Search

Despite studies highlighting UNESCO's role in building a world in peace, the link between cultural heritage, human rights and social relations may also trigger social and/or ethnic conflicts. The contribution reveals these dynamics through an investigation of the events that took place during the 40th Committee of the World Heritage Center, held in Istanbul in July 2016 in which the the Armenian archaeological site Ani was inscribed in the UNESCO list. On the same occasion, in an unofficial way, there were discussions on the interventions of the Turkish army in another site registered in the 2015 list "Cultural landscape of the Diyarbakır fortress" characterized by a predominantly Kurdish population. Activist groups denounced the destruction of Kurdish heritage and memory by the Turkish army accusing UNESCO of taking an indifferent position. The contribution highlights the consequences that precede and follow the processes of registration in the UNESCO World Heritage Site list. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The color of the World Heritage Site is a very delicate and vulnerable component of the architectural heritage. It is linked to its materiality, its application technique, its consistency, which helps to build the identity of the heritage. If it is lost or replaced by other colors with non-original materials, the identity of the leather is lost. We present the restoration of the Cenador del León of the Real Alcázar of Seville in which the architectural intervention was as significant as the garden in the search for chromatic harmony and coatings. The constant goal was to recover the spirit of this historic place. It was a challenge because it is located in the gardens declared a World Heritage Site. This respect, together with the general conservation criteria followed (coatings, paintings, majolica, metal elements, vegetation, etc.) led to an intervention that was respectful of the historical future and an overall vision integrating all the elements of the Cenador and its gardens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The museum complex of Pitti Palace is one of the strategic projects of UNESCO Management Plan, called The prince's path, together with Uffizi Gallery, Vasari Corridor and Boboli Gardens, constituting the site that, perhaps not surprisingly, in 2014 the Ministry equipped with managerial, administrative-economic autonomy. If the post-war history of the Palace has been characterized by inadequate investments of resources and tools, also for the purposes of knowledge of the architectural heritage (the first studies of that period, remain the main bibliographic references to this day) and of the relative maintenance, the so-called 'Franceschini Reform' has inaugurated a new season for the Site, in which the administration has the opportunity to deepen and experiment strategies and actions aimed at the practice of programmed conservation. As regards the monumental complex of Pitti Palace, the contribution presents interventions, analyzes and programs which have been conceived and conducted with a methodological approach that places analysis and monitoring of the state of conservation of the heritage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Palazzo Mansi and the ancient vineyard on terraces that surround it can be considered a large insula within the historic center of Scala, one of the 15 municipalities of the Amalfi coast, declared a World Heritage Site in 1997. The Mansi property, constituted by the ancient episcopal palace and vineyard on terraced land with some interesting minor buildings represents a whole to be analyzed and preserved as a system of built heritage and landscape. The main building consists of four floors: the two lowest floors have agricultural functions, as cisterns and cellars; the top ones, noble floors and the attic have maintained the original vaults, wooden floors and roofs, with limited adaptation interventions. The proposed essay aims to analyze the identity characteristics of this built landscape, which shows the values recognized by UNESCO in the Amalfi Coast area and which need new strategies for conservation and restoration to be handed down to posterity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The boundary of the Park of the Rupestrian Churches in Matera, UNESCO World Heritage Site, is characterized by an historical and anthropological value in which the signs of man are strictly related to the signs of nature. It includes the Church of the Madonna delle Vergini (caved into the stone as a lot of dwellings in the Sassi and mentioned in documents as far back as the 16th century), the only rupestrian church open to cult of faithful until today. A place of historical and artistic memory, it is a synthesis of the territory's settlement modalities that describe the changes of times and cultures. In it are expressions of ancient popular traditions, now lost. These traces, in their 'fragile' testimony, represent an opportunity for study and critical and multidisciplinary analysis necessary for a design approach aimed at recovering the values of the past, reinforcing new scenarios for the enjoyment of material and immaterial values, belonging to the religious and rupestrian culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The archaeological areas of Pompeii, Herculaneum, Torre Annunziata were included in the list of World Heritage sites in 1997. The archaeological park of Pompeii, in addition to the area contained within the walls and the perimeter area of the necropolis, is also responsible for the protection and enhancement of the 'minor sites' of Boscoreale, Civita Giuliana, Oplontis, Stabiae, Longola, Castello di Lettere, Bourbon factory and Quisisana Palace. These areas fall within the Buffer zone envisaged by the Unesco