Post-conflict conservation or reconstruction: analysis, criteria, values of the recent Syrian cultural heritage

Three years of conflict in Syria has affected the cultural heritage severely and threatened social and symbolic values. This paper illustrates firstly the real condition of the city of Aleppo, through presenting some cases of high cultural value buildings damaged by the conflict, even some were totally collapsed, which represent an important bond of Aleppo citizens similar to the idea of “Istanza Psicologica” theorized by Roberto Pane. Secondly, the research aims to analyze the criteria of “second-day” intervention (conservation, restoration, enhancement and eventual reconstruction) on this damaged heritage, by investigating the cultural significant values of these buildings damaged or completely destroyed. Finally, the paper concludes with a few suggestions about the optimum intervention of different case studies represents the values mentioned before. To sum up, the research aims to involve the international debate about conservation and restoration with a critical situation of cultural heritage in crisis.