Journal of Architectural Conservation
Volume 16, Issue 2, July 2010
Sandstone Chamber Humidity and Tourism in Petra, Jordan
Thomas R. Paradise
Paper Summary
Comprehensive interior and exterior humidity measurements were made in Petra’s most celebrated structures, al-Khazneh and Urn Tombs, in tandem with data on visitor number and frequency. Small tourist groups entering the chambers caused interior relative humidity increases of between 5–15%. Statistical correlations of determination (r2) also revealed that the most significant relationships between visitor number contributions to chamber humidity occurred fifteen minutes after the visit. Correlations increased dramatically when the tourist numbers and relative humidity were viewed simultaneously (r2=0.007, 0.136), and then compared to measurements taken with a fifteen minutes lag time (r2=0.707, 0.895). These relationships indicate that it takes ten to twenty minutes for human respiration and transpiration to contribute to relative humidity in chambers of this volume (2,000–3,600 m3). Wall measurements found interior surfaces to have receded from visitor-induced abrasion (such as touching and leaning) by up to 40 mm during the 50–100-year era of increased tourism in the region. It is also indicated that a 4 x 3 m wall section has lost 500,000 cm3 of sandstone over these past 100 years, between 0.5 to 2 m above the floor, indicating surface recession from human contact where visitors commonly lean, touch or rest.
|
Figure 7 View from above al-Khazneh (2008) that shows the large number of visitors that still visit al-Khazneh approach and facade, despite the inner chambers being closed to entry.
Figure 9 Graphs representing the relationships between visitor numbers in al-Khazneh and the changes in relative humidity, July 1998.
|
Thomas R. Paradise, Ph.D, Department of Geosciences and the King Fahd Center for Middle East Studies, University of Arkansas, US
Dr Paradise has been a professor of Geoscience and Geography at the University of Arkansas, USA, since 2000. He has conducted research in Petra, Jordan, since 1990 and has studied, taught and worked across the Mediterranean. He is the past Director of the Fulbright King Fahd Center for Middle East Studies at the University of Arkansas and has published numerous books and papers on Petra, CHM, cartography and hazards.
More information on the Journal of Architectural Conservation.
How to subscribe.