Plan which aims to enhance the 'satellite sites', also with a view to relieving the anthropic pressure on the ancient city of Pompeii, to differentiate the cultural offer and strengthen the infrastructural network of connection with the scope to become new attraction poles for cultural tourism. Within the strategic lines envisaged by the plan for the relaunch of the Buffer zone the contribution aims to illustrate possible development guidelines to create new urban connections between the ancient city of Pompeii and the neighboring sites, with a view to preserving the archaeological, urban and landscape values of the area and triggering strategies to enhance the Vesuvian archaeological 'system' with positive repercussions also on the economy and on the 'Heritage Community'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The inscription of a cultural asset on the World Heritage List entails increasing tourist flow as the first and direct effect. The advantages and criticalities of these processes have been investigated for some decades. On the contrary, what and how the UNESCO aegis acts regarding concrete interventions on cultural heritage are less studied. There is no specific reference in the Convention, and the methods and the interventions are under the responsibility of the individual countries. However, understanding "what restoration" is essential for the survival of heritage authenticity and for the inclusion and maintenance of the inscription in the List. Without claiming to be exhaustive, the paper wants to try to outline some initial considerations on the "UNESCO effect" in the practice of conservation of built heritage. Through the analysis of the conservation state of some sites in Emerging Countries (Armenia, Egypt, Georgia, Vietnam) after the realization of works, the contribution reflects on the implications of a "World Heritage site".. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The territorial information system was born following the Law of 19 April 1990, n. 84 (in Gazz. Uff., 26 April, n. 96), as an organic plan for the inventory, cataloging and elaboration of the Risk Charter for cultural heritage: first interventions. The system implements the pilot plan for the planned conservation of the cultural heritage of Umbria, a study promoted by Giovanni Urbani, then director of the Central Institute of Restoration. The Risk Map is a GIS composed of an alphanumeric database and the cartographic component, capable of exploring, superimposing and processing information relating to potential territorial and environmental risk factors linked to cultural heritage. The Risk Card system has two levels of risk. The first relates the concentration of assets and the danger of the territory, in order to evaluate, following a calamitous event, the probability of loss of the cultural heritage (Territorial risk). The second, on the other hand, evaluates the risk of loss of the individual cultural property and is implemented through the filing on the field of the vulnerability of cultural assets (evidenced by the state of conservation) and the relationship with the territorial danger around the property (Local risk). The CdR system produces and exposes the data present with WMS services (raster data), architectural and archaeological real estate (punctual, linear and polygonal), underwater archaeological files, historical centers and aggregated urban units of historical centers. It also has WFS services (vector data) of architectural and archaeological real estate (punctual, linear and polygonal), containers of movable goods (punctual), historical centers and aggregated urban units of historical centers. Since 2012, the Risk Charter has been in the interoperability of the Ministry of Culture within the territorial computerized system Constraints in the network, with which it increases the registry and georeferencing of cultural assets present for various reasons in the SigecWeb (ICCD) and Protected Assets systems (DG ABAP). Thanks to the agreement signed between the Service II - UNESCO Office of the General Secretariat and the Directorate General for Security of the Ministry of Culture, the system will be used for the assessment of the territorial risk of Italian UNESCO sites, but also, for the first time, to support the request for registration of a site on the World Heritage List. This is the candidacy of the "Via Appia. Regina Viarum "for which, with the support of ISPRA, the levels of territorial danger will be analyzed in detail, with reference to both natural disasters (earthquake, landslides, etc.) and to problems deriving from simple atmospheric agents and from pollution. In addition, the data on the state of conservation of the ancient route and the assets related to it will be collected with the appropriate cards of the Risk Card, which will allow the processing of vulnerability indicators and local risk indicators, which will be proposed to the UNESCO for monitoring the site over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses how to widen the boundaries of an existing World Heritage Site to include the heritage of the 20th century. The work by Giancarlo De Carlo in Urbino is a perfect case study since modern architecture enriches the set of values where the statement of OUV was based. Urbino undertook a process of urban rebirth in the second half of the 20th century, according to De Carlo's master plan, which promoted a harmonic continuity between modern architecture and the preservation of the historic city. As a result, the Historic Centre of Urbino was enlisted in 1988 as an outstanding example of Renaissance capital. Although the statement of OUV did not mention De Carlo's work, the site's management plan (2012-14) suggests widening the buffer zone to include modern buildings. The authors wonder how