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Tophane, with its historical and cultural heritage, is acknowledged to be one of the most significant districts of Istanbul. Formerly known for its gardens, the district has acquired a different identity after the Ottoman conquest of Istanbul in 1453. Tophane-i Amire, being the imparial armory which was established in the Ottoman period did not only name the region, but also altered the social and cultural profile of the district to a great extent. The region has suffered the great fires of Istanbul and been damaged many times by them, thus the architectural texture it possesses had undergone many changes both due to these disasters as well as political and governmental adjustments of the authority. In time, the growth and continuous territorial expansion of Ottoman dominion necessitated the innovations and advancements in the military along with the construction of additional buildings to the Tophane facilities. Together with the additional buildings, the area had once again acquired a distinct identity where civil and military architectural examples coexist. Following the effects of industrialization seen in the late 19th century, the escalating growth of the city, beginning in the early 20th century, has reached levels that prevent the perception of the integrity among Tophane facilities. After 1950, the starting of customs house constructions and the expropriation policies had changed Tophane beyond all recognition. Being completed in the second half of the 19th century, Nusretiye (Tophane) clock tower is known to be the first clock tower of Istanbul. During the period of its construction, the clock tower had been in the center of the military drill field, defining a circumferential open space by itself. However, due to the expropriation policy of the 1950s, it was taken to another spot where the customs buildings had been located. With this study, a brief examination of Nusretiye clock tower has been conducted to understand its relation to the surroundings with a projection from past to present. To analyze and discuss the established relationships in depth, the Tophane Square and the Tophane Barracks, as architectural representatives of the region and era, were also included in the scope of the study. The study aimed to reveal and present the current conditions of the clock tower, to remark the significance of the surrounding architectural interactions in the perception of an architectural heritage and to discuss the effects of the changes made to the Tophane district.

Town squares: experience and results of the reconstruction Political, social, economic, aesthetic and other aspects led to start of reconstruction and renovation of important public spaces – squares – of the most cities of the country. This article aims to review some of the rebuilt city squares and give a preliminary assessment of this reconstruction experience. Estimation of selected squares has been made in the following aspects: the purpose of the square, its design, equipment, greenery and vitality. It was found that in accordance to the reconstruction character, they can be conditionally divided into two groups: 1) squares, the design and regulation of which correspond to the purpose to be visited and used by people for leisure and communication; and 2) squares, the priority of reconstruction of which was a formal design, without a broader research and needs assessment, so they ended up little visited and empty. Seeking for better quality of reconstructed squares, it is necessary to better discuss these questions, initiate public fora with residents and specialists, and conduct professional expertise. Article in Lithuanian. Santrauka.Pastaruoju laikotarpiu daugelyje šalies miestų vyko ir vyksta svarbiausių jų viešųjų erdvių– miestų aikščių– pertvarkymas ar atnaujinimas, kurį lėmė politiniai, socialiniai, ekonominiai, estetiniai ir kt. pokyčiai. Šio straipsnio tikslas apžvelgti kai kurių miestų pertvarkytas aikštes ir pateikti preliminarų jų rekonstrukcijos rezultatų įvertinimą. Pasirinktos aikštės buvo vertinamos šiais aspektais: aikštės paskirtis, jos suplanavimas, įranga, apželdinimas bei gyvybingumas. Nustatyta, kad pagal pertvarkymo pobūdį viešosios erdvės sąlygiškai gali būti suskirstytos į dvi grupes: 1) aikštės, kuriose suplanavimas ir tvarkymas atitinka jų paskirtį, todėl jos lankomos ir naudojamos gyventojų poilsiui ir bendravimui; 2) aikštės, kurias tvarkant prioritetas suteikiamas formaliam jų dizainui, neatliekant platesnių tyrimų ir nevertinant poreikių, todėl šios aikštės yra mažai lankomos, tuščios. Siekiant pertvarkomų aikščių planavimo kokybės pagerinimo, būtina šiais klausimais plačiau diskutuoti, aptarinėti su visuomene ir specialistais bei atlikti profesionalią jų projektų ekspertizę. Reikšminiai žodžiai: miestas, miesto aikštė, viešoji erdvė, aikštės pertvarkymas, kraštovaizdžio architektūra. First Publish Online: 22 May 2013

The manuscript titled "Urban Typology: City Square in Serbiaâ", by the author dr Vladan Djokić is one of the rare recent domestic works within the field of urban morphology and typology, which owing to the high standard of its scientific and professional competence can be considered the fundamental contribution to this discipline. Urban morphology and typology are the fields in which key interests, professional and creative potentials have been focused, and also the identity of the theory and practice of urbanism and architecture. The basic phenomenon and notion of "the city square", for the urban morphology is as priority the synonym for the urban form as the "vessel", "shell", "tissue"... which houses the social community and its activities, equally as its memory and public values. In his research, Mr. Djokić combines several methods, above all the comparative analyses of the theoretical sources, ideas and practical applications of the examples of the urban forms, which are immanent to the morphological theory, namely to the history and theory of the urban planning and design. At the same time, the author is also assisted by the corresponding methodological tools of the urban history and the history of architecture and art. Thus this manuscript acquires an enviable level of relevance in versatile study of the city square, contributing to its more complete and rich scientific clarification. The particular value, same as the specific and even original contribution of this work and its author to the contemporary city building practice, reconstruction, renovation and protection of the urban heritage, is recognized in recommen-dation and guidelines for the development of the city square in Serbian cities, which are derived from the previous referenced researches. That is an enormous effect for the environment, society and builders who in some foreseeable future will not suffer from the excess of the public-mindedness and surplus of the builder wisdom and skill. Rukopis pod naslovom "Urbana tipologija: Gradski trg u Srbiji" autora dr Vladana Đokića, predstavlja jedno od retkih recentnih domaćih dela iz oblasti urbane morfologije i tipologije, koje se zbog visokog standarda svoje naučne i stručne kompetentnosti može smatrati fundamentalnim doprinosom ovoj discilini. Urbana morfologija i tipologija su područja u koje su fokusirani ključni interesi, stručni i kreativni potencijali, pa i identitet teorije i prakse urbanizma i arhitekture. Bazičan fenomen i pojam "gradski trg", za urbanu morfologiju je prioritetno sinonim za urbanu formu kao "posudu", "ljusku", "tkivo"...koji udomljuju socijalnu zajednicu i njene aktivnosti, jednako kao i njenu memoriju i građanske vrednosti. U svom istraživanju Đokić kombinuje više metoda, pre svega komparativne analize teorijskih izvora, ideja i praktičnih primera urbanih formi, imanentne morfološkoj teoriji, odnosno istoriji i teoriji urbanog planiranja i dizajna. Istovremeno, autoru pomažu i odgovarajući metodološki alati urbane istorije i istorije arhitekture i umetnosti. Tako ovaj rukopis dobija zavidan nivo relevantnosti u raznostranom izučavanju gradskog trga, doprinoseći njegovom potpunijem i bogatijem naučnom osvetljavanju. Posebna vrednost, koliko i specifičan, pa i originalan doprinos ovog dela i njegovog autora našoj savremenoj praksi gradograđenja, rekonstrukcije, obnove i zaštite gradskog nasleđa, prepoznaje se u preporukama i smernicama za razvoj gradskog trga u gradovima Srbije, koje se deriviraju iz prethodnih refrerentnih istraživanja. To je ogroman učinak za sredinu, društvo i graditelje koji u dogledno vreme neće patiti od viška građanske svesti i suficita graditeljske mudrosti i veštine.