Spatial Analysis of Cultural Agglomeration in a Monastery in Cyprus: a Non-Choronological Reading Prior To the Conservation Process

Abstract

The research presents the spatial analysis of the Acheiropitos Monastery in Kyrenia of Cyprus to analyze the processes of historical agglomeration through time. The analytical survey drawings are used for elucidating the accumulations and layers on the buildings. This paper problematizes various conservation methodologies, which erase traces of different periods due to the a-priori categorisation of the architectural elements via their historical, cultural and aesthetic values rather than their value as a whole. Along this path, the main argument of the paper is developed along the axis of discussion regarding the difference between two synonymous terms explaining the meaning of agglomeration, accumulating and layering. These two terms are used for different cases particularly to be able to present the differences in historical agglomeration processes. In this context, the difference between the terms accumulation and layering is emphasized not only as a crucial point in explaining the nuances in the process of agglomeration but also as the main motive behind developing a case-specific conservation strategy. After a basic description of the monastery, the surfaces of buildings are analyzed for understanding the mechanisms of accumulation and layering. The paper claims that the way of analyzing the historical spaces may also determine the method of conservation. In other words, defining the traces and explaining the agglomeration process in historical contexts determine the conservation method that either classifies the cultural objects or otherwise.