Architectural heritage is the term for what we have received from our ancestors like some techniques or historical buildings that have not been destroyed nowadays, it is more common to see it in religious buildings.

One of the architect’s missions consist of acting on an existing building that presents problems: instability, humidity, degradation, obsolescence, unhealthiness…

WHAT IS HERITAGE:

HERITAGE:
set of assets acquired by inheritance […] by
title … (i.e.:

• set of family assets
• set of State assets
• set of municipal assets…

CULTURE:
set of lifestyles, customs, knowledge and degree of artistic, scientific, industrial development, in an epoch, social group, etc

CULTURAL HERITAGE:
set of assets (tangible as well as intangible) that have to do with the culture of a people,
nation, city, society…
This concept is important because it implies
the cultural identity of a people

CULTURAL IDENTITY:
FROM MONUMENT TO CULTURAL ASSET
To identify a culture solely by the set of its MONUMENTS (only the great events and artists count) is a mistake.
In the 2nd half of the 20th century the concept of CULTURAL ASSET (broader than the one of monument) is formulated. It integrates objects with historical or artistic value (monument), but also any expression, manifestation or significant
testimony of human culture with documentary
capacity

WHY PRESERVING HERITAGE?

Preservation is a method of not losing the VALUES OF CULTURAL IDENTITY.
In order to preserve you must know before what the cultural assets of a people are: CATALOG. Therefore, all goods contained in catalogues must be protected and preserved. But not only these, before any action we do as architects, we must think about the value of the good on which to intervene before deciding the type of intervention.

WHAT SHOULD BE PRESERVED?

a) Protection of values:
Protect not only the physical architectural heritage but also its
values (historic, artistic, antiquity, functional, economic…)
b) Physical conservation:
Every aspect of a building must be taken care of:

• matter
• construction techniques
• shapes, dimensions
• colours, materials, textures
• character
• use
• environment
• meanings…
  c) Enhancement (valorisation):
  Make the building show and explain its values.

HOW TO PRESERVE?

Some current CRITERIA FOR INTERVENTION IN ARCHITECTURAL HERITAGE:
• Preservation of the authenticity of the material document and character.
• Reversibility of the intervention.
• Minimal intervention.
• Distinguishability and expressive actuality.
• Compatibility: material, structural, character, functional, etc.
• Durability of the intervention.
• Environmental and economic sustainability