Discovering, preserving and communicating the past. Synergies and divergences between archaeology, restoration and museography to make the legacy from the past accessible to all

The paper aims to investigate the overlapping, collaborative and even contrasting characteristics among the three different disciplines: Archaeology, Restoration and Museography. As archaeologists share the view that the public's "enjoyment" of the archaeological heritage in situ could jeopardize its integrity, paradoxically the surest way to preserve an archaeological site is by backfilling. The only architectural intervention in an archaeological site is to introduce a protective element, but this often distorts its identity: therefore, the possible compromise for a "direct" fruition of an archaeological site is its restoration, although it has been intended in different ways over time. The past must be preserved and protected keeping in mind the centrality of people (to whom the preservation of the past is addressed) too often forgotten or postponed due to other urgencies. It should also be underlined that conveying these often fragile remains to the future depends on their acknowledgement as elements of cultural identity. In recent decades, however, new ways of intervening have emerged, in order to preserve but also to communicate in the best possible way the cultural significant and contents of the archaeological heritage, making them truly “accessible” and dialoguing with the city and with the present. The paper cites some significant case studies to investigate the potential of a real disciplinary contamination between the three above mentioned fields.