Student Work: Khan El Khayyatin

Khan al-Khayyatin

2023

Student Work - Lebanese American University (LAU)

Restoration | Preservation | Heritage

Tripoli, Lebanon

Designing Hospitality Spaces in a Time of [___]
Students were challenged to complete the evocative project title: "Designing Hospitality Spaces in a Time of..." This missing element served as the foundation for a consistent narrative, requiring a deep dive into the historical city and its shifting morphology. The objective was to investigate how a modern hotel intervention could breathe new life into an ancient urban fabric, mediating between the private sanctuary of a guest and the public resonance of the bath (Hammam), the merchant inn (Khan), and the bustling medieval streetscape.

The studio focused on the Khan al-Khayyatin complex, a storied landmark in the heart of Tripoli that mirrors the city’s successive layers of remodeling. Stretching along a West-East axis toward the Abou Ali River, the site serves as a living chronicle of Levantine trade and social ritual. The intervention encompassed:
• The Khan: The historic "Inn of the Tailors," representing the city's commercial heritage.
• Hammam Ezzedine: A grand vestige of Mamluk civic life and ritual bathing.
• Peripheral Clusters: The dense, organic building blocks that form the city’s rhythmic vernacular.
The Intervention: A Dialogue with Antiquity
Tasked with designing a boutique hotel within a peripheral building, students extended their creative reach into the upper levels of the Khan itself. The project was not merely a renovation, but a study in heritage integration.

By analyzing the evolution of the city’s skeleton, students envisioned how the hotel program could establish a symbiotic relationship with its neighbors. The design process demanded an appreciation for the historical importance of the site, encouraging students to treat the interior space as a bridge between Tripoli’s illustrious past and its contemporary urban pulse. The result is a critical exploration of how hospitality can serve as a guardian of a city’s tangible and intangible heritage.

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