Heritage values: Witnesses of History
Heritage Memory and Belonging Section
Witnesses of History
Sometimes extraordinary events take place in a building or a place that has no architectural interest, The conservation of these buildings aims to recall the event, as they are witnesses of history. In some cases, these sites were deliberately designated as the scene to host the event. In other cases, they became so unexpectedly. In both cases, the buildings deserve to stand as a symbol of the event they hosted. The significance of these buildings can also be related to the identity of a community, related to politics, tradition, history, religion, etc. In this case, the architectural value or quality of the element or site is not the central argument for its conservation.
Article 7 of the Venice Charter for the Conservation and Restoration of Monuments and Sites says: “A monument is inseparable from the history to which it bears witness and from the setting in which it occurs”.