to promote such updating of the WHS towards the recent past, something that seems not to have precedent examples in the WHL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The monumental complex consisting of the cathedral, tower and main square of Modena (Northern Italy) has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1997. The visible tilting of the Ghirlandina tower has always generated concerns for its preservation, even more after the recent seismic events. This paper highlights the role of structural monitoring for the conservation of the site, with particular reference to the data acquired during the recent Emilia earthquakes. Unexpectedly, the inclination of this leaning tower decreased after the major seismic event. Some considerations are presented regarding the difficulty of modelling this kind of effects on buildings with complex historical stratifications and the application of the observational method, derived from geotechnical engineering, is proposed. The importance of structural monitoring is once again recalled, in order to preserve world heritage and comply with the principle of minimum intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Florence Heritage Data System is part of the projects for the protection and enhancement of the Historic Urban Landscape (HUL), contributing to the knowledge, use, protection and management of the Historic Centre of Florence. The main target is creationing a World Heritage sites control and evaluation model, using the system of data and techniques to evaluate architectural and urban restoration projects, in the context of dynamic transformations, on the historicized fabric. A necessary tool for the Florence World Heritage Relations with UNESCO Office; it is usefull to the Periodic Reports, to the evaluations of the territorialized discipline and of the specific regulation on World Heritage (HIA), for the integration and identification of «elements of heritage» within «transformation projects», architectural diagnostics and cultural heritage cataloging and cartographic activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The conservation risks associated with climate change to which heritage is subjected represent one of the most significant issues arising from the adoption of the 1972 World Heritage Convention. The Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of World Heritage Listed sites and the conditions of integrity and authenticity, which were essential requirements at the time of their nomination and inscription, may be compromised or no longer be met over time as a result of the effects of climate action on heritage assets. While the value of sustainability has assumed a predominant role in the multiple social, cultural, economic and environmental contexts and is in affinity with many of the theoretical premises within the discipline of restoration, this study aims to reflect on some of the systemic principles and parameters through which a restoration product can be defined as sustainable, considering the material authenticity and uniqueness of World Heritage architectural artefacts, and the spatial-temporal implications related to the conservation of cultural heritage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper shortly describes the project started by the Digital Cultural Heritage (DiCultHer) Sicilian Centre in the 2018-2019 school year, to participate in the Week of Digital Cultures in Matera (Italy). The objective of the project, ambitious and still open to contributions, is to produce a digital storytelling of the catastrophic event that marked the fate of a large area of eastern Sicily: the 1693 earthquake. The event caused destruction and death, but it also mobilized an extraordinary solidarity of the population and a demanding reconstruction that led to the baroque architecture that has become a UNESCO World Heritage Site. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Italy, with its 49 sites, it’s the country with the largest number of entries in the List of UNESCO World Heritage and none of them is in the list of properties in danger. The "Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention" point out, as a prerequisite for the preservation of the values recognized specifically to a site, the existence of an effective system of protection and management. Safeguard and protection are by now issues entrenched in the Italian legislation and administrative practice while the theme of management as a system of synergy and coordination of actions and interests, sometimes conflicting, which affect more or less directly the safeguarding of assets, it is less historically consolidated. The extreme variability of the situations of national UNESCO heritage in terms of site typology, its size, number and typology of those involved in the management, puts each time in the position of having to find the most suitable form of "governance" and, sometimes, supplementary protection measures. The vast and diverse panorama of the UNESCO sites enabled and continually enables to develop and test particular solutions, which in turn can represent reference models.

The presentation aims to examine the new type of skills that heritage professionals may need to acquire in response to the changing socio-economic context of the contemporary world. It will also look into possible strategic alliances between higher education, communities and the tourism sector that could link conservation and sustainable development (especially youth employment) at World Heritage Sites. Particular attention will be given to the social threats induced by tourism at heritage sites, such as the dramatic decrease of young population, rural exodus, or the deterioration of the local social fabric, and the critical need for revitalization strategies in this regard.

