Classification of Built Heritage in Portugal
[1] The first conscientious move came from King John V, who induced the Academia Real de História (Royal Academy of History) to inventory and conserve "the ancient Monuments that existed and they could discover in the Kingdom, when it was dominated by the Phoenicians, Greeks, Penos, Romans, Goths and Arab" (decreed on 20 August 1721).
[1] At that time various personalities, such as Almeida Garrett (1799-1854)[3] and Alexandre Herculano (1810-1877), alerted the public to the need for legislative protection for built heritage.
[4] Alexandre Herculano, for his part, authored various pioneering texts for the movement, writing four works on monuments, published in the magazine "O Panorama", between 1838 and 1839.
[7][8] In 1880, the RAACAP published a report that was commissioned by the Ministério de Obras Publicas (Ministry of Public Works) that suggested why some properties of a cultural heritage should be considered national monuments.
By the beginning of the 20th century, a concrete classification act emerged on 24 October 1901; it was the first legal framework to explicitly define what was national heritage.
On 7 March 1932, decree 20/985 established a regime of protection based on artistic, historic or archaeological value, differentiating between national monuments and properties of public interest, resulting in the necessity to expand the notion of cultural heritage.
[14] Yet, architect Raul Lino (1879-1974), was one of the figures who opposed the organization's policies,[16] affirming the preoccupation for a purity of style was the disgrace of many monuments.
[17] After 25 April 1974, the State altered the public administration, with the objective passing the competencies of management of built heritage to the cultural ministry.
These protected possessions are further defined into three distinct categories in accordance with international conventions:[21] To analyze and execute a classification a competent initiator can be any citizen or body (public or private), whether that be Portuguese or foreign.
This includes: The classification of Portuguese heritage is the final process of the administrative procedure that determines the cultural value of architectural constructions to the State.
[23] The organ responsible for the classification and protection of built heritage is the Direção-Geral do Património Cultural, a central service of the administrative law of the State.
The owner of the classified property has the right to be informed of all acts, appreciations and protection of the heritage designation, and indemnified when there is a prohibition or restriction to its normal use.
[23] From the moment the process reaches the classification stage, a Special Protection Zone (ZPE) of 50 metres (160 ft) is created immediately from the external limits of the property, based on contours defined from level altimetry or references in the landscape (ridges of hills, riverbeds and others).
These possessions can only be classified as of a national interest when its ruin or degradation may result in its irreparable cultural loss, as defined by Government decree.
