Studying and understanding the architectural ornamentations of residential buildings in the historical city of Masouleh

Looking at traditional Iranian architecture, one can see the special place of ornamentations that have been a manifestation of the beliefs, customs and traditions of each society in the majority of residential buildings. Masouleh holds very rich ornamentations that have been formed over many centuries. This research seeks to investigate and analyze the ornamentations of residential buildings in Masouleh. The aim of the research is to identify and classify the motifs and main themes of the architectural ornamentations of Masouleh buildings and answer the following questions: Do the architectural decorations of the residential building of Masouleh include several types in terms of motifs and ornamentations? What factors have been effective in the formation of the architectural ornamentations of residential buildings in Masouleh? The current research is based on field surveys, library studies and also descriptive-analytical methods. The findings of the research show that the decorations of Masouleh residential buildings are classified at the level of doors, arches, windows, fences, doorbell and electric meter covers, Evil eye inscriptions, plant decorations and Āina-kāri. Also, the results show that the main effective factors in the formation of the decoration of Masouleh residential building are to create and increase security (door), reduce structural pressure against wind and earthquake (arch), meet the needs of spatial lighting (window), increase safety, create green and seasonal spaces (fence), meet the needs of users in order to facilitate and increase the well-being of users in the contemporary era and remove the undesirable appearance of electric equipment (doorbell and meter cover), derived from religious and cultural beliefs (inscriptions), derived from people's interest in flowers and plants being influenced by the geography of Guilan province (plant decorations) and taken from the religious and ritual beliefs of the people of Masouleh.