Authenticity in Canadian Conservation Practice

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INTERAMERICAN SYMPOSIUM ON AUTHENTICITY

IN THE CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT OF CULTURAL HERITAGE
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996
ICOMOS Canada
Authenticity in Canadian conservation practice
The paper which follows is a composite perspective on authenticity issues in Canadian conservation. It
has been put together on the basis of contributions from many members of ICOMOS Canada, some
submitted by invitation, other "borrowed". Contributions used in preparation of this paper come from
Wayne Zelmer, Frank Rorvemaker (on the grain elevators of Saskatchewan), Susann Myers (on the
reconstruction of Louisbourg), Walter Jamieson, Fergus Maclaren (on tourism), Alain Lafrenidre (on
vernacular architecture and the City of Hul1), Susan Buggey (on cultursl landscapes), Christina Cameron
(on transportation corridors), Gordon Bennett (on commemorative integrity), Michel Bonnette (on
Quebec City and the restoration of Place Royale), Pierre LaRochelle (on I1e d, Orleans), Christiane
Lefebvre (on definitions), Andrew Powter (on St. George,s Church, Halifax, and on the Library of
Parliament), Dinu Bumbaru (on Montreal), Les Hurt and Jack Brink (on Head-Smashed-in-Buffalo Jump). I
have very much appreciated the substantial contributions each has made in preparation of this paper. I
regret I have not been able to use a11 of the excellent material supplied; as well I should note that I bear
a11 responsibility for the interpretation, use and organisation of their materials.
Where published papers and complete notes have been supplied, I have quoted from them, and cited
the author. Where only rough point-form notes have been supplied, these have been re-phrased for use
in the article with credit usually being limited to use of the contributors' name.
H. Stovel, OAA, MRAIC President, ICOMOS Canada
December, 1995
UNITED STATES NATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL ON MONUMENTS AND SITES
COMITÉ NATIONAL DES ETATS UNIS DU CONSEIL INTERNATIONAL DES MONUMENTS ET DES SITES
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Introduction
The paper looks at how perceptions of authenticity (and therefore its utility in
conservation practice) have altered over the last three decades in Canada. The paper
develops this theme by looking at the treatment of authenticity questions within a
number of sites of heritage significance, important in defining Canadian cultural
identity. The treatment of the subject is necessarily limited, both by the small
number of heritage sites examined and by the author's personal biases and
experiences.
Authenticity is a measure of the essential truth of the values or messages

communicated by cultural heritage as perceived by those in contact with them. As
such, shifts in perception of authenticity reflect shifts in focus among professionals
and the public in defining significant messages and their related heritage values.
Authenticity, following the lines of argument developed in the Bergen and Nara
authenticity meetings, is also understood through the attributes of cultural heritage,
since messages or values, as such, are not palpable: they cannot themselves be
touched or viewed or experienced. Authenticity analysis for any particular site
demands first identification of the particular attributes that support or carry those
values, and secondly, an assessment of the degree of truth, or genuineness, or
completeness attached to these.
Authenticity has been expressed as a goal consistently throughout the development

of conservation practice in Canada over the last 25 years. However, the objectives
lying behind use of the word are as varied as the perceived values it has been desired
to protect and enhance through conservation.
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Canada, like all of the New World American states illustrates the efforts of
transplanted, mostly-European cultural groups to subjugate the largely wilderness
lands and native peoples they found, over the last several centuries. As well, even
though identifiable heritage conservation practices may be described going back a
century or more in almost all of these countries, most of the significant growth in
conservation theory, practice and capacity has taken place in the last thirty years -
within the life of ICOMOS. An examination of shifting perceptions regarding heritage
values in Canada and accompanying shifts in perceptions of
"authentic" both illuminate some significant shared developmental trends and issues
within the Americas, and the defining characteristics that characterize evolving
Canadian approaches to conservation.
Authenticity and accuracy: early reconstructions and restorations
"Authenticity" was very much a touchstone in my first encounters in the late 1970s
with serious conservation practice in Canada. Having just spent two years studying
conservation in Edinburgh (in 1976- 1977, under Colin McWilliam, of Heriot-Watt
University), I had been imbued with a form of what Michael Petzet of ICOMOS
Germany has called "material fetishism" - reverence for the artefact as the single
legitimate transmitter of heritage value. I soon discovered that most of my Canadian
colleagues had a different approach. When they spoke of authentic, they meant
'accurate". Theirs was the world of the pedantic reconstruction, the painstakingly
correct period restoration; their highly developed and well-supported research skills
were put to use in history, archaeology and architecture to uncover lost forms
deemed to be significant for Canadians. And what were these values?
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In 1967, Canada celebrated its Centennial; those celebrations focused considerable

