The Physical Evolution of Nushabad From the First Settlement to the Contemporary City

The city of Nushabad is located at longitude 51 degrees and 26 minutes and latitude 34 degrees and 5 minutes, and its altitude is 897 meters above sea level. This city is connected to the city of Kashan from the south by an 8-kilometer asphalt road and to the city of Aran and Bidgol from the east by a 3-kilometer asphalt road. Also, Nushabad is part of the Aran and Bidgol county in Isfahan province in terms of country divisions. In terms of geographical location, Nushabad is a settlement on the edge of the desert and its very close to the desert. The modern city of Nushabad is a historical settlement that goes back to the pre-Islamic and Sasanian eras. The most important historical monument left from the pre-Islamic era of Nushabad is the underground city known as Oui. Nushabad's history during the Islamic period is mentioned in few historical sources, but the remaining architectural evidence such as the historic castle, religious buildings such as the minaret of the old Jame Mosque from the Seljuk period and the plaster altar of the Ali Mosque from the Ilkhanid period, as well as numerous religious and public buildings from the Safavid period, indicate its importance during this period. Nushabad also grew and expanded during the Qajar and Pahlavi periods, and numerous neighborhoods, architectural monuments, and valuable houses were formed in it. It should be noted that until 2001, Nushabad was considered a neighborhood of Aran and Bidgol counties; from this year, it was recognized and separated as an independent city by the Cabinet of Ministers. In recent decades, especially after Nushabad became an urban area in the early 1980s, the development of Nushabad has continued with the construction of new neighborhoods and street construction, which indicates the gradual and sustainable development of Nushabad throughout history. However, some destruction has also occurred in the old context, and this makes it necessary to understand the historical city and document the architectural works. In the following article, the authors seek to answer these questions: 1- Where is the historical core of the formation of Nushabad? 2- What is the physical development of this city? The aim of the present study is to identify the historical development of Nushabad, and the research method is based on simultaneous documentary and field studies. In the documentary studies section, historical and research texts are examined and their accuracy is compared with the available physical evidence. In the field studies section, important and influential historical monuments within the current Nushabad area are identified and dated, and their location on the current city map is used as a basis for identifying the development zone. The use of aerial images, especially older images, is one of the foundations of spatial analysis, especially in the contemporary era. Since no specialized research has been conducted on the urban development of Nushabad so far, and given the historical importance of this city and its architectural monuments, it is important to understand the physical structure of Nushabad. This understanding can be the basis for future studies on sustainable urban development and tourism growth in Nushabad and prevent the destruction of monuments and evidence of its past.