14. Site museums: New name for site museums or new concept for archeological sites?

Mexican examplesYani Herreman

Introduction Site museums have a long tradition. Historically, they are associated with early cultural and enjoyment tourism. Renaissance artists and art lovers would travel to Rome, Athens, Egipt and other sites which were recognized, as “sites”. Paintings, drawings and engravings give account of this tradition. (photo 1)Site museums are also historically linked to archeology and history of architecture and, in later dates, to ethnology. Important artists and archeologists were attracted to these sites leaving scientific and artistic proof of sites.Teotihuacan is one of the best known archeological sites in the country. This monumental group of buildings has been studied as early as the XVII century and presently it is the most investigated site in Mesoamerica. It was the first to have what has been called, a “site museum”in Mexico. (Photo 2). Declared World heritage in 1982 by UNESCO, it now has three site museums that improve the visitor´s knowledge and understandig of the site. Another early example is Uxmal, in the Yucatan península, in Mexico. Friederich von Waldeck (Waldeck von Friederich “Viaje pintoresco a México”1838) John Stephens and Frederick Caterwood (John Stephens and Frederick Caterwood “Incidentes por América Central, Chiapas y Yucatán”, 1841) and the famous French photograher Désiré Charney left invaluable testimonies of this site. Well known in the scientific and artistic media, Uxmal was restored and advertised by the Mexican government in the XXth century as a touristic destiny- an issue I will bring up later on.The forty seven site museums coordinated by the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH, acronym for Mexico´s powerful government agency in charge of the prehistorical, archeological and historical sites) are located thoughout Mexico, all of which are placed in or in relation to archeological sites. 11. New name for site museums or new concept for sites?Museum architecture has been recognized as one of the most important and significant types of contemporary architecture. New museum design has positioned itself as the highlight of urban planning and has become a favorite among famous architects. It has become a symbol of our time.

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Modern and contemporary architecture encompasses all kinds of museums: from children´s museums to music museums; from sustainable buildings to high tech. Site museums have played a more modest role, yet I believe more attention should be paid to this specific type of museum. These buildings are seldom as “flashy” as a Contemporary Art Museum but the role they play in the preservation of world heritage is equal to none. Today, as world heritage sites have been recognized by UNESCO as a priority, site museums have also become relevant. With a very specialized architectural program and a unique responsability towards the heritage site they are linked to, site museums are not only an important piece of architecture but a tool for the preservation of world culture.According to recent bibliography, the first definition of a Site Museum was given by ICOM (1978), which closely followed the Venice Charter emphizising the importance of built heritage and its environment. By 1987, Berruol and Poinssot ( G. Barruol & c. Poinssot “Le Musée de site archeologique” Nouvelles de Archeologie No. 27. Paris, 1987) proposed a richer definition. “Site museums assemble, in a building, in or near an archeological site, the site´s objects-artifacts and its documentation”. A few years later Jean Pierre Mohen, Head of the Direction des Musées de France emphizises the importance of environment in the correct interpretation of material traces “environmental context is as important as the objects materiality therefore should not be separated” (http://www.universalis.fr/encyclopedie/archeologie-archeologie-et-societe-amenagement-des-sites/1-les-musees-de-site-archeologique). This concepts matches De Varine Bohan & Rivière´s concept of an Ecomusée, where collections and environment form a unit that should be researched as such (ethnological view). In case of a site museum, a building is designed or adapted to the site; a building with an especific architectural programme. Hermanus Johannes Moolman, offers a definition of site museum closer to ICOM´s definition where the building´s presence is included. In the well known review Museum Management and Curatorship, Moolman defines a site museum as “a museum that preserves and interprets the remains of cultural history or natural history phenomena in a site where these have been preserved in situ or reconstructed. A site museum also has, like other museums the functions of conservation, documentation, research and interpretation”(http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/ref/10.1080/09647779609515499#tabModule)The above definitions clearly show how social studies impacted museums and archeology and enriched the site museum concept in less than fifty years. I beleive this change has taken place due to the development of Cultural Studies and modern interdiciplinary trends in research. Definitions and concepts have broadened interrelating fields of interest. In the case of Site Museums they have, rightfully, positioned them as a highly important cultural and economic asset.

