Regarding Earth Architecture in Saudi Arabia : the Case of an Ottoman Fort : Ibrahim Palace in Al - Houfuf

Middle Eastern countries are suddenly confronted with the problem of a severe loss of architectural heritage, which is the material manifestation of their own cultural inheritance and thus that of their identity, particularly under conditions of a sudden, rapid, radical and haphazard way of transformation as imposed over a society and its cultural geography by global impacts. This paper aims to argue whether the conservation issues regarding earth architecture in S audi Arabia are materially or culturally based with specific reference to Ibrahim Palace since it represents this conflict. The paper suggests that the problems regarding the architectural heritage conservation in Saudi Arabia are threefold; material, cultural and philosophical.