In the words of Brad Smith, President of Microsoft, “Preserving cultural heritage isn’t something that is solely nice to have or nice to do, it’s sometimes imperative to the well-being of the world’s societies.” History is a big part of what gives a city its personality and sense of community. One way to show respect for this history is to keep old buildings and structures in good shape. They might be a good example of a certain type of architecture, a landmark from a certain time in the city’s history, or a good example of a particular architectural style.
Heritage structures and sites are legacies of our ancestors, a reflection of our past, and an indispensable source of data for tracing the growth of our society and culture. The Dictionary of law insider defines heritage building as any building of one or more premises or any part thereof that requires preservation and conservation for historical, architectural, environmental, cultural or religious purpose includes such portion of the land adjoining such buildings as may be required.
Numerous historic structures have withstood the test of time. However, much like people need to take care of their health by taking preventative measures and getting regular check-ups, these structures must be preserved, conserved, and restored. Article 49 of the Indian Constitution protects the country’s built heritage: “It shall be the obligation of the State to protect every monument, place, or object of artistic or historic interest (declared by or under law made by Parliament) to be of national importance, from spoliation, disfigurement, destruction, removal, disposal, or export, as the case may be.”
Importance of Preserving Ancient Structures
As quoted by Carl Sagan, “You have to know the past in order to understand the present.”There are numerous reasons to protect historical structures from urbanisation and threats of destruction. When properly utilised, old structures can provide significant value to a city. The following are some intangible benefits of historic preservation:
01. Cannot Be Rebuilt
Whenever there is talk of tearing down ancient structures, there is an outpouring of opposition from locals who value the city’s culture and architecture. Landowners and city planners are always looking for ways to make money and raise property values, which puts historical buildings in danger. However, if you demolish a historic building that has withstood world wars and catastrophic weather to build a shopping center, future generations of inhabitants will never be able to breathe in its significance. Destroying and reducing anything to rubble is the same as removing a piece of history. This is not to imply that the past shouldn’t be improved upon; in fact, ancient buildings often require renovations to ensure they stay in top form.
02. Retains History
Old buildings are a record of a city’s aesthetic and cultural history. They help people feel like they belong and have a connection to the past. People who live in a city or come to visit often think of historic buildings as symbols of something well-known or important.
03. Tourist Attraction
Visiting historical structures and buildings from a city or town’s past is an important part of local tourism. People travelling to new locations may find it amusing to imagine what life was like before the world wars, vehicles, and cell phones. Old buildings have an attraction that cannot be replicated by modern structures. They offer distinct features like aged brickwork, cobblestone sidewalks, and old street lighting that appeal to senior tourists but also spark the interest of younger visitors. Tourists are drawn to the faults of a historic building, such as the varied levels throughout the building, the internal decor, and so on. The anomalies that historical buildings provide cannot be found elsewhere, so they must be preserved.
04. Aesthetic Importance
Materials like heart wood, marble, and even the original bricks used to construct older structures are rare and highly prized today. They might have ornamental facades, unique glasswork, or copper lining—details and features that are no longer common. For many, the unique history and personality of an older structure are reasons enough to prefer it over a newer, generic one. Keeping historic structures up to par has other benefits, including a continued interest in traditional building techniques.
05. Environmental Significance
When ancient structures are maintained and put to new purposes, they make better use of energy and materials and produce less waste. There is no requirement for the production of new materials or the disposal of dismantled items. Additionally, it conserves reconstruction energy. In addition, demolition causes pollution and the discharge of toxic substances into the environment.
Elements of Historic Preservation
Historic preservation actually refers to four distinct actions.
01. Preservation
Preservation is concerned with the upkeep, stabilisation, and restoration of existing historic elements, as well as the preservation of a building’s shape as it has changed over time. To keep an existing building in its current state through a careful program of maintenance and repair is known as preservation. It includes repair, stabilisation of materials, and regularly scheduled maintenance.
02. Rehabilitation
Rehabilitation recognises the necessity to modify or add to a historic property in order to accommodate continuous or changing usage while preserving the site’s historic character. This is the most widely used and adaptable standard for rehabilitation at the federal, state, and municipal levels. It is the process of returning a property to a condition that makes contemporary use possible while still preserving its features that are significant to its historic, architectural, and cultural values. It includes the adaptive use of the building and construction additions.
03. Restoration
Restoration displays a property as it appeared at a certain time period in its history while deleting evidence of other eras to reproduce a pure style, whether it is interiors or exteriors. It includes the removal of later work or the replacement of missing historic features. Restoration helps when missing details or features of a historic building are significant to the character of the structure, and when the original structure is precisely documented.
04. Reconstruction
Reconstruction is the process of re-creating gone or non-surviving sections of a property for the purpose of interpretation. It is the process of building or creating something that has been damaged or destroyed.
How to Do It?
01. An Initial Step
CCTV, smoke detectors, fire alarm systems with gas/water sprinklers, firewalls, and water curtains are all instant safety measures that can be installed and incorporated. Quarterly safety drills, including many rescue departments working together, will help reduce on-site panic. Heritage buildings undergoing repair should cordon off the weak areas, making them inaccessible to the public.
02. Volunteer Support
Volunteers in the community who are engaged in historic preservation may not have specific architectural, engineering, or construction abilities, but they may be willing to undertake research, make phone calls, prepare applications, assist surveyors, help in public education, or wield a shovel or hammer.
03. Public Education
Promoting historic preservation requires informing the general population of its value. If a majority, or even a sizable percentage, of a community’s residents are committed to preservation, the odds of it becoming an intrinsic part of the community’s planning increase dramatically.
04. By Hosting Special Occasions
Special events help people interested in mid-century architecture connect with others. These can include fundraising events, special exhibits (complete with opening night celebrations) highlighting your community’s architecture and contemporary legacy, or a lecture series featuring local historians, architects, or lecturers discussing the area’s modern architecture.
05. Making use of Modern Technology
Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and the Internet of Things (IoT) are examples of modern technology segments that would not only speed up the problem-solving process for the issues at hand, but would also help develop management systems (BMS). Together, these elements may prove game-changing for addressing security and vandalism concerns. When historic structures are managed centrally with a building management system (BMS), they can be integrated into a citywide Smart City Grid network. Then, a central location, like the Civic Department’s office or the local Disaster Management Authority’s command centre, may oversee everything. The Internet of Things (IoT) allows for the interconnection of these stations, facilitating the smooth and precise exchange of data and the prompt implementation of necessary measures.
Unlike humans, heritage sites have endured the test of constantly changing political, social, and economic narratives with panache and dignity, outliving generations. It is now our responsibility to ensure that these structures are valued and preserved so that future generations can continue to benefit from and enjoy them as part of their cultural heritage.
06. Make a Nomination for a List of Endangered Places
Nominate a place to an endangered list when its preservation is at risk due to demolition, change, or indifference. This is a great method for generating attention, raising awareness of threatened modern and recent past locations, and explaining to a wider audience why these types of places are significant and must be protected.
Conclusion
Historic preservation of buildings and other structures, neighbourhoods, archaeological sites, landscapes, and other historic properties can add to a community’s awareness of and pride in its history. It can bring economic and other benefits as well. A community that honours its past also honours itself. A community can recognise its strengths and use them to better the lives of all of its citizens by preserving its history through the preservation of sites that are significant to it.
Image Courtesy: Image 4, Image 5, Image 7
Author Bio
Fathima Israr –