attention on the nature of Canadian identity. Unlike today, where that identity
appears almost too complex to define inclusively for the benefit of all, a sense of
national identity then was developed by government by affirming dominant
historical or natural themes that everyone agreed exposed the essential nature of
the country: Gordon Lightfoot's "Canadian Railroad Trilogy" was a ringing anthem to
one of the most important defining acts in Canadian history - the building of the
Trans-Continental railway. Gilles Vigneault's "Mon pays - c'est 1'hiver" focused more
directly on the conditions in nature which fostered Quebecois attachment for the
north.
At that time, Parks Canada - acting for the Government of Canada and continuing a
long-time attachment to reading Canadian history through its military annals -
focused on a significant turning point in the French-English wars - the British
destruction of an early l8th c. French seaport in Nova Scotia, the Fortress of
Louisbourg. In the early 1960s, Parks Canada launched the most extensive historic
reconstruction programme in the nation's history, in order to recapture that early
chapter in French history. Although sparked by efforts to boost a flagging local
economy, Susann Myers notes that the reconstruction was understood as a means to
commemorate a place of profound significance in the struggle for Empire in North
America, and one of the most significant French fishing and trade centers of its era
on the continent.
The reconstruction of 25% of the original town and half its fortifications honed the
skills of the first full generation of conservation professionals in Canada (Parks
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Canada's Restoration Services Division), created in the flush of the boom economic
times that followed the Centennial.
But the rebuilding of Louisbourg fostered more than the development of technical
skills. It fostered an attitude. It suggested that the diligent pursuit of the truth within
archival materials and through archaeology could be realized in the rebuilding of that
vanished truth. Authenticity was understood as a measure of the truthfulness of the
reconstruction, and unprecedented efforts were directed to that goal. And indeed
for Louisbourg, during reconstruction, authenticity was not a critical issue, because
the reconstruction did not appear to require significant choice among competing
heritage values:
- the reconstruction, while built on the location of the original town, did not result in
destruction of more than 5% of the site's archaeological resources. Significant
original material (lower walls, original floor paving, defensive earthworks), where
possible, was retained in the reconstruction; the unexcavated remains on the site
constitute an archaeological resource of incomparable value;
- the essential character of the site (described by Susann Myers as "a fog-shrouded,
ice-packed, bog-ridden site on the very edge of the New World") remains relatively
intact, as anyone who has walked its streets on a foggy morning can attest.
At the same time, in subsequent years, a number of authenticity issues have

emerged:
- on the positive side, the rich documentary record (both archival and archaeological)
is recognized as a significant contributing part of the site's authenticity;
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- more problematically, the degree to which pragmatic constraints during the

reconstruction process had compromised accuracy - that is, the results of the
research activity preceding reconstruction - was eventually realized. Given that
contemporary Canadian heritage evaluations of the Louisbourg site find that its
importance lies in the reflection of the 1960s and 1970s reconstruction efforts,
current desires to correct "mistakes" offer new authenticity dilemmas. Does
authenticity lie in improving fidelity to the original, or in preserving mistakes
characteristic of the now-valued reconstruction effort?
- equally, given the interpretive goal of portraying l8th c. life within the
reconstruction, early decisions to "sanitize" the history presented (minimizing
references to exploitation of the native population, for example) created similar
dilemmas for contemporary interpreters: to admit past biases, or to maintain
continuity with versions of history previously presented?
The preference of those working at the site in 1995 to resolve these dilemmas by
focusing on the spirit of the '60s and '70s reconstruction, suggests that authenticity
here lies in efforts to honestly and truthfully reflect evolving site knowledge.
A project of greater visibility, greater consequence - and equally, greater controversy

