The city of Karbala, from its inception to the present day, has gone through different urban stages. And it became, in periods of time, one of the most important Islamic civilizations, notable in terms of technical and urban terms. This came as a result of the clear urban overlap that combines external influences and local traditions. The arts of the civilizations of Mesopotamia have left a great impact on Karbala’s architecture, considering that this part of the land is part of it. The art of other neighboring countries' buildings dating back to ancient civilizations, such as the Persian and Byzantine civilizations, have also affected their effects in shaping the urban structure of this holy city, and the masterpieces of art built in it. Islamic architecture, such as shrines, mosques, religious schools, markets, heritage houses, and others.
The materials used for construction in Karbala and Iraq in general from the earliest times until today invites us to necessarily study the historical aspects of it, especially the nature of these materials, their availability and familiarity with the Iraqi environment, and the cultural interconnection of the traditions of architecture and construction for more than five thousand years.
The cities of Mesopotamia arose especially the southern and central ones, where Karbala is, make up the mud of the plains as the basis of its construction material, so it is not surprising that the brick material was the oldest building material in the history of Iraq.