“It’s a level of protection, a recognition, a symbol”, according to the president of Inrap

“It’s a level of protection, it’s a recognition, a symbol. It will only make it better recognized throughout the world”, reacted Tuesday September 19 on franceinfo Dominique Garcia, president of Inrap (National Institute for Preventive Archaeological Research), after the inclusion of the Maison Carrée in Nîmes as a UNESCO world heritage site. This monument “has always been used”. He was “initially a temple, in the Middle Ages, it became the equivalent of a town hall, a consular house, then a church. Later, it became a museum”. The Square House “was not fixed, which allowed the people who were responsible for it, over the different periods” to carry him “attention” and some “restore”.

franceinfo: What makes this monument a gem?

Dominique Garcia: The Maison Carrée is a Roman temple. The best preserved temple in the Roman world with the Pantheon in Rome. It is in full elevation. We can see it today, it marks the territory. Construction began around 10 BC and ended around 4 AD. It was Auguste who wanted it and dedicated it to his grandsons. It is a mark of Romanness, a symbol of Roman peace in this Gallic landscape which had been Romanized. A negotiated peace but worth the lasting installation of the Romans. It is a monument that has gone through history. This is what makes it unique. There were other temples, but this one is perfectly preserved and still visible in the landscape.

By what magic was she able to travel through time?

It’s a paradox, but perhaps it’s because the monument has always been in use. Initially it was a temple, in the Middle Ages, it became the equivalent of a town hall, a consular house, then a church. Later it became a museum. As it was always used and was not frozen, this allowed the people, over the different periods, who were in charge of this monument, to pay attention to it and restore it. It is a monument that is contextualized. It is not a fossilized object. It is a monument whose history we can tell, whose neighborhood is told when we visit the museum of Romanity. A monument of which it is easy to appropriate both the form and also the history.

What does it change to be listed as a world heritage site?

It’s a level of protection, it’s a recognition, a symbol. This will only make him better recognized around the world. It is also a recognition for the city of Nîmes because it was the city that brought this matter forward. In the future, tourists and interested people will undoubtedly come to see this world-renowned monument.

Should we protect it from the world, from the tourists who will flock in even greater numbers with this recognition?

Regarding this monument, its fragility is relative, it has been restored for 2,000 years and cherished by the populations since its foundation. There is no significant danger, on the contrary, it is a way of showing that heritage is not something that weighs, but which can be strong from an identity point of view and important to from an economic point of view. Carrying out heritage as something living and profitable is perhaps the best guarantee for passing it on to future generations.