Oswaldo Cruz Foundation: health, science and culture in Manguinhos

Description

The Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fundação Oswaldo Cruz – Fiocruz, in Portuguese) has its origins in the Federal Serum Therapy Institute (Instituto Soroterápico Federal, in Portuguese), founded in 1900, on Manguinhos Municipal Farmlands, in the then federal capital of the country (Rio de Janeiro), to manufacture serums and vaccines against the bubonic plague that had arrived in Brazil via the Port of Santos (São Paulo) in the previous year.

[...] the possibility of a new epidemic affecting the port cities of the main states, notably the federal capital, was a constant concern, due to the high mortality rate, the high financial cost of disinfections and the potential of these diseases in suspend urban services. In 1893, the cholera epidemic had paralyzed the migratory flow to Rio de Janeiro, so the new threat required an immediate response from the government given the imminent risk of bubonic plague (Instituto Soroterápico Federal, 2023, our translation).

The Manguinhos Farm (Fazenda de Manguinhos) was, at the time, a location far from the urban center and equipped with adequate physical aspects for the functions for which the newly created institution was intended, with elevations that guaranteed the necessary sanitary conditions and health security. It was located between the railway line and Guanabara Bay, which guaranteed relatively easy access by land or sea.

The general direction of the Instituto Soroterápico was entrusted to Pedro Afonso de Carvalho Franco, known as Barão de Pedro Afonso, who at the time directed the Instituto Vacínico Municipal (Municipal Vaccine Institute, in English), responsible for the production of smallpox vaccine. Its technical direction was entrusted to the young bacteriologist Oswaldo Cruz, recently arrived from the Pasteur Institute of Paris and appointed by that Institute to occupy the position.

Still in 1900, the institute was transferred to the federal administration, under the name Instituto Soroterápico Federal (ISF). In 1902, Oswaldo Cruz assumed the general direction of the body, accumulating the role of General Director of Public Health (DGSP) at the invitation of the Minister of Justice and Internal Affairs, José Joaquim Seabra (JJ Seabra).

In 1907, the ISF had its name changed to Instituto de Patologia Experimental de Manguinhos (Institute of Experimental Pathology of Manguinhos), through decree no. 1,802, of December 12^th 1907, which established its structure and competencies, and in 1908, through decree no. 6,891 of March 19, its name was changed again, this time to Instituto Oswaldo Cruz (IOC) (Oswaldo Cruz Institute, in English), in view of the great national prestige achieved by Oswaldo Cruz's work leading the campaigns to eradicate yellow fever in the city of Rio de Janeiro in 1907.

In 1917 Oswaldo Cruz passed away, leaving an enormous legacy – a consolidated institute, which was reference in public health studies, whose scope transcended urban centers and sea and river ports throughout Brazil. In the organization´s early years, it was focused on scientific expeditions to research diseases that affected the Brazilian backlands and the creation of its first branches in other Brazilian cities such as Belo Horizonte, in Minas Gerais (1906), and Pelotas, in Rio Grande do Sul (1914), which did not prosper, followed by São Luis, in Maranhão (1919).

Thus, a continuous process of restructuring the institution and expanding its activities and scope across the national territory follows. In this context, it is worth highlighting decree no. 17,512, of November 5, 1926, which for the first time presented the structure of the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz organized into administrative units, whose principle remains constantly updated to this day. In 1970, through decree nº 66,624 of May 22^nd 1970, the IOC was transformed into the current Fundação Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, and began to bring together several institutions related to public health such as the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz itself; the National School of Public Health; the Instituto Evandro Chagas, created in Pará in 1936; the Instituto Fernandes Figueira; the Institute of Leprology; the Prophylactic Products Service and the Institute of Rural Endemics, formed by research centers in Pernambuco, Bahia, and Minas Gerais.

In 1974, through Decree No. 74,891, the institution was renamed again, this time to Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, a name it bears to this day, under the acronym Fiocruz. Currently one of the largest public health institutions in the world, Fiocruz has facilities in 10 Brazilian states (figure 01). In addition, it has an office in Maputo (Mozambique) and a permanent research laboratory in Antarctica (Fioantar), both created in the 21^st century, in a context of continuous expansion.

Delimitation of the property and its area of coverage

The original campus of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation is located in the current neighborhood of Manguinhos, in the North Side of the city of Rio de Janeiro, in the state of Rio de Janeiro.

Its campus, with 691,296.72 m² (as described in the property registry), is bordered by an expressway (Linha Amarela) to the North; by Brasil Avenue (Avenida Brasil, in Portuguese) (with main access at no. 4,365) (Figure 2) to the East; by the Faria Timbó river, also called the Jacaré river, to the South; and by Leopoldo Bulhões Avenue (accessed at no. 1,480) to the West.

Fiocruz’s campus is located in a densely populated area, which is home to several groups of communities:

• Complexo de Manguinhos, a complex of favelas (informal settlements), located across Leopoldo Bulhões Avenue and the Faria Timbó river on the campus’ West and South sides, respectively;
• Amorim, one of the favelas that make up Complexo de Manguinhos, on the Northwest side;
• Complexo da Maré, a favela complex located across Brasil Avenue, on the East

The campus is located close to Complexo do Alemão and Complexo do Jacarezinho (favela complexes), and also to Cidade Universitária (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro’s campus), as shown in figure 3.

The campus houses a set of historic buildings erected in two important moments of the institution. At the beginning of the 20th century, the Portuguese engineer architect Luiz Moraes Jr² created, at the request of Oswaldo Cruz, a modern urban project to properly house the institution, then called Federal Serum Therapy Institute, with emphasis on the eclectic buildings. The Moorish Pavilion (1905-1918), popularly known as Castelo da Fiocruz (Fiocruz Castle), hosted laboratories, a library, and a museum. His project reveals Moorish architectural influences, with the Alhambra in Granada (Spain) being its main inspiration. Listed by the Institute of National Historical and Artistic Heritage (Iphan) in the 1980s, it remains yet today as headquarters of the institution and its bigger symbol, in addition to housing exhibition areas and two important collections: the Entomology Collection of the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz and the Rare Items Section from the Manguinhos Library. Its location in Pasteur Square, on the highest hill of the site, gives the Moorish Pavilion expressive presence in the landscape, particularly, for the dense green area that frames it within the limits of the campus and which merges with the cultural preservation area delimited by Iphan, as shown in figure 4.

The Stable (Calavariça, in Portuguese); the Clock Pavilion (Pavilhão do Relógio, in Portuguese); also listed by Iphan; and the Figueiredo de Vasconcellos Pavilion are located in the same square. The Stable (1904) was designed to house animals used in the manufacture of serums, with a series of stalls for horses in its central compartment and spaces at the ends for bleeding animals, weighing, and minor surgeries. Since the 1990s, it has hosted long-term exhibitions with themes related to health. The preparation of bubonic plague serum or vaccine from inoculated animals was carried out in the Clock Pavilion (1904-1905), initially called the Plague Pavilion (Pavilhão da Peste, in Portuguese), which had laboratories and an infirmary