.The apartment may beconveniently, functionally appropriate and comfortably arranged as well to match the contemporary living requirements.
At the same time it should be noted that this work is to be managed by an architectdesigner as failure to notice barely visible nuances for an amateur eye will not achieve the effect that is easily to obtain by consulting with an architect or through his/her recommendations.In addition it is sign cant to offer a relatively accessible and easy way to solve the dwelling problem.The population should be provided with accurate information as to how to use the still unknown to them potential for growth and improvement of the living space including cultural heritage facilities owned by them with low costs and without visual damage to the existing facades.
In our opinion through similar comparatively minor alterations the experience of interior modernization of old housing stock may turn out to be fruitful, promising and prospective not only for the old Mtskheta districts but for other small towns of Georgia or some Tbilisi districts in the process of reconstruction and revitilization.
windows, balconies and attics are enlarged and developed into major parts, �loors are heightened, plans are elaborated and improved, local building materials are changed.Picture 4. "Kvatskhelebi", Building No. 5. III thousand years BC.Reconstructed by Al.Djavakhishvili Imeri Mountain.Master Plan of the Former "Kvatskhelebi".Master Plan of the Former Struc ture