EAA 2018: Abstract

Ksar Seghir was conquered by the Portuguese in 1458, after a long medieval Islamic occupation. After its abandonment in 1550, it remained as an unknown archaeological site, until the major work of Charles L. Redman and his team throughout the decades of 1970 and 1980. Their studies allowed the identification of the Portuguese and the medieval Islamic settlements, revealing their main buildings and public facilities, as well as the housing structures of their inhabitants.
This presentation aims to reflect on the transformations of the vernacular architecture in this Portuguese town, while looking into the evolution of its urban form. Besides the analysis of the remaining architectural structures in each occupation phase, we will be assessing the differences and continuities in terms of the type and model of construction, the materials applied and the construction techniques, according to the archaeological record and contemporary written sources. Our study will also include a brief approach to the material culture found in each housing complex and its compartments, in order to address their functional use and socio-economic framework.
Lastly, there will be a significant comparison between the houses and the urban organization in Ksar Seghir and other settlements in Portugal from the Late Middle Ages.

North Africa, Portugal, Urbanism, Houses

Oral presentation

  Abstract (PDF)

Joana Torres¹