There is an unfortunate trend for cities and their governments to misunderstand or ignore the value of their architectural heritage. This attitude was summed up at the University of Genoa’s conservation workshop:

“Valuable monuments, sites and landscapes are being threatened increasingly by largescale or uncontrolled developments of the built environment, not taking into account in any way their established and potential assets for the future development of that built environment. Is our architectural heritage becoming marginal or even irrelevant [...]? The answer is indeed no, if at least we manage to convince society – and its policy-makers – of these values of historical buildings, sites and landscapes;...”

Are there beautiful old buildings in your area that you think are at risk of crumbling to oblivion or being torn down for new development?

It’s one thing to design and build a modern building and quite another to renovate one built using historical designs, techniques and materials. The restoration of a building doesn’t just restore the building itself, it also helps to restore some of the traditional crafts and trades that went into that building’s creation.

Here are just a few of the unique trades that could be involved in the authentic restoration of a historical building:

• Thatching to create and maintain authentic rural roofing;
• Gilding to restore a glorious royal building;
• Carpentry to build strong structures and beautiful doors and windows;
• Blacksmithing to create structural supports and decorations;
• Stoneworking for everything from structural arches to sculptural ornamentation.

Some of these trades could be at risk of disappearing if not for heritage architecture conservation! You’ll also spot some of these tradespeople’s handiwork throughout this list, so keep scrolling.

At the same time, shortages of the skilled trades required for conservation and restoration can make this a difficult and expensive endeavor. In an analysis of Malaysian conservation efforts, academics note: “Due to lack of conservation skills for the repair and maintenance of historic architecture, it was discovered that about 60% of conservation and maintenance of historic buildings are done by inexpert and inexperienced workers resulting in 50% of the problems that emerged thereafter (Kayan, 2003; Fidler, 2005). [...] [The] conservation of such historic buildings is discouraged by the lack of manpower to facilitate good maintenance.”

If you’ve been thinking about a career change, how about training as a stonemason, carpenter, or blacksmith? There’s a beautiful building out there that needs you!

Despite the many risks and challenges, it’s clear that restoring heritage buildings provides us all with incalculable benefits. In many cities, national museums, train stations, marketplaces, and even old factories can transform into local hubs where people can marvel at the beauty of the past. What’s your favorite restored historic building where you live?