The meeting of conservation of cultural heritage and psychoanalysis: a possible metaphor

Resumen

This article raises questions affecting cultural heritage conservation today that have already been covered in Riegl’s and Dehio’s texts written at the beginning of the 19th century. It deals with the contradictions and the antagonisms concerning the conservation and restoration of cultural heritage. It also discusses the lack of clear definitions regarding concepts related to this field and the difficulties in implementing consensual policies for the preservation of heritage, as well as questions related to heritage education. It contemplates the conservation goals of cultural heritage and the divisions between theory and practice. It links the values assigned to the significance of cultural heritage for individuals. It presents Freud’s archaeological metaphors and an attempt to understand the questions that arise when dealing with cultural heritage conservation as seen through the optics of psychoanalysis.