Applied Study on Using of GIS Technology for Conservation of the Ottoman Bathroom and Its Urban Surrounding in Qena—Egypt

The Bathroom area in Qena city is suffering from urban, social and economic problems, which affects
negatively on one of the most important Islamic buildings (the Ottoman Bathroom). In the present
study, Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technique has been chosen for evaluating the current
state of the Ottoman Bathroom and its urban surrounding that is situated within Qena city. Three
categories of the evaluating were carried out, the urban, economic, and social status of the
environment urban of the Bathroom. Monitoring and analysis of spatial and descriptive data were
carried on the surrounding of the Bathroom through design the spatial database; the results of the
study indicated that the residential buildings have been suffering from severe damage. The samples
were collected from different places of the Bath-room, investigated by Scanning Electron Microscopy
(SEM) with EDX analytical methods, and X-Ray Diffraction (XRD). The previous results were indicated
that there is a crystallized salt in bricks pores, micro-cracks, and loss in the internal structure
of the building materials. The paper is concluded that GIS technique is a suitable method for the
rehabilitation of the Ottoman Bathroom and surrounding environment, with necessity to reuse of the
Bathroom in the same old function to preserve, revitalize and benefit it in the tourism development of
Qena city. Where GIS technique is used in determine the borders of macro and micro context of the
old Qena city, in addition to determining of the major streets for reaching the area, design maps of
sewerage, drinking water, electricity distribution, and communication lines networks, in addition to
design of database for modernization of infrastructure and conceptualize for services areas, which will
perform in the surrounding of the bathroom.