The images presented here represent my involvement in an ongoing tourist enhancement initiative on the site. During the 2008 though 2018 field seasons, I worked alongside archaeologist, conservators, and other architects on the development of a site-wide conservation plan, which included several roof structures, walkable platforms, interpretive programming, and the construction of a visitor center. This phased project has been approved by the Turkish Ministry of Culture and is currently being presented to major donors for fund raising. 

My contribution to the tourist enhancement program during the 2014-2018 field seasons included collaborating on a roofing structure for the site’s 4th/5th Century Synagogue -one of the largest in the ancient world - which will protect the original mosaic floor that was recently stabilized with support from the JM Kaplan Fund. Working with architect Troy Thompson (Smithgroup), conservator Michael Morris (Metropolitan Museum of Art), and site director Nicholas Cahill (University of Wisconsin-Madison), I assisted the team in all of the design phases. The form of the roof was developed to minimize its visibility through a series of offsets, which also serve to bring natural light into the space, and to control storm water runoff, which is the most immediate threat to the mosaics’ stability. The design of the structure takes advantage of the largely reconstructed masonry walls for bearing lines and the storm water is directed to an ancient Roman drain, which was excavated and stabilized for this purpose.

The geometric complexities of this excavation sector required that the structure had to function as both a shelter and a viewing platform. Guests are granted a privileged view of the site on a cantilevered glass floor that partially restores the original height of the feature while exposing the multiple construction phases that lie beneath. Beneath the roof structure, the original face of the mud-brick wall is protected by a sacrificial mud-brick wythe that incorporates multiple viewports revealing the original face of the wall and socle (shown in drawing). A mock-up of the wall was created to study its effect on the original ancient fabric (see below).