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19 elements of historical heritage in the Basque Country are in a serious situation of abandonment
19 spaces from all over the Basque Country are included in the ‘red list’ of Hispania Nostra, an organization that this Friday will hold the second day of the ‘Awards for good practices in the protection of historical heritage’ in Vitoria. In it, the winners will be honored for different exemplary actions since 2004, which have contributed to the enhancement of heritage in Asturias, Cantabria, Euskadi, Navarra and La Rioja.
The day will be held at the Artium Museum and will begin at 9:15 with the intervention of Bárbara Cordero, general director of Hispania Nostra. After that, a series of round tables will take place on the awards of the different autonomous communities, which will include experts such as José María Ballester, director of the Rural Development, Heritage and Territory Program of the Botín Foundation, José Vicente Valdenebro, doctor architect, professor of the UPNA or Igor Cacho, delegate of Hispania Nostra in Euskadi. In addition, the ceremony will also feature a speech on good practices in dealing with heritage by the Álava Provincial Council and another on the Valle Salado de Añana, in Álava, presented by Alberto Plata Montero, doctor in Archeology and head of the Area of Culture and Communication of the Valle Salado de Añana Foundation.
The latter, which received the ‘Grand Prix Europa Nostra 2015 Award’ in the ‘Conservation’ category thanks to a project that has worked on the recovery and conservation of its landscape and architecture and on the promotion of cultural and tourist initiatives that contribute to the economic, tourist and cultural development of the area, will be the main person in charge of representing Euskadi in the awards together with the Monumental Ensemble of Portilla in Zambrana, Álava. This medieval fortified enclosure from the 12th century received the award for ‘heritage conservation as a factor of economic and social development’ in 2016, due to its rehabilitation project.
There are currently 24 elements of historical heritage in the Basque Country distributed throughout the territory (seven in Álava, ten in Bizkaia and six in Gipuzkoa). 19 of them are included in ‘The Red List’, which includes the natural, industrial, religious, military or civil heritage, denounced by citizens and evaluated by a scientific commission of experts that determines its situation. Assets that are generally abandoned and subject to the risk of disappearance, destruction or essential alteration of their values. Forts, palaces, castles or other types of architectural ensembles of great historical value are found in these conditions.
From Hispania Nostra They invite you to know and protect the elements in danger. “Heritage is very important to understand where we come from,” suggested Bárbara Cordero. Preserving significant elements helps to understand the history of a town or region, in the same way as “art or literature”. In the case of things that, if they are lost, will not return, Hispania Nostra suggests that they must be valued and avoid abandonment that in some cases “is not necessary”, “how can the Goya de Vitoria station be, which will receive a new use”, suggested Bárbara. The problem is that “neither citizens nor institutions give it the importance it deserves.” For this reason, it is “necessary for people to be aware and report the situation,” the director suggested. In some autonomous communities there is more awareness than in others, for this reason, public-private interventions vary according to the territory, something that is very important for the conservation of heritage.