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UNESCO latest reviews of the terms “Culture”and ”Heritage” have given place to such important programmes as the World Heritage Site that defines a site as “is a place such as a lake, a forest, mountain, desert, monument, building, complex or city that is listed by UNESCO as a special cultural or pshysical significance” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Heritage_Site) This declaration certainly promotes the inclusión of the new concept of site museum, a place where environment, site and its museum becomes an active and effective media for dissemination, cultural mediation and saveguard of culture.Site architecture based on the above principles is, most of the time, a difficult art. Even though some site museums are famous they certainly don´t have the freedom of a building such as the National Museum of Anthropology, in Mexico City or the Guggenheim, in Bilbao. Contemporary site museums carry out (or should) most of the normal activities of a museum. Collection care and registration, including a storage area; first level research; exhibition spaces, education department and an administrative área are part of a site museum architectural programme. These main museum features may be, nowadays, complemented with visitor services such as a shop and resturant or coffeshop.Environment aware, site respectful, programme oriented and socially minded, a Site Museum is, at its best, a local asset. It is a powerful tool for local heritage promotion and, if well developed, a community appropriation tool. Its architecture must contribute to the sauveguarding of the site and, at the same time, have its own architectural design qualities. It must keep up with contemporary trends in architecture and yet harmonize with ancient structures. It must find the essence of the site and translate it to a contemporary architectural object. Examples, good and bad, succesful or failures, may be found worldwide. The newly designed Site Museums, refered to by Director of the Cultural Division of UNESCO, Dr. Mgomezulu as follows “Hopefully (they) may be examples for this new wave of site museum architects and designers where the museum simultaneously anchors this relationship and functions as a mediation zone. That is to say, a museum is not only an instrument which explains the site in a static relationship that is updated according to the rhythm of new museographic developments. The site and the museum each designate a space of heritage whose limits adapt and transform themselves, occasionally overlapping when a heritage space takes on the characteristics of a museum.”( Gadi G.Y.Mgomezulu, Editorial, Site Museums. Museum International, Site Museums. Vol 56.No.3. 2004) set a trend in Site Museum architecture. ICAMT, ICOMand UNESCO should act as peers in this highly important task.Under the new cultural and environmental views, site museums are bound to become more popular tan ever. With a world tourism industry in permanent growth, their future is assured in terms of popularity. This fact should also be taken carefully. Governments,

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cultural agencies, local districts and architects must be aware of the dangers of mass tourism that without proper care and laws that protect it may loose what has survived through the years.

Site museums in Mexico As in many countries in Europe, Mexico has taken advantage of its rich cultural heritage. Its more than 1500 museums through out the country, Mexico City´s 130 and the country´s 47 site museums make it a perfect destiny for cultural tourism.

Modern site museums rapidly developed in the 80´s and 90´s as part of a government political and economical policy. The tourism input, second only to the oil industry, has interested Mexico´s government agencies in positioning its cultural richness as a tourism site.The main national web of site museums, as mentioned before, is coordinated by INAH. The most important ones are related to archeological sites of importance in Mesoamerican Culture such as Teotihuacan, the Yucatan área, Tabasco, Chiapas, Mexico City and Veracruz. Smaller, yet extremely interesting from the anthropological and architectural point of view are the ones in the northern states of Chichuahua and Zacatecas.Different in their architectural qualities, the 1980´ s museums were designed by well known Mexican architects such as Teodoro González de León , Fernando González Gortázar Pedro Ramírez Vázquez, Ricardo Legorreta and Enrique Norten.Heritage buildings are one of Mexico´s main museum spaces. The restauration and adaptation of this type of constructions for their new museum activities is one of Mexico´s architectural especialties. This type of architecture allows sites, big or small, more or less important, to remain useful and alive and to preserve their history and that of the sites and communities they belong to.

Conclusions After the splendor of monumental museum buildings, these will share their cultural places with Site Museums. Scattered all over the world, they will be the trend of museum architecture in the near future. Their long history and present recognition as cultural preservation and mediation resources will make this an important specialization in museum architecture.

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