A look at the erroneous restoration of the historical kasbah of agadir, Morocco

Abstract

Architecture represents the cultural and intellectual identity of peoples. It is an authentic wealth of civilization that embodies the creative and aesthetic level that man has reached in various successive eras and historical periods (Al-Zahrani, 2012). It is a heritage that cannot be estimated and a living memory that reflects the extent of harmony between climate and the natural components of the environment on the one hand and, on the other, the economic and social systems on which man depends. Architectural heritage has received substantial attention from various entities, as it is an important historical and national project that contributes to the development of contemporary and future social structure and establishes a cultural policy building responsible community awareness. This so important considering that cultural heritage faces threats mainly related to its deterioration because of failing its preservation or undertaking inappropriate restoration work, as we illustrate by the case of the Kasbah of Agadir. The restorers with insufficient experience committed serious architectural failures in the Kasbah. It is difficult now to restore the state of the building before the restoration. They used materials that had a negative and distorting impact. As a result, these mistakes led to the destruction of the Kasbah's architectural features.