Founded in the early 1960s – at the same time as Pierre de Lagarde’s famous show, Masterpieces in Peril, whose last broadcasts date from 1975 -, Europa Nostra sees itself as the European voice-over dedicated to the safeguard and the promotion of the cultural and natural heritage of the Old Continent. The non-governmental organization and pan-European federation created following the strong sea levels in Venice now covers more than 40 countries. It is mobilized to save monuments – religious or architectural -, threatened sites and landscapes, and helps to boost the implementation of European Union-wide policies in favor of heritage through participatory dialogue with the institutions in place. and the Heritage Alliance in Europe.
Taking note of the number of endangered historic places, Europa Nostra has, since 2013, launched a program called “7 wonders of Europe in danger” with its partner, the Institute of the European Investment Bank. Their goals? Raise awareness, carry out independent evaluations and recommend actions. However, no direct funding is offered, Europa Nostra being above all a catalyst that draws attention to places in danger and concentrates the necessary public and private support, especially financial, to move things forward. It wishes to awaken awareness to the fact that Europe’s heritage is not a given but is above all fragile, and to compensate for the actions – often painfully – of Unesco. Therefore, each year, the structure preselects twelve European heritage sites most at risk. Among them, seven will be chosen to enter the special 2021 program of the “7 wonders of Europe in danger”. The final list of candidates will be unveiled next March.
In the prize list, a church of Saint-Omer (62) from the 13the century
The European territory covers more than 10 million square kilometers and numerous armed conflicts, pollution, poaching, wild urbanization, the development of tourism or natural disasters have shaken major heritage places. So how do you select? And why register one site rather than another? Initially, Europa Nostra set up an international advisory committee made up of experts. Specialists in history, archeology, architecture, heritage conservation as well as project analysis and financing. The latter then studied many endangered sites across Europe to select twelve. This first short-list was made with regard to the exceptional heritage character of these places as well as their cultural value and the risks they face.
Above all, the committee took into account the level of commitment of local communities, the potential for involvement of both public and private partners and the socio-economic development that these places can offer for the surrounding towns and territories. Finally, and for the first time since 2013, the program will pay a grant from the European Investment Bank to the seven selected sites in March 2021. This assistance will be for a maximum amount of 10,000 euros and will support the implementation of heritage preservation actions.
© Europa Nostra
And among the twelve shortlisted, France has one site: the Saint-Denis church, located in Saint-Omer in the Pas-de-Calais department. A cultural and economic hotspot in the Middle Ages. Like thousands of religious buildings that are wasting away in France, due to a lack of maintenance and attendance by the faithful, the Saint-Omer building and its Gothic bell tower from the 18th centurye century are in an alarming state of conservation, warns Europa Nostra. Its interior decoration and altars, built by corporations unique in France, are peeling. Dry rot and mold invite themselves to the rare masses that still take place there.
In order to save this tangible heritage, seat of an intangible collective memory dear to the French – like the emotion felt during the fires of Notre-Dame de Paris and the Nantes cathedral – from decrepitude, a vast full scale restoration is needed. The load being very important for the city and despite a meager support from the State, the church requires more resources, mobilization and involvement of local actors. The list includes another place of worship, this time in the north of Spain in Cantabria. The San Juan de Socueva Chapel dated 660-680 BC is still active and rooted in the local community. However, the services become perilous, the monument being dilapidated and threatening to collapse.
© Europa Nostra
Other examples? First in Italy, in Verona, where its Giusti garden, built in 1570, a flagship of the Tuscan Renaissance, suffered violent storms in 2020. Rare species of plants, its boxwood labyrinth – one of the oldest in Europe -, its statues of the XVIIe century and its irrigation system were destroyed. Then in Venice and the palace with late baroque architecture Ca’Zenobio. A place that housed the famous Armenian college Moorat-Raphael from 1851 to 1997. Since that date, the building has been vacant and in decay. Then direction Greece and the Cyclades, where five islands (Amorgos, Kimolos, Kithira, Sikinos and Tinos) including archaeological sites have been designated future wind farm. A backdrop that would be catastrophic for these landscapes. Europa Nostra offers an energy alternative to this project and a consultation with local communities.
© Europa Nostra
As for Germany, the NGO took an interest in Cologne with the Green Space System, one of the city’s green lungs plagued by threatening urban growth. Nearby, Austria, and the Achensee (Tyrol) railway, opened in 1889 and which still uses equipment from the end of the XIXe century. The Covid-19 having been there, the company went bankrupt and the aid promised by the state was never paid. Finally, many sites in Eastern Europe have been selected, such as the modern theater in Sofia in Bulgaria, the Mirogoj cemetery in Zagreb in Croatia, the Narikala fortress in Tbilisi in Georgia, the Decani monastery in Kosovo or the Skopje central post office in North Macedonia.
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