The essay aims at reappraising the role of Augusto Telluccini (1876-1930), a roman official at the Ministry of the Royal House, who became an art historian, and later Superintendent of the Piedmont historical monuments. In that position, from 1921 to 1928 he coordinated all the operations concerning two of the most relevant museum restorations and outfitting: Palazzo Madama and Stupinigi. The paper reinterprets Telluccini’s story under a practical perspective and considers him both as the main modern reviewer of Juvarra’s works and a valuable museologist: the first to understand the relevance of the Royal Residences network, which are now included in the Unesco World Heritage List. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the theme of the 15th Forum, World Heritage and Disaster, which focuses on the term Heritage as a systemic product of knowledge and applications. It adds how digital representation technologies use software solutions based on complex algorithms that simulate real physical light action and the reaction of materials to it. It notes how it creates a photorealistic rendering of the represented object, subsequently enriched by digital graphic post-production techniques.

The author uses the expression "official disinterest" to describe the kingdom of Buganda's attitude of indifference towards most of the temples that preserve the relics of past kings. Even though the kingdom promoted projects that have led to the inclusion, in 2010, of the Kasubi Tombs in the Unesco's World Heritage List, it shows no interest in more ancient sites, many of which lie in a state of neglect. The lack of interest shown by the kingdom's representatives is discussed here both in the light of the postcolonial heritage-making policies implemented by the Government of Uganda, and in that of Buganda's own "tradition". This allows the author to call the concept of "cultural heritage" into question and to problematize the relationship between Ganda culture and its past. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay is based on fieldnotes collected in Cocullo in the spring of 2014, during a workshop organized by a group of anthropologists who are working to develop a participatory inventory project that could lead to the submission of a nomination proposal for the Festa di San Domenico Abate and the Rito dei Serpari to be considered for inclusion in Unesco's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, 2003). The author uses fieldnotes as a means to observe the heritage-making processes concerning the specific cultural element (the ritual) and the complex nature of the social and political spaces where heritage policies are defined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On April the 6th, the National Movement for the Liberation of the Azawad, that is the land of the Touareg (MNLA) supported by Islamic extremist groups, have declared the North of Mali independent. It is a territory as large as France and Belgium put together, that encompasses major cities as Gao and Kidal and the VNESCO World Heritage Site, Tomboctou. Meanwhile (on March) a coup had ousted the elected government of Presi-dent Amadou Toumani Toure bringing to power a military junta. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Situated mid-way along the west coast of Cameroon, the city of Kribi is a crucial location with regard to three aspects: industry, tourism and the environment. This area, endowed with abundant natural, cultural and tourist resources, remains undervalued despite timid initiatives by the local populations and the central administration to develop tourism. This article looks at the challenges of developing tourism around the Lobé Waterfall, a singular geosite at the crossroads of three coastal civilisations (Pygmy, Batanga and Mabi), proposed by the administration of Cameroon in 2006 for inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Its definitive recognition as heritage is hindered by the prevarications of the decision-makers who favour industrialisation over integrated management and sustainable tourism, as recommended by the UNWTO and the UNIDO via the COAST STEP project. The objective of this text is to analyse the failure of this process, via observations, field work and interviews, taking into account at the same time the introduction of sustainable tourism in this beach area, the contribution of the stakeholders and the problems of development. The information collected provides evidence of the considerable and diversified potential for tourism (natural, cultural and historic) characterised by an attractive physical environment (relief, climate and vegetation) and the existence of motivated populations. However, the emergence of agricultural-industrial, extraction and mining activities, which do not consider the environment and social participation, and the anarchic spatial implementation of tourism, are factors that may compromise future tourism in Kribi and its geosite, with the corollary of the disappearance of the Pygmy culture.

The article presents the case of Gorée and Ilha de Moçambique, two small African islands declared World Heritage Sites for their past history connected to the slave trade and their colonial architecture. They are now cultural tourism destinations but, despite being endowed with a relevant historical and cultural heritage, and their relevance for the African and global history, they haven’t find yet a successful way of promoting their cultural resources as a means to reduce poverty, leaving the poor living conditions of the resident society threaten the very survival of the heritage resources. The article presents the results of two fieldwork missions on the islands conducted by the Author, aimed at showing the weaknesses and strengths of the actual tourist management.