Fès and its Medina: a key-case study of architectural contamination

The Fès Medina, UNESCO site, represents today a key case study to acknowledge the contamination of architectural and urban heritage. The Medina is a unique example in the Mediterranean area of an intact Islamic urban centre of large dimensions, characterized by a drift road system and ancestral construction techniques: tadelakt, raw earth, fired bricks, lime mortar. Today the city of Fès grows outside its Medina, with a strong western character: boulevard instead of small-market streets, reinforced concrete instead of Atlas stones. The thrust of modern ville, which began with the French colonialism, is also changing the Medina: the absence of an up-to-date plan for the maintenance and protection of the historic centre and its tangible and intangible heritage, is driving rapid change in the ancient Islamic core, contaminating usual techniques and materials with more western uses. This form of contamination can be considered a form of wealth, when studied and organized. The city is into a seismic area, and the use of innovative materials can improve parts of Medina in abandonment conditions or hydrogeological risks, while maintaining the use of more traditional techniques by respecting historic buildings and the urban form. In conclusion, the proposal for a studied and wellplanned contamination between innovative techniques and traditional knowledge can lead to a more modern but not different Medina, and can address necessities of a contemporary society, whose heritage is effectively protected.