- is the still unfinished restoration of Place Royale, in Quebec's Lower Town. This
project was born in the aftermath of the Quebec's "Quiet Revolution" in the late
1960s when the Quebecois population sought to become "maitre chez-nous" within
Canada. It brought the Province of Quebec together in partnership with the City of
Quebec in undertaking a period restoration designed to show visitors and residents
the city, as it was on the day before the Battle of the Plains of Abraham in 1759 when
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the invading English took Quebec from the French. Though the project wasn't
conceived initially at the scale it later assumed, it was nevertheless clearly an
attempt to articulate a distinctive Quebecois identity. The project involved bringing
building volumes and facades back to their mid-l8th c. appearance; this often meant
stripping out the l9th c. brick upper storeys added above stone gables, and removal
of later "modern" facades. In some cases, it meant rebuilding entire structures in
reinforced concrete, onto which traditional materials were applied. Although both
English Canadians and Quebecois came to question the wisdom of the choice of
values represented in the stripping of this section of the city of all evidence of later
building, Michel Bonnette notes the chief authenticity issue has probably been the
exclusive attention given restoration of earlyforms, without particular regard
for function and use within a living historic city.
A colloquium held in 1978 publicly questioned many of the decisions made. The
restorers, propelled by their dreams of establishing an authentic historic backdrop
for contemporary political aspirations, were criticised by many who said the post-
conflict history of English dominion erased was in fact also the history of their
ancestors. As a result, the scale of the project was limited, and an approach to
conservation more respectful of evolution introduced. At the same time, the
importance of an approach mindful of the heritage gualities of the entire historic
town and concerned to integrate conservation measures within an overall approach
to city development evolved. The "Division du Vieux Quebec" within the City of
Quebec was created to manage this comprehensive approach to management of the
historic centre. Its 15 years of effort have greatly strengthened the city's economic
base, its living and working conditions and the quality of the visitor experience.
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At present, the authenticity debate is focused on appropriate ways to complete the

Place Royale project. Given the poor condition of the project's remaining candidate
buildings, stopping the project to provide "witnesses" to the pre-project state of the
district seems unfeasible. Should restoration efforts therefore focus on bringing
internal harmony to the sector? Or, should respect for the totality of a building's
evolution now guide designers? Whatever the outcome, and in spite of the now-
dated approaches to research, conception and execution which have attracted much
contemporary criticism, it is important to recognize that in many ways the
restoration of Place Royale is authentic - an authentic testament to the will of a
people to claim and reveal their own identity.
Authenticity in contemporary practice
Both of these examples - the Fortress of Louisbourg and the Place Royale restoration
in Quebec were conceived of as "historic sites" - places of such special significance
that they deserved to be withdrawn from day-to-day development pressures so that
their special messages could be clearly presented to visitors. The former, the Fortress
of Louisbourg, functions formally as an historic site within the Parks Canada system;
the latter, Place Royale, while part of a living city, has the frozen-in-time character of
an historic site.
While both sites deserve attention in any study of authenticity in Canada (given their
leadership role in providing conservation models for others and their enormous
educational influence on two generations of professionals), in the 25 years since
their initiation, conservation has come to occupy a major place in main stream
planning. Our definitions of heritage embrace a wide range of tangible and intangible
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expressions of our past lives: we no longer focus just on isolated monuments or sites
of exceptional significance, but rather on the integrated array of features and
patterns present in rural and urban landscapes, and the great range of epresentative
social and economic themes they portray. Our conservation efforts are no longer, for
the most part, opposed to developmental pressures, but integrated within them.
Respect for heritage commands a pivotal position in decision-making at federal,
provincial, regional and municipal levels. As a consequence, contemporary views of
authenticity require analysis of considerably greater complexity than those which
dominated in development of Louisbourg, or Place Royale, or the historic site
systems within which they flourished and which they in turn inspired.
Conservation in Canada in 1995 - beyond the world of historic sites - brings forth a
number of important authenticity issues. How do we treat authenticity in significant
structures which remain in living use? How do we deal with authenticity for
structures damaged by catastrophe, natural or human in origin? How do we deal
with authenticity for living historic settlements?
Let us look at these in turn; first, let's look at significant structures in living use.
Current studies of Canada's Library of Parliament provides a useful case study. The
Library, given its siting and the quality of its High Victorian Gothic Revival
architecture, establishes the character of Ottawa's Parliament Hill and is one of
Canada's most remarkable buildings. Over time, continuing changes in operational
requirements have resulted in various cycles of alteration to building fabric - some
respectful, others less so. Current operational requirements suggest the need for
further changes. Building users have questioned whether the need to upgrade once
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again to meet changing functional requirements provides an opportunity to restore

