Landscape Analysis and Urban Description of Bethlehem Historical Center: A Methodological Approach for Digital Documentation

Bethlehem’s territory and the architectural heritage present in its historical city center result from the stratification of different cultural activities, religions, and urban policies that have conditioned the actual image of the urban landscape. The city, apparently conformed as a single urban entity, is structured on multiple apparatuses of complexity, and the application of principles of decomposition and cataloging becomes a fundamental method for the analysis of the built system. To better understand the relationship between the original settlement and the historical quarters of the city, and to define a tool for their conservation and development, the present research project, developed since 2018 in synergy with administrations and local authorities, and scientifically coordinated by the University of Pavia, Department of Civil Engineering and Architecture, seeks to promote a documentation protocol that, starting from a report analysis on landscape and urban context, methodologically defines the development of an integrated digital database, constituted by multiple informative layers, to ensure better management of the city. This contribution illustrates the first step of the survey activities, which represent a preparatory phase for the organization of the digital acquisition campaign, to highlight the structure of current urban development, the divisions in neighborhoods, and the understanding of architectural values, to give guidelines for the enhancement of historical and traditional values of architectural heritage