Historic Centre of the Town of Diamantina

Historic Centre of the Town of Diamantina

Diamantina, a colonial village set like a jewel in a necklace of inhospitable rocky mountains, recalls the exploits of diamond prospectors in the 18th century and testifies to the triumph of human cultural and artistic endeavour over the environment.

Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0

Centre historique de la ville de Diamantina

Diamantina est une ville coloniale insérée comme un joyau dans un massif montagneux inhospitalier. Elle illustre l’aventure des chercheurs de diamant au XVIIIe siècle et témoigne de l’emprise culturelle et artistique de l’être humain sur son environnement vivant.

Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0

الوسط التاريخي لمدينة ديامانتينا

ديامانتينا، مدينة مستعمرة مدمجة كالجوهرة في المرتفعات الوعرة، تجسّد مغامرة المنقبّين عن الماس في القرن الثامن عشر وتشهد على السيطرة الثقافية والفنية التي يفرضها الإنسان على محيطه الحيّ.

source: UNESCO/CPE
Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0

蒂阿曼蒂那城历史中心

蒂阿曼蒂那位于无人居住的荒凉岩石山脉之中,原为殖民地村庄。如果说绵绵山脉是条项链的话,蒂阿曼蒂那就是项链上的一颗宝石。这个小城展示给世人的是一幅18世纪采矿人挖掘钻石的场景,同时也是人类文化和艺术战胜环境的证明。

source: UNESCO/CPE
Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0

Исторический центр города Диамантина

Диамантина - колониальное поселение, располагающееся в окружении суровых скалистых гор, воссоздает жизнь эпохи искателей алмазов в XVIII в. Город является символом триумфа культурной и художественной активности человека, проживавшего в неблагоприятных природных условиях.

source: UNESCO/CPE
Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0

Centro histórico de Diamantina

Diamantina es una ciudad colonial engastada como una piedra preciosa en un inhóspito macizo montañoso. Es un testimonio de la aventura de los buscadores de diamantes del siglo XVIII, así­ como del influjo ejercido por las realizaciones culturales y artí­sticas del ser humano en su marco de vida.

source: UNESCO/CPE
Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0

ディアマンティーナ歴史地区
ブラジル南東部、ミナス・ジェイラス州中部の都市。標高1,100mの高原に位置する。ディアマンティーナは無骨な岩山のネックレスに、宝石のように嵌めこまれた植民集落である。18世紀における領土探検者やダイヤモンド探鉱者の野心、ヨーロッパ文化と原住民文化との融合への努力、環境に対する人間の文化的・芸術的征服の象徴ともいえる存在である。

source: NFUAJ

Historisch centrum van de stad Diamantina

Diamantina is een koloniaal stadje, gelegen als een juweel in een ketting van rotsachtige bergen. Het herinnert aan de exploitatie van diamantzoekers in de 18e eeuw en getuigt van de overwinning van de mens op zijn omgeving door culturele en artistieke inspanningen. De stad ligt op de helling van een heuvel met een hoogteverschil van 150 meter in de staat Minas Gerais, 350 kilometer van Belo Horizonte en 710 kilometer van Brasilia. Het land van de Diamantina regio bestaat voornamelijk uit kwartsitische rotsen en leisteen. Hieraan dankt het gebied zijn bergachtige en kleurrijke uiterlijk en arme poreuze grond met rotsplanten.

Source: unesco.nl

Outstanding Universal Value

Brief synthesis

In the heart of arid and rocky mountains in north-east Minas Gerais, the Historic Center of Diamantina rises 150m up the side of a steep valley, with winding and uneven streets following the natural topography. The Baroque architecture differs from that of other Brazilian towns in being of wood, and is distinguished by its geometry and details indicating transference on a modest scale of Portuguese architectural features. Churches have similar colours and textures as civil buildings, and most have only one tower. The regularly aligned 18th and 19th century semi-detached houses with one or two floors are painted in bright colours on a white ground, and contrast with the grey flagstone paving of the streets.

The historic centre testifies to the conquest of Brazil’s interior regions, illustrating how explorers, diamond prospectors, and representatives of the Portuguese Crown forged an original culture in the 18th century, adapting their origins to the realities of the Americas. 

