3.1.1 The Course of International Policies on Arch...
3.1.1.1 The 19th Century: The Beginning of the Theory and Legislation for Architectural Heritage Protection in Europe
One side effect of the European Industrial Revolution was the serious destruction of city heritage sites.This phenomenon caught the public attention, leading to call for the protection of ancient heritage sites which recorded the development processes of cities.Since 19thcentury, the related theoretical study expanded.Meanwhile, the legislation of architectural heritage protection developed rapidly from 19thcentury.European countries set up heritage commissions within government, and promulgated legislations to preserve heritage sites.Architects and artists expressed their ideas in how to best protect heritage sites, and produced the three main concepts of historical architectural protection.
In France, the government set up the Historic Monument Commission in 1830, led by Prosper Merimée, and began to compile an inventory of historic buildings in 1837.[2]In 1838, French architect Viollet-Le-Duc was recommended into the Commission of Historic Monuments.After a series of practices, he clarified that “restoration is a means to reestablish [a building] to a finished state, which may in fact never have actually existed at any given time.”[3]This interpretive restoration activity was widespread in Europe at that time.
But this idea which f ocused only on forms and ignored the historical and cultural value of architecture received widespread criticisms.Le-Duc’s works were decried by the English art critic John Ruskin as “a destruction out of which no remnants can be gathered: a destruction accompanied with false description of the thing destroyed.”[4]He pointed out that every item of architectural heritage is a monument that contains the historical mark left by that era, but improper restoration destroyed the historical significance of the buildings.Maintaining the original status while avoiding erosion by time and neglect was the right way to preserve ancient buildings.In 1877, William Morris established SPAB: The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings.The Manifesto of it influenced the whole Europe.Proposed by Sir John Lubbock, the first legislation The Ancient Monuments Protection Act was promulgated in1882 to protect and arrange the prehistoric sites and appointed a single inspector of ancient monuments.[5]
Different from the interpretive-restoration concept in France and the anti-restoration idea in British, in 1880, Italian architectural heritage conservators Luca Beltrami and Camillo Boito tried to neutralize two contradictory viewpoints, and formed the new theory of architectural heritage preservation dependent on the historical, aesthetic, scientific value and evaluation system.This laid the foundation for the formation of an international architectural heritage protection policy.
3.1.1.2 Early 20th Century: Attempts to Formulate the International Standards for Architectural Heritage Protection
In 1904, the Recommendations of the Madrid Conference in Sixth International Congress of Architects is an early attempt to set down principles of architectural conservation.The recommendations emphasize the importance of “minimal intervention in dealing with ruined structures and of finding a functional use for historic buildings.”[6]In 1931, The Athens Charter for the Restoration of Historic Monuments was adopted at the First International Congress of Architects and Technicians of Historic Monuments, which preliminarily formulated the principles and measures for the restoration of historical monuments.Although the concept of architectural heritage still hangs on the single historic relics at this time, the conference has proposed additional requirements to further protect the surrounding areas of historical sites.After World War II, the large-scale restoration of international historic buildings has created a strong demand for further establishment of unified heritage restoration standards.
3.1.1.3 After 1945: The Development of the International Heritage Policies(https://www.daowen.com)
With the further development of heritage protection, the United Nations of Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) was established in 1945, and organized heritage protection institutions, including the International Council of Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), the International Centre for the Protection and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM).These organizations played an important role in improving the movement of heritage preservation by promulgating a series of policy documents.In 1964, in the second International Congress of Architects and Technicians of Historic Monuments in Venice, The Venice Charter: International Charter for the Conservation and Restoration of Monuments and Sites was adopted, which laid the foundation for the development of legislation, theory and practice of heritage protection.At that time, architectural heritage was limited to significant monuments.Although Venice Charter also stated that architectural heritage not only refers to architectural elements but also to urban and rural environments with historical civilization and cultural significance, and emphasized the integrity of cultural relics, it was not widely taken up by member states.In view of the complexity of modern life in the historical area, the social, economic, political and other elements often contradict the protection of architectural heritage.The Charter does not elaborate on this problem.In 1972, UNESCO promulgated the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, which highlighted that the monuments, groups of buildings, sites and areas with outstanding universal value are cultural heritage.
