A Comparative Analysis of Management Approaches in the Revitalization of Historical Bathhouses: Istanbul and Khorasan Razavi

Enayati, Reza; Tabassi, Mohsen; Sarvari, Hadi

doi:10.22034/ijumes.2026.2046675.1278

A Comparative Analysis of Management Approaches in the Revitalization of Historical Bathhouses: Istanbul and Khorasan Razavi

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Reza Enayati ¹

Mohsen Tabassi ¹

Hadi Sarvari ²

¹ Department of Architecture, Ma.C., Islamic Azad University, Mashhad, Iran

² Department of Urban Planning, Ma.C., Islamic Azad University, Mashhad, Iran

10.22034/ijumes.2026.2046675.1278

Abstract

Historical bathhouses (hammams) in Islamic lands, beyond their hygienic and ritual functions, carry dense social and cultural layers, yet the decline of their original function has turned their revitalization into a management problem rather than a purely technical one. This study compares how that problem is managed in two contrasting institutional settings and asks what each can learn from the other. The study adopts a qualitative comparative multiple-case design (Yin, 2018) following a most-different-systems logic. Ten purposively selected bathhouses five in Istanbul, Türkiye, and five in Khorasan Razavi, Iran are analyzed against six management indicators derived from conservation doctrine and the adaptive-reuse literature: institutional–social participation, functional revitalization, physical authenticity and spatial integrity, compliance with conservation standards, monitoring and control, and managerial–economic sustainability. Each case is rated on an explicit four-level rubric using triangulated documentary, technical and field evidence. Findings show, the two settings diverge systematically. The Istanbul cases score higher on functional revitalization, compliance and economic sustainability, sustained by public–private partnership finance, digital survey and modelling technologies, and integration with the tourism economy, but they carry the risk of over-commercialization. The Khorasan Razavi cases retain material authenticity through minimal intervention, vernacular materials and public stewardship, and sustain a strong cultural and ritual bond, but are constrained by financial fragility, weak monitoring and the absence of comprehensive adaptive-reuse planning. The results show transferable scoring rubric for bathhouse revitalization management and an integrated model that treats historical authenticity and economic viability as jointly binding constraints mediated by a values-based judgement, rather than as a trade-off along a single axis.

Graphical Abstract

A Comparative Analysis of Management Approaches in the Revitalization of Historical Bathhouses: Istanbul and Khorasan Razavi

Highlights

· Ten Ottoman and Iranian bathhouses are compared on six management indicators.

· An explicit four-level rubric makes revitalization ratings replicable.

· Istanbul leads on monitoring and finance; Khorasan on material authenticity.

· Community participation is higher in Iran, against initial expectations.

· Authenticity and viability are modelled as jointly binding constraints.

Keywords

Adaptive reuse

comparative case study

cultural heritage management

historical bathhouses

hammam

Istanbul

Khorasan Razavi

Bandarin, F., & Van Oers, R. (2012). The historic urban landscape: Managing heritage in an urban century. Wiley-Blackwell.

Basha, B., & Sağdıç, Z. (2025). Assessing public perception in the adaptive reuse and preservation of historic buildings: A case study of the Elbasan Bazaar Hammam. Civil Engineering and Architecture, 13(2), 751–772. https://doi.org/10.13189/cea.2025.130201

Biket, A. P. (2026). Spatial potentials and functional continuity/discontinuity in Ottoman-Turkish hammams: Historical Peninsula, Istanbul. Histories, 6(1), 5. https://doi.org/10.3390/histories6010005

Büyükdigan, İ. (2003). A critical look at the new functions of Ottoman baths. Building and Environment, 38(4), 617–633. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0360-1323(02)00184-1

Cichocki, N. (2005). Continuity and change in Turkish bathing culture in Istanbul: The life story of the Çemberlitaş Hamam. Turkish Studies, 6(1), 93–112. https://doi.org/10.1080/1468384042000339348

International Council on Monuments and Sites. (1964). International charter for the conservation and restoration of monuments and sites (The Venice Charter). ICOMOS. https://www.icomos.org/charters/venice_e.pdf

International Council on Monuments and Sites. (1994). The Nara document on authenticity. ICOMOS. https://www.icomos.org/charters/nara-e.pdf

Jokilehto, J. (2018). A history of architectural conservation (2nd ed.). Routledge.

Khalil, I., & Üzümcüoğlu, D. (2025). Advancing sustainability and heritage preservation through a novel framework for the adaptive reuse of Mediterranean earthen houses. Sustainability, 17(14), 6447. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17146447

Landis, J. R., & Koch, G. G. (1977). The measurement of observer agreement for categorical data. Biometrics, 33(1), 159–174. https://doi.org/10.2307/2529310

Macdonald, S., & Cheong, C. (2014). The role of public-private partnerships and the third sector in conserving heritage buildings, sites, and historic urban areas. Getty Conservation Institute.

Mısırlısoy, D., & Günçe, K. (2016). Adaptive reuse strategies for heritage buildings: A holistic approach. Sustainable Cities and Society, 26, 91–98. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2016.05.017

Murphy, M., McGovern, E., & Pavia, S. (2013). Historic building information modelling – Adding intelligence to laser and image-based surveys of European classical architecture. ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, 76, 89–102. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isprsjprs.2012.11.006

Plevoets, B., & Van Cleempoel, K. (2019). Adaptive reuse of the built heritage: Concepts and cases of an emerging discipline. Routledge.

Poulios, I. (2014). Discussing strategy in heritage conservation: Living heritage approach as an example of strategic innovation. Journal of Cultural Heritage Management and Sustainable Development, 4(1), 16–34. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCHMSD-10-2012-0048

Sarmento, J., & Kazemi, Z. (2014). Hammams and the contemporary city: The case of Isfahan, Iran. International Journal of Heritage Studies, 20(2), 138–156. https://doi.org/10.1080/13527258.2012.736873

Sibley, M. (2008). Hammāms in the Mediterranean. Archnet-IJAR: International Journal of Architectural Research, 2(3), 10–16.

Smith, N. (1996). The new urban frontier: Gentrification and the revanchist city. Routledge.

Tanrıverdi, Z. (2025). Integration of Ottoman baths with contemporary cultural functions: The case of the Zeyrek Tiled Bath and Museum. Cultural Heritage and Science, 6(2), 78–91.

Tanrıverdi, Z., & Cesur, E. S. (2026). Conservation Challenges of Cultural Heritage: Ottoman Baths in Istanbul’s Historic Peninsula. Il Capitale Cul- turale – Studies on the Value of Cultural Heritage, 33, 243–276. https://doi.org/10.13138/2039- 2362/4058

Tosun, C., & Timothy, D. J. (2020). Tourism, heritage, and cultural production: An introduction. Routledge.

UNESCO. (2011). Recommendation on the historic urban landscape. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

Yadollahi, S. (2020). Reflections on the past and future of urban conservation in Iran. Built Heritage, 4(1), 6. https://doi.org/10.1186/s43238-020-00019-1

Yin, R. K. (2018). Case study research and applications: Design and methods (6th ed.). SAGE.