ABSTRACT
The external appearance of buildings is the result of many factors, some of them practical, others cultural or geographic. How the spaces within are arranged, the materials and system of construction, the way the architect has designed the building to take account of the weather or express the status or function of the building, largely determine what we see as we approach. In northern Europe or the United States of America domestic buildings today may be recognised by the scale of the front door, the chimneys, or the shutters and curtains at the window. But if we are in North Africa or the Middle East then all we might see of a dwelling would be a blank wall facing the street and a small entrance, for all the rooms face onto an interior courtyard. In Britain we have come to associate churches with towers and spires, and castles with turrets':' and battlements\ but we should not assume that all buildings with these features are either churches or castles (Figure 6.1).
