Preserving its architectural heritage has a long tradition in the European history. For the famous Renaissance and Baroque architects especially in Italy it was considered to be integrated part of their "art". Hence, it were art historians to start systematic documentation of the cultural heritage around 1900. For Central Europe Georg Dehio in Strasbourg and Alois Riegl and Max Dvořák in Vienna were most influential. Their legacy are printed inventory handbooks and art-topographies, which documented the built heritage and gave public access to heritage information. This is the inevitable base for protection and care of monuments as well as for rehabilitation and adaptive reuse, and last but not least cultural tourism. It is high time for Kosovo to start a similar systemic inventory. European expertise has already developed various methods for different heritage categories-from sacral single monuments to representative domestic architecture, from ensembles to vernacular architecture and most recent for industrial heritage, in the meantime hotspot of the private real estate market for redevelopment. Nevertheless, documentation and inventory is of public interest, if we really intend to save our heritage seriously. Therefore the involvement of neutral institutions, like universities, is inevitable and a long-term investment on both sides. The students gain expertise during their academic education, learning by doing on the site and experiencing the knowledge of their grandfathers by accurate observation and serious analysis. Only the ones who experienced the traditions will be able to build the future. If you have a strategic program for all universities of a certain region, you quickly gain information on the valuable building stock: Reports on the development of the structure, detailed sketches and drawings in scale, full sets of technical plans as result of detailed measurement give information on material, construction and space distribution. The reports are base for evaluation and protection, the measurements base for care, repair and adaption to contemporary use. A central architectural heritage database has to be accessible for everyone.

In 2015, Kosovo tried to join UNESCO and failed by three quotes. Is Kosovo ready for its UNESCO membership? At least for its national architectural heritage, this question is to answer with no. The intensively discussed issue of the medieval monuments of Kosovo inscribed as UNESCO World Heritage by Serbia and Montenegro before the declaration of independency in 2008 and their further management through Kosovo is just one aspect. More troubling is that the rather young state not yet could establish sufficient structures to gain a systematic inventory of its monuments, sites and historic ensembles, nor to extract a tentative list for UNESCO out of such an encompassing inventory. This article intends to clarify the definitions of World Heritage, the institutions and NGO's involved, the mechanisms and philosophies behind. What is the urgent homework for Kosovo? Which national and international groups of experts Kosovo has to name and make responsible for the systemic inventory of its architectural heritage and for creating a tentative list? What is the role and importance of ICOMOS in that process? Which other stakeholders have to be Identified and educated towards that issue? Based on such general considerations the author tries to design finally a preliminary tentative list for the architectural heritage of Kosovo. Hence, not the list itself is of importance but the discussion of the pro and contra arguments for single candidates.

In 2015, Kosovo tried to join UNESCO and failed by three quotes. Is Kosovo ready for its UNESCO membership? At least for its national architectural heritage, this question is to answer with no. The intensively discussed issue of the medieval monuments of Kosovo inscribed as UNESCO World Heritage by Serbia and Montenegro before the declaration of independency in 2008 and their further management through Kosovo is just one aspect. More troubling is that the rather young state not yet could establish sufficient structures to gain a systematic inventory of its monuments, sites and historic ensembles, nor to extract a tentative list for UNESCO out of such an encompassing inventory. This article intends to clarify the definitions of World Heritage, the institutions and NGO’s involved, the mechanisms and philosophies behind. What is the urgent homework for Kosovo? Which national and international groups of experts Kosovo has to name and make responsible for the systemic inventory of its architectural heritage and for creating a tentative list? What is the role and importance of ICOMOS in that process? Which other stakeholders have to be Identified and educated towards that issue?</p><p>Based on such general considerations the author tries to design finally a preliminary tentative list for the architectural heritage of Kosovo. Hence, not the list itself is of importance but the discussion of the pro and contra arguments for single candidates.

No abstract

No abstract