Criterion (ii):  Diamantina shows how explorers of the Brazilian territory, diamond prospectors, and representatives of the Crown were able to adapt European models to an American context in the 18th century, thus creating a culture that was faithful to its roots yet completely original. 

Criterion (iv):  The urban and architectural group of Diamantina, perfectly integrated into a wild landscape, is a fine example of an adventurous spirit combined with a quest for refinement so typical of human nature. 

Integrity

The Portuguese inspired architectural patterns and urban outline of the Historic Center of Diamantina remains well preserved, both elements ingeniously etched into the surrounding rocky hillsides of varying altitudes that give rise to a stratified city separated from its highest to its lowest points by as much as 150 meters. This association between the natural environment and the urban space created a landscape in which the rugged surrounding territory merges seamlessly with the artistic body of the urban complex. 

Authenticity

The urban complex is exemplified by a special configuration marked by the implementation of structures in continuous fashion, cadenced and scaled to the uneven terrain, giving expression to an urban fabric which has been preserved since its formation in the 18th century, as recorded in a variety of maps from the period. 

The city’s churches were built based on the same logic applied to the surrounding constructions, reinforcing the architectural complex and a homogeneity characterized by a sober and basic, yet refined, aesthetic of geometric facades. 

The historical formation of the former Arraial do Tijuco, continuous appropriation of the related spaces and public roadways through the centuries by traditional religious festivals, and the predominantly residential use of the area are the key elements underlying the attributes that confer on the site its singularity and Outstanding Universal Value. 

Protection and management requirements 

Protection of the Historical Center of Diamantina was first introduced in 1938 following recognition as a Brazilian Cultural Heritage Site under Process 64-T-38 and effective application of that protection through Decree-Law No. 25/37. Since the 1950s, the National Institute of Historical and Artistic Heritage (Instituto do Patrimônio Histórico e Artístico Nacional – IPHAN) has worked with the city, including through an emergency works team active  at the site. 

In 1982 and 1986, the National Historical and Artistic Heritage Service (Serviço do Patrimônio Histórico e Artístico Nacional – SPHAN/National Pro-Memory Foundation (Fundação Nacional Pró-Memória) developed two technical guidelines (Guidelines No. 01/82 and 01/86) for Vila Santa Isabel, a new section created from  removal of land from the Santa Casa de Caridade of Diamantina, with a view to organizing the implementation of new structures to ensure more effective integration of the area with the landmarked site. 

The Diamantina Master Plan (Municipal Law No. 035/99), the object of recommendations by ICOMOS for purposes of recognition as a UNESCO Historical Site, establishes parameters for land use and occupation in both the Historical Site and surrounding areas, including at the foot of the Cristais Mountains. An addition safeguard in the legislation involved creation of the Technical Support Group (Grupo de Apoio Técnico – G.A.T) in order to promote joint review between IPHAN and the Municipal Government of new construction projects in areas surrounding the Historical Site. 

In 2002, the IPHAN-MG superintendence issued Directive 12/2002 governing the limits and rules for urban-architectural intervention in the city’s architectural and urban complex and the surrounding areas. Among other measures, the Directive enhanced key municipal provision on land use and occupation in areas around the Historical Site. 

The State Institute of Historical and Artistic Heritage (Instituto Estadual do Patrimônio Histórico e Artístico  – IEPHA) designated the Cristais Mountains a Natural Property through a Provisional Landmark Designation approved on December 14, 2000, and a Permanent Landmark Designation approved by the State Cultural Heritage Council (Conselho Estadual do Patrimônio Cultural – CONEP) on November 19, 2010, expanding the legal protection of the natural monument, a landscape recognized as inseparable from the Historical Site. 

The Monumenta Program, a joint initiative between IPHAN/Ministry of Culture and the Municipal Government has devoted significant financial resources toward management of the cultural heritage and the recovery of essential public and private historical landmark spaces and buildings in the city. 

Land marking studies in connection with the Cristais Mountains by IPHAN are currently under development, with a view to strengthening protection of the natural monument, one critical to understanding the context and singularity of the Diamantina Historical Site as a unique landscape.