the building to its 1876 appearance. Andrew Powter notes that respect for
authenticity here has guided conservationists and designers to use a methodology
which "assesses all decisions against identified areas of value, asking whether
heritage value is enhanced, reduced or impact neutral". This approach ensures that
interventions respond to the particular qualities of elements being treated, rather
than to generalized perceptions. In this way, as Powter notes, essentially, "the
Library will be conserved in its present form. After careful assessments and
consideration, negative alterations of the past will be removed." As well, future
alterations will be conceived in a context of respect for existing heritage values, and
therefore be consciously planned to maintain or strengthen these values.
What about heritage structures which have suffered catastrophic loss? A good
example is St. George's Church in Halifax, heavily damaged by fire in June 1994.
Constructed in 1800, the church is one of the finest examples of Palladian
architecture in the country.
The debate which followed the fire raised a number of authenticity issues: first, did
enough material survive to communicate the significant values of the church? if the
church were retained as a ruin, would its essential values still be present? or would
restoration be necessary to maintain those values? Once commitment to a six million
dollar restoration had been made, other questions emerged: where areas of
significant value could not be retained, should long-standing perceptions of needed
functional improvements give priority to measures which would meet these needs
rather than simply restore lost fabric? Again here, by assessing the contribution of
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various attributes to the site's heritage values, a post-fire restoration strategy

designed to maximize retention of authenticity could be created.
The problems of defining authenticity for single structures are multiplied many times
over in looking at authenticity for a historic settlement or city. Clearly, for example,
in looking at Montreal, authenticity is not to be understood by looking at the sum of
the authenticity assessments for individual buildings, but rather, as Dinu Bumbaru
notes, by finding means to measure the general flavour' or personality of a place.
Questions of building use, street-life and population mix enter into this
determination as much as building attributes. Nor in looking at building fabric, is it
enough to identify discrete monumental and vernacular contributions to that fabric.
Montreal, among North American metropolises, is a rare example of a city to have
substantially maintained the continuity, density, and spatial and material
organisation of its urban tissue, over its entire history. This can be contrasted with
the development of the centre of Hull in the mid 1970s, to permit expansion of the
National Capital to Quebec province across the Ottawa River. The resulting
expropriations, neighbourhood demolitions and new office tower blocks destroyed
the urban tissue of the city's core, and the social fabric that it supported. Successive
waves of demolition have accompanied continued expansion pressures on the ever
more fragile urban tissue of Hull.
Present challenges in maintaining authenticity in both Montreal and Hull and in

other Canadian cities are many. Alain Lafreniere notes in speaking of Hull the
vulnerability of vernacular architecture (which comprises 90% of the traditional built
fabric): the difficulties of politicians in defending the "ordinary", land prices which
invite speculation, and difficulties among professionals in defining sources of value in
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the vernacular. In Montreal, Dinu Bumbaru notes that the particular nature of the
Montreal residential vernacular (stone veneer on wood plank frame) renders these
buildings susceptible to a particular authenticity threatening virus (facadism) and
their owners vulnerable to marketplace blandishments which promote use of cover-
up materials (vinyl, angelstone etc.) in conveying a modern and progressive image.
Some related points emerge in addressing urban authenticity challenges in a

Canadian context. First, it is clear that authenticity is here not just as an issue for
experts, but rather something that deeply concerns citizens interested to maintain
the essential qualities of their neighbourhoods. Secondly, that responding to their
concerns requires urban management processes which involve citizens in defining
together the heritage values important to them, and which encourage development
processes sensitive to every-day elements and personality-defining traditions, and
patterns of life important to citizens.
Authenticity and cultural landscapes
The current popularity of the "cultural landscapes" framework for defining and
managing significant heritage illustrates how the values of complex territories may
be usefully expressed and managed. Conceived by the World Heritage Committee as
"illustrative of the evolution of human society and settlement over time", Susan
Buggey notes cultural landscapes can be understood to hold both intrinsic values
(expressed in continuity of land uses, land management practices and traditions and
manifest in corresponding patterns of spatial organisation, circulation networks and
in choice of building materials, forms and technologies) and associative values (as
witnesses to traditional and/or spiritual beliefs). Authenticity analysis here, of
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necessity, is focused on understanding significant elements of dynamic processes,

rather than the relatively static attributes of form and material. In a context where
every-day change is the norm, authenticity analysis quickly leads conservationists to
identify significant values within their place on a backward and forward looking
continuum, amid recognition that the best solutions are not those that protect, but
those that renew.
There are many examples of how focus on the dynamic qualities in the initial
evaluation process for a cultural landscape can clarify the true sources of
authenticity, and guide conservation decisionmaking. Recent studies of the le
d'Orleans (Pierre LaRochelle"Le Projet de Paysage au Quebec", Trames, U. de Mtl.,
1994) in the St. Lawrence River, near Quebec City, one of the most celebrated
farming landscapes in Canada and linked in popular myth to the l7th and l8th c.
origins of New France, have demonstrated the value of typo-morphological analytical
approaches focused on the commonplace (rather than as in conventional heritage
analysis, on the distinctive and rare). LaRochelles's focus on morphogenetic
characteristics assists in identifying "permanences structurales"
- that is, forms that maintain a recognizable continuity in spite of the renewal of their
components - and of using these to define guidelines to protect significant vistas, to
determine appropriate forms for new construction and to outline development
project frameworks which will maximize use of existing land layout and circulation
patterns.
Other typical Canadian landscapes are in need of similar analysis to reduce the
threats to their continuing existence. The familiar prairie landscape of grain elevators
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punctuating the horizon at 8 or 10 mile intervals along rail-lines is menaced by

