THE DEGRADATION OF VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE

The paper ponders on several dilemmas regarding the relationship between the owner (or/and user) of a historical building and the service concerned with the protection of cultural heritage. Such a service sets its own parameters in the struggle for the preservation of the values attributed to the past architectural production. By means of classification, once anonymous buildings become part of the public sphere, which is not always the best solution for the buildings thus selected. In the interest of the preservation of cultural heritage, the paper analyses those architects who with their projects influence the established value system. Many a building constructed without the help of an architect by anonymous layman masters has been withdrawn from the register of cultural heritage because of a later "artistic" adaptation of renowned architects. The paper gives explanations for the misunderstanding occurring between the preservers and the architects, supported by real-life examples. Most of the selected buildings were found in the Bovec region, which was affected by an earthquake on 12th April, 1998.