Prima e dopo la carta di Venezia. Il dibattito internazionale e le riflessioni sul restauro archeologico

After the considerations on the interventions on the archaeological heritage of the Athens Conference (1931), the New Delhi Conference (1956) published the Recommendations on the international principles to be applied in matters of archaeological excavations, offering the possibility of reflecting on these assets, not only by of archaeologists, but also of other expert researchers. The Venice Charter implemented, also through discussion with the Commissio- ne Franceschini, the need to suggest more specific indications which it clarified in articles 15 and 16 of the docu- ment. However, only with the European Convention for the Protection of the Archaeological Heritage (London, 1969) was recognised «the moral responsibility for the protection of the archaeological heritage seriously threatened with destruction». The Convention prompted a renewed interest in the themes of archaeological restoration, starting from the principles of the Venice Charter, and taken up by other more specific documents (European Convention of Delphi and Charter of Lausanne of 1985; European Convention for the protection of the archaeo- logical heritage of La Valletta of 1992; Syracuse Charter of 2004 on the conservation and use of ancient theatres), with the operational results that today guide interventions on contexts, sites and monuments. However, there are gaps in the indications, misunderstandings in the interpretation of the documents and lack of ease in the re- storation interventions often aimed at valorization actions. These, hoped for in the 1964 Document, were, howe- ver, a final act to be proposed only after correct conservation of the ruin and the archaeological find