“Schools Adopt Monuments®”
A fascinating journey through Italian's treasures guided by the students of “Schools Adopt Monuments®”
By Fondazione Napoli Novantanove
FONDAZIONE NAPOLI NOVANTANOVE
In 2018 we celebrate 25 years of the “Schools Adopt Monuments®” project. It is a lifelong learning project directed at young people with the aim of encouraging a better knowledge and appreciation of their cultural heritage. The launch of the scheme in 1993 is an important date in the history of the Naples NinetyNine Foundation – marking the start of a completely new approach to the preservation and promotion of Naples’ cultural assets. The “Schools Adopt Monuments®” project proved to be an inspired approach, as demonstrated by the scheme’s success not only in Naples but elsewhere. At its roots lay the conviction (today more firmly held than ever) that the reacquisition of the cultural value of the historic and artistic heritage is not enough on its own; it must always be accompanied by moves to encourage a greater awareness of its importance and the need to preserve it on the part of the whole community. Only in this way can a cultural asset take on its social role; it thus becomes an instrument of growth for the whole community and is recognized as a historic focal point around which the community establishes its identity.
L' Atlante dei Monumenti Adottati
Their horizons widened and eyes opened to the artistic, cultural and civic history of the place where they live, the young students involved in the project came into close contact with the monument they had chosen to “adopt” and were able to develop a direct, meaningful, and often affective, engagement with it. So they tell us its story with conviction and enthusiasm, describing its features, re-evoking its history, and, when appropriate, reporting and passionately denouncing its state of decline and neglect, thereby acknowledging and proclaiming its fundamental value, as heritage, as art, as an important witness on humanity’s road to civilization, one too precious to lose.
The project, indeed, invests the schools with responsibility for the monuments they adopt, a responsibility which derives from knowledge and love, motivating and impelling them to take cultural and spiritual care of it.
And so, churches, grand buildings, castles, piazzas, fountains, war memorials, libraries, museums, parks, rivers, canals, streets, bridges, pathways, grottoes, trees, beaches, bays, towers, archaeological sites, street shrines …, all became objects of knowledge and of love.
Villa Giulia is a XVIII century garden.
A long period of neglect has compromised its beauty. The signs, still evident, testify the need to keep alive the collective memory
A WORLD OF FRIENDS: diversity is wealth and teaches to respect.
The study and knowledge of the many historical anecdotes will transmit its artistic, historical and cultural value.
We decided to study Porta Grazia both because the monument is located in Piazza Casa Pia very near to the school and also because it has been for closely linked to the history of Messina.
We have chosen to adopt this archaeological monument, because it represents us as a region and also because its discovery has happened in an unusual and amusing way.
We have chosen to adopt the Barcaccia because it is the first sculpture-fountain ever made! It is a masterpiece of 1620 created by Bernini.
The olive tree represents for the Salento region a landscape and cultural heritage to be protected.
We have chosen to adopt a monument in movement, because that is how we would like our world: attached to its history and moving towards its future.
The monument is very familiar to our students who decided that it was important to deepen the study of the tragic events of the World War, starting from that beautiful statue. Made by Attilio Gartman
UNESCO included the monuments of the Arab-Norman site of Palermo, Monreale and Cefalù in the list of World Heritage Sites. We have chosen to adopt the monuments included in this list so to contribute to the promotion of this important itinerary.
Tonnina is an example of industrial archeology. Adopt to rediscover, reconstruct, return, an unknown and submerged story full of technical, human and social values.
We have decided to adopt il Palizzi, starting from a research on its history so the students may become conscious of attending an institution with a prestigious past and live it in an active way.
With this adoption my students would like to call attention to what the Ponte Vecchio means for everyone, especially for the history that every piece of worn and weakened wood brings with it.
We have adopted it because it represents the historical memory of Monza, is worldwide known and is an example, unique in its kind, of sports archeology and a symbol of engineering capacity.
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