Chihilsitoon Garden / Aga Khan Trust for Culture

Chihilsitoon shows how restoration can support public life rather than withdraw from it (Aga Khan Development Network, 2018, 2019; ArchDaily, 2019).

Project Overview

Chihilsitoon Garden and Palace is a 12.5-hectare historic public site in Kabul that was rehabilitated from 2015 to 2018 after decades of damage, neglect, and conflict. The project restored the garden and palace while adding 10,200 square meters of modernized or newly constructed rammed-earth buildings to support contemporary public use (Aga Khan Development Network, 2018, 2019; ArchDaily, 2019).

The restoration did not treat the site as a frozen monument. The project incorporated paths and trails, family picnic areas, an outdoor amphitheater, sports and recreation facilities, visitor amenities, administrative space, and an auditorium, folding new civic functions into the historic landscape rather than pushing them outside it. The wider rehabilitation also included neighbourhood improvements intended to support long-term maintenance, access, and local livelihoods around the garden.

Why This Project Matters

Chihilsitoon shows what restoration can do when it is guided by stewardship instead of nostalgia. The project preserved a historic site, but it also made room for recreation, gathering, education, and everyday social life.

Visual Documentation

Elevation study of the restored palace.

Site plan of the larger garden and public-space strategy.

A view of the garden as active public space.

Plan of the auditorium inserted into the wider complex.

The auditorium facing water and landscape.

Interior view of the public building.

References

Aga Khan Development Network. (2018, September 18). Chihilsitoon Garden and Palace rehabilitation. https://the.akdn/en/resources-media/multimedia/video/chihilsitoon-garden-and-palace-rehabilitation

Aga Khan Development Network. (2019, February 21). AKTC rehabilitates Chihilsitoon Garden in Kabul. https://the.akdn/en/resources-media/whats-new/in-the-media/aktc-rehabilitates-chihilsitoon-garden-kabul

ArchDaily. (2019, February 17). Chihilsitoon Garden Project / Aga Khan Trust for Culture. https://www.archdaily.com/911456/chihilsitoon-garden-project-aga-khan-trust-for-culture