The formal protection of historical regions within international policies began in the mid to late 20th century.In 1976, UNESCO held a general conference at its 19thsession in Nairobi to propose the idea of protecting historical areas in response to the demolition of historical buildings and the destruction of historical areas due to urban modernization.In this conference, the Recommendation Concerning the Safeguarding and Contemporary Role of Historic Areas was adopted, pointing out the historical areas includes prehistoric sites, historical towns, old towns, old villages among others, emphasizing the significance of protecting historical areas and combining them with modern social life.In addition, the protection methods were expanded to include not only the recording, preservation and restoration of architectural heritage, but also the analysis of population, economic, social and cultural activities, lifestyles, social relations, land use, urban infrastructure, and road system, communication network and other elements throughout the historical region, to comprehensively combine the complex modern life content with the protection and revival of historical areas.[7]In 1987, ICOMOS adopted the Charter for The Conservation of Historic Towns and Urban Areas, proposing to preserve, restore and develop the spatial pattern of historical areas, the appearance of historical buildings and their surroundings, which should be harmoniously adapted to modern life.[8]This charter did not negate the involvement of modern factors in harmony with the historical environment.The chart in first time emphasized the significance of public participation.The Nara Document on Authenticity in 1994 suggested that the assessment of the authenticity of architectural heritage should depend on the particular nature of the heritage value, the credibility and authenticity of its source.[9]These sources of information include not only physical aspects, such as heritage forms, traditions material, techniques and backgrounds, but also intangible aspects such as spirit and affection, and clarify the value of intangible cultural factors in heritage conservation.
3.1.1.4 After 2000: The Maturity of the International Heritage Policy and Protection Movement
Since the beginning of the 21st century, the trend of urbanization became inevitable.The widespread destruction of architectural heritage and regional historical features are unprecedented.In another aspect, this phenomenon has spurred the enthusiasm for heritage conservation, recognizing the heritage value of an intangible culture.
In 2003, the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage formally includes the intangible cultural heritage of the community into the scope of heritage protection.Intangible cultural heritage was defined as all creations in a certain cultural community which based on tradition and consistent with the cultural and social identity of this community[10].In 2005, in 15th General Assembly of ICOMOS, The Xi’an Declaration was adopted, pointing out that “Beyond the physical and visual aspects, the setting includes interaction with the natural environment; past or present social or spiritual practices, customs, traditional knowledge, use or activities and other forms of intangible cultural heritage aspects that created and form the space as well as the current and dynamic cultural, social and economic context.”[11]The traditional surrounding of historic architecture is protected as a complete, living, and comprehensive entity.
With the further development of urbanization and globalization, architectural heritage sites face unprecedented threats, and the protection of their content is becoming increasingly complex.In view of this, the 2005 World Heritage and Contemporary Architecture Conference adopted the Vienne Memorandum on World Heritage and Contemporary Architecture to manage historic urban landscapes.In 2011, UNESCO issued the Recommendation on The Historical Urban Landscapes, determining the term ‘Historical Urban Landscape’ and declaring the related policies and tools.The scope of architectural heritage protection extends to include tangible and intangible cultural elements such as site geomorphology, natural features, history and modernity, infrastructure, spatial organization, perception and visual relationships, social, cultural customs and values.Its ultimate goal is to combine urban heritage conservation with socio-economic development, promote cultural diversity and creativity, ensure that contemporary interventions are in harmony with historical heritage while maintaining the quality of the human environment, enhancing the production and sustainable use of urban space.[12]
As can be seen from the development of international heritage policies, the content of architectural heritage protection has been continuously expanded, from a single monument to its environment, architectural groups, historical sites, historical urban landscapes and intangible cultural heritage.The protection method has also been continuously deepened, from passive rescue, maintenance and restoration, to emphasis the revitalization and sustainable development that are actively integrated with contemporary life.