Earthquake resilience of Pol houses in Ahmedabad
6.2 Authenticity and Strengthening The discussion here correlates the aspects of authenticity with the structural parameters. Identification of critical parameters is not enough to proceed with the decision of intervention. Hence, concluding the thesis without addressing on the core concept of authenticity would be incomplete. The discussion here aims to introduce the way forward for approaching the conservation project. Many scholars and researchers have interpreted and refined the concept of authenticity from the NARA document of 1994. According to Jukka Jokhilehto – “Authenticity can be understood as a condition of the heritage resource, and can be defined in the artistic, historical and cultural dimensions of this resource. These dimensions can be seen in relation to the aesthetic, structural and functional form of the object or site, in relation to its material and technology, as well as in relation to its physical and socio-cultural context.”
Authenticity is based on the concept of truthfulness while conserving a structure. It can also be understood as the manifestation of the values associated with the heritage structure. The set of authenticity criteria is defined by 5 parameters (Alho, Morais, A., Mendes, J., & Galvão, A. ) – 1. Material/substance 2. Design 3. Worksmanship 4. Function/use 5. Setting However structurally the authenticity is function of three elements (Attar, 1991)1. Authenticity of materials 2. Authenticity of construction system 3. Authenticity of construction methods The important discussion that emerges here is how much ‘change’ while conserving the structure is ‘authentic’, which respects the values associated. The question is more significant when the intervention is structural like strengthening the existing elements.
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