What question did this study set out to answer?

This article aims to explore the historical context and current attitudes toward the relocation of heritage buildings, specifically analyzing its impact on perceived authenticity.

February 12, 2008

Reconsidering Relocated Buildings: ICOMOS, Authenticity and Mass Relocation1

Key Points

This article aims to explore the historical context and current attitudes toward the relocation of heritage buildings, specifically analyzing its impact on perceived authenticity.
Examines historical instances of building relocation over centuries.
Reviews attitudes towards relocation as outlined in ICOMOS charters.
Analyzes two case studies involving mass relocation of heritage buildings in the UK and New Zealand.
Finds that relocation does not necessarily equate to a loss of authenticity.
Identifies differing attitudes in ICOMOS charters regarding the preservation of relocated monuments.
Questions historical assumptions about the inseparability of a monument from its original setting.

Abstract

ICOMOS charters guide global heritage conservation practices. Fundamental to most is the notion that a ‘monument is inseparable from the history to which it bears witness and from the setting in which it occurs.’ Yet buildings have been moved for centuries. Neither the fabric nor the size of a building, nor planning regulations, nor even heritage listing, have prevented their relocation. This article briefly examines the history of relocation, reviews attitudes to relocation in ICOMOS charters, and analyses two case studies involving the mass relocation of heritage buildings in the UK and in New Zealand to question the assumption that buildings lose their authenticity if moved.

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