change in farming and distribution technology. Since 1950, already 2/3 of the
country's standing elevators have been lost, and the legibility they bring to the
prairies greatly diminished. Grain elevators carried multiple messages: they told
distant travellers where to go, and when they arrived they "signposted" the
community and the grain-handling company established there; when clustered
together, they marked a prosperous settlement; their building-like gables, cupolas,
windows and siding extended the character of the towns in which they sat. Today,
advances in elevator technology are replacing traditional structures with engineered
structures of much greater capacity, efficiency and safety; these tend to be built at
the edges of town, far from the traditional commercial core. Elevator companies are
unwilling to maintain unused elevators since these constitute fire and safety hazards,
and continue to require high upkeep, insurance and tax outlays; improvements in the
road system have nullified the advantages of pooling grain at traditional elevator
locations.
Analysis which would identify the significant patterns and attributes of the prairie
landscape as reflective of characterdefining dynamic processes focus attention on
authenticity indicators, and provide an explicit framework for guiding change in
directions likely to maintain landscape values. Without greater consciousness of
these opportunities the attrition of the most important defining features of the
prairie landscape will undoubtedly continue.
The same analysis is helpful in looking at other defining features of Canada's cultural
landscapes - the many transportation corridors which tie the country together:
national river systems like the St. Lawrence River and the Mackenzie River in the
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Northwest which opened up the continent to the fur trade and to exploration, canals
like the 200 km. long Rideau Canal from Kingston to Ottawa built in the early l9th c.
for defensive reasons, the two trans-continental railway lines built in the late l9th c.
and the Trans-Canada Highway, the world's longest paved road - 7821 kilometres
from St. John's Newfoundland to Victoria, British Columbia.
As Christina Cameron points out in "The Challenges of Historic Corridors" (CRM

Bulletin - Vol. 16, No. 11, 1993), the authenticity challenge is to guide necessary
modifications to the fabric of corridor elements while maintaining the essential
function of moving "goods and people along the route."
Authenticity and the heritage of Canada's indigenous peoples
In recent years, conservation authorities have begun to look for ways to

acknowledge and enhance appreciation of the heritage of Canada's native peoples.
This commitment has brought with it new authenticity challenges, given the
intangible and associational nature of much of what Canada's First Nations call their
heritage. These issues are well illustrated in efforts to develop an interpretive
programme for one of the first Canadian cultural heritage sites to be inscribed on the
World Heritage List, HeadSmashed-in-Buffalo Jump, near Fort McLeod, Alberta.
Interpretive programmes were intended to reveal and support the central historical
theses defined by Alberta's Historic Sites Service for the site:
"For thousands of years up to the contact period, Indians of the northwestern plains

developed a cultural system based upon the exploitation of the great herds of
buffalo. The countless uses of the buffalo meat, hides, horns, bones, hoofs and
sinew, the nature of rituals and mythologies, and the gearing of the entire mode of
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Iife to the roving herds reflect the supreme importance of this animal. During this

time several complex and sophisticated techniques were developed to
facilitate the killing of great numbers of buffalo. HeadSmashed-In is
arguably the best preserved representative of one of the most effective and long
used killing techniquesthe buffalo jump. The archaeological remains at this site
reflect at least 6000 years of cultural adaptation and Zifestyle on the northwestern
plains."
Les Hurt of Alberta's Historic Sites Services notes that:
"site development activity was and continues to be driven by the belief that

the present character of the local landscape - natural landform covered
with prairie vegetation and affected by modern man only to the extent required by
its use for cattle ranching - must be preserved, and that any
permanent construction required for development purposes must (1) be as nearly
invisible as is technically feasible and (2) avoid impact to or minimally
impact the archaeological resource base."
Here, evidently, one aspect of maintaining authenticity has required a focus on the
physical, attempting to minimize the intrusion of interpretive devices, including the
Interpretive Center itself.
But even more importantly, for this site, cultural authenticity could be understood to
be a reflection of the nature of the cultural experience offered. At this level, the site
can have a strong impact on visitors. The site is presented exclusively by native
interpreters, who are responsible for communicating the spirit of the site. The
authenticity of the native messages delivered at Head-Smashed-In is assured through
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reference back to native Advisory Boards and elders. Where "native" or "scientific"
interpretations differ, both are presented as "different", not 'competing" views.
Jack Brink, the site's archaeologist, notes that the goal of interpretation is to increase
understanding of the complexity and sophistication of Aboriginal culture with
respect to its communal hunting efforts in particular, and its cultural adaptations in
general. Brink also notes that the site
" seeks to promote understanding between members of different cultural backgrounds. A

focal message here is that fear of other cultures, and the failure to appreciate cultural differences, stems from
ignorance of the ways and customs of groups other than our own. By pressing for recognition of
the elaborate nature of Aboriginal cultural expressions, the HeadSmashed-In experience hopes to foster an
understanding of cultural differences. Thatall visitors encounter only Native Guides in their tour of the facility goes
a long way towards achieving this objective. Authenticity of interpretation clearly takes on an enhanced level of
meaning for visitors experiencing their firstencounter with Aboriginal people, and in hearing the story of HSI from
the living descendants of those people who once built and used the site."
Visitors are well aware that the site is revered and respected by Aboriginal people
today, and that its spiritual qualities contribute greatly to the sense of authenticity it
offers.
Authenticity and tourism
In our current economic climate, with heritage conservation now expected to pay its
own way, perhaps the single largest challenge to maintaining authenticity is the
market-driven indifference of much of the tourism industry to the true qualities of
the heritage attractions promoted and sold.
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It is important for tourism decision-makers working with heritage assets to overturn

conventional marketing strategies conceived not in response to existing demand (as
is so often claimed), but which rather create markets by stimulating demand. It is
important to realize that the public wants authenticity; they want to believe in the
genuineness, in the completeness, in the truth of the messages carried by the
heritage they come in contact with. It is also important to realize that even where
commitment to authenticity is made, small decisions can quickly accumulate to
diminish the authentic guality of an experience. As Fergus Maclaren notes,
"inevitably, the pre-existing design and uses of an area become compromised by

what will draw tourists. In warehouse districts, new uses such as cafds, bookstores,
boutiques and residential lofts are often superimposed on old activity patterns
associated with factories and industrial sites. The need to sustain an image that is
attractive to visitors can lead one to redefine history. The fear isthat a district's
heritage resources merely become a facade for non-traditional
commercial and residential activity. The area's residents act as players
in the everyday drama for tourists to photograph and gawk at. The irony is that while
the grimy reality of an area may be perceived as too harsh to attract tourists, the
gentrification process may belie a truthful history of development and change."
More often than not, tourism planning in Canada has diminished rather than
enhanced the authenticity of special sites. But for every authenticity-diluting
summer-time experience in Quebec City or St. Andrews-by-the-Sea (New Brunswick),
where building images are seasonally transformed through store fronts pursuing the
trendy, the fashionable, indeed often the garish - whatever the tourist taste being
wooed - and heritage qualities diluted, there are successes like Granville Island on
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Vancouver's False Creek. Here a waterside light industrial and warehouse site was
redeveloped in the 1970's to become a popular market, recreation center and
marina. Many of the original structures have been converted for modern uses:
shops, restaurants, theatres, a hotel, an art college. Though authenticity of function
has not been maintained (but for the Ocean Cement plant and the Granville Island
Brewery), the surviving fragments of what had become a largely abandoned
industrial site, overlaid with evocative modern signs and colour schemes, all in the
shadow of the Granville Street bridge, recall the earlier era, and convey its significant
historic messages.
As in other dynamic systems, tourism development can be managed for the

betterment of the resources on which it is based. This can be done if understanding
of the sources of present authenticity can be used to identify those characteristic
attributes and processes essential to maintaining the context and purpose of places
of heritage value.
Authenticity, historic sites and commemorative integrity
One of the most intriguing approaches to authenticity in Canada has come out of the
contemporary historic sites system and the growing need in the 1990s for Parks
Canada, working within an increasingly decentralized decision-making system, and
with local "partners" to a much greater degree than previously, to clarify its
approach to assigning and protecting value in historic sites. The Cultural Resources
Management (CRM) Policy adopted by Parks Canada in 1993 with its focus on five
key principles to be used to assess the appropriateness of development options
(value, understanding, integrity, respect, public benefit) has played a major role in
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democratizing decision-making by providing shared decision-making tools and

precepts. This approach has been accompanied by introduction of a concept which
embodies a systematic approach to defining and working with authenticity issues:
"commemorative integrity".
Commemorative integrity
"describes the health or wholeness of a national historic site. A national historic site
possesses commemorative integrity when the resources that symbolize or represent
its importance are notimpaired or under threat, when the reasons for the site's
national historic significance are effectively communicated to the public, and when
the site's heritage values are respected by a11 whosedecisions or actions affect the
site."
Gordon Bennett has this to say about the development of commemorative integrity
in the Parks Canada system (in "Commemorative Integrity and National Historic
Sites", printed note revised 15/10/95, Canadian Heritage/Parks Canada):
" The concept of commemorative integrity was developed for the 1990s State of the Parks

Report when it was realized (with some incredulity) that we did not have a conceptual framework that enabled us
to evaluate theoverall state of a national historic site. There was considerable information on various
parts (e.g., condition of resources, state of presentation, etc.) and a wide range of ideas on what might constitute
a desirable state for a national historic site, but there was no overa3l construct or way to integrate this information
coherently and effectively on a site-specific basis. Indeed, almost a11 of our tools were based on assessing the state
of particular activities or broad categories of system-wide resources. In other words, we lacked a framework to deal
with our fundamental mandate - national historic sites. In some important respects, the means had
become mistaken for the ends.
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"The fact that our colleagues in national parks were using "ecological integrity" to

such good effect led us to look for an analogous concept or ideal to help us describe
the state of national historic sites. For a variety of reasons, the concept of "historical
integrity" was rejected as an analogue, and "commemorative integrity" was
adopted instead. But is should be noted that ecological integrity has a significant
presentation component which is not present with ecological integrity. Secondly, they
are based on different notions of what is significant. Ecological integrityfocuses on
pristineness and on the restoration where possible of that pristineness when it
has been adversely affected by human impact. Commemorative integrity, on the
other hand, may not be affected by the fact that the place itself is not the same as it
was 50, 100 or 10,000 years ago. If the past really is to be a part of the present, the
notion of an enclave, buffered from a hostile present, may not be appropriate."
The value of this approach lies in its ability to provide an explicitly clear framework
for decision-making. All partners in the process are enabled to work together by their
ability to focus on shared objectives and to use shared option assessment criteria.
Conclusion
The Nara discussions (and the Bergen discussions which preceded them) focused on
clarifying various attributes of cultural heritage through which its values might be
expressed. The "design, materials, workmanship and setting" of the World Heritage
Committee's "test of authenticity" were extended in discussion in Bergen to
include "design/form; materials/substance; function/use; traditions/techniques;
setting/context". The Nara Document refers to these as "sources of information" and
describes:
PROCEEDINGS OF THE
"those internal to the monument or site, including form and design, materials and
substance, use and function, traditions and techniques, location and setting, and
spirit and feeling, and other external sources of information. The use of these sources
permits elaboration of the specific artistic, historic, social, and scientific dimensions
of the cultural heritage being examined."
The authenticity analysis and issues looked at for sites examined in this paper point
toward several conclusions worth considering in the context of the Nara Document.
1. The Canadian examples looked at confirm the importance of authenticity in

Canadian conservation decision-making. Given that authenticity is a measure of the
essential truth of the messages carried by our heritage, it is equally important for
professionals and citizens to involve themselves in that search.
2. The examples looked at confirmed the utility of a systematic analytical framework

in examining authenticity in heritage -a framework which ensures that analysis is
carried out relative to explicitly defined heritage values and their significant
associated attributes. (Parks Canada's "Commemorative Integrity" approach is an
example of such a framework).
3. The range of examples looked at also confirmed the value of an expanded array of
authenticity attributes, in particular treating questions of function and
ongoing tradition (for sites like cultural landscapes and the vernacular), whose values
lie in characteristic dynamic processes.
4. The examples also directed attention to the need to ensure adequate involvement
of local populations in defining heritage values, related attributes and authenticity.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE
5. While consideration of the Canadian examples treated in this paper demonstrate

the value of being able to fine-tune authenticity analysis by identifying the particular
attributes of most importance in expressing a site's values, it has also suggested the
value of a parallel, more holistic examination of authenticity. More important than
choice between form or materials, or between form or function - particularly within
contemporary heritage perspectives - is the need to focus on the overall spirit of a
place, to be aware of the over-riding ability of a place (through the cumulative
impact of all of its attributes) to convey significant messages.
If authenticity analysis looks only at the nature of important single character-defining

attributes, then it may become a mechanical exercise which misses the larger
essence of a site. For example, while Place Royale's restoration is not particularly
authentic within conventional frameworks with respect to form and material, it is at
the same time the authentic testimony of a legitimate shared cultural aspiration, and
that may overweigh the conventional concerns noted. Equally, in looking at urban
areas or cultural landscapes, authenticity is often more than the sum of the parts: a
sense of character, or personality, or identity which the qualities of the attributes
alone cannot explain. Authenticity assessment must also therefore anticipate and
integrate the articulation of supporting attributes by identifying the essential spirit of
a place and the degree to which proposed changes may support, continue, enhance
or diminish that spirit.
Berb Stovel, President, ICOMOS Canada
in collaboration with ICOMOS Canada members:
PROCEEDINGS OF THE
Gordon Bennett, Policy, Legislation and Government Relations Branch, National Historic Sites,
Parks Canada, Ottawa;
Michel Bonnette, Organization of World Heritage Cities, Quebec City;
Jack Brink, Archaeologist, Head-Smashed-in Buffalo Jump, Alberta;
Susan Buggey, Historical and Built Environment Research Branch, National Historic Sites Directorate,
Parks Canada, Ottawa;
Dinu Bumbaru, Heritage Montreal, Montreal;
Christina Cameron, National Historic Sites Directorate, Parks Canada, Ottawa;
Les Hurt, Alberta Historic Sites Services, Edmonton; Walter Jamieson, Faculty of Environmental Design,
University of Calgary;
Frank Korvemaker, Heritage Branch, Government of Saskatchewan, Regina;
Alain Lafreniére, National Capital Commission, Ottawa;
Pierre LaRochelle, School of Architecture, University of Laval, Quebec City;
Christisne Lefebvre, Conservation consultant, Montreal;
Fergus Maclaren, Faculty of Environmental Design, University of Calgary;
Susann Myers, Parks Canada, Atlantic Region, Louisbourg;
Andrew Powter, Heritage Conservation Program, Public Works Canada, Ottawa;
Wayne Zelmer, Heritage Branch, Government of Saskatchewan. Regina.

Authenticity in Canadian Conservation Practice

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PROCEEDINGS OF THE

INTERAMERICAN SYMPOSIUM ON AUTHENTICITY

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

H. Stovel, OAA, MRAIC President, ICOMOS Canada

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

Authenticity is a measure of the essential truth of the values or messages

Authenticity has been expressed as a goal consistently throughout the development

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

Authenticity and accuracy: early reconstructions and restorations

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

In 1967, Canada celebrated its Centennial; those celebrations focused considerable

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

At the same time, in subsequent years, a number of authenticity issues have

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

- more problematically, the degree to which pragmatic constraints during the

A project of greater visibility, greater consequence - and equally, greater controversy

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

At present, the authenticity debate is focused on appropriate ways to complete the

Authenticity in contemporary practice

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

again to meet changing functional requirements provides an opportunity to restore

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

various attributes to the site's heritage values, a post-fire restoration strategy

Present challenges in maintaining authenticity in both Montreal and Hull and in

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

Some related points emerge in addressing urban authenticity challenges in a

Authenticity and cultural landscapes

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

necessity, is focused on understanding significant elements of dynamic processes,

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

punctuating the horizon at 8 or 10 mile intervals along rail-lines is menaced by

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

As Christina Cameron points out in "The Challenges of Historic Corridors" (CRM

Authenticity and the heritage of Canada's indigenous peoples

In recent years, conservation authorities have begun to look for ways to

"For thousands of years up to the contact period, Indians of the northwestern plains

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

Iife to the roving herds reflect the supreme importance of this animal. During this

Les Hurt of Alberta's Historic Sites Services notes that:

"site development activity was and continues to be driven by the belief that

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

" seeks to promote understanding between members of different cultural backgrounds. A

Authenticity and tourism

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

It is important for tourism decision-makers working with heritage assets to overturn

"inevitably, the pre-existing design and uses of an area become compromised by

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

As in other dynamic systems, tourism development can be managed for the

Authenticity, historic sites and commemorative integrity

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

democratizing decision-making by providing shared decision-making tools and

" The concept of commemorative integrity was developed for the 1990s State of the Parks

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

"The fact that our colleagues in national parks were using "ecological integrity" to

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

1. The Canadian examples looked at confirm the importance of authenticity in

2. The examples looked at confirmed the utility of a systematic analytical framework

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS, USA MARCH, 1996

5. While consideration of the Canadian examples treated in this paper demonstrate

If authenticity analysis looks only at the nature of important single character-defining

Berb Stovel, President, ICOMOS Canada

in collaboration with ICOMOS Canada members: