Designs of Destruction: The Making of Monuments in the Twentieth Century

The twentieth century was the most destructive in human history but from its vast landscapes of ruins was born a new architectural type: the cultural monument. In the wake of World War I an international movement arose which aimed to protect architectural monuments in large numbers and regardless of style hoping not only to keep them safe from future conflicts but also to make them worthy of protection from more quotidian forms of destruction. This movement was motivated by hopeful idealism as much as by a pragmatic belief in bureaucracy. An evolving group—including architects intellectuals art historians archaeologists curators and lawyers—grew out of the new diplomacy of the League of Nations. During and after World War II it became affiliated with the Allied Military Government and was eventually absorbed by the UN as UNESCO. By the 1970s this organization had begun granting World Heritage status to a global register of significant sites—from buildings to bridges shrines to city centers ruins to colossi.
Hardcover: 347 pages

Publisher: University of Chicago Press; First edition (October 16 2018)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 022628655X

ISBN-13: 978-0226286556

Product Dimensions: 7 x 1.2 x 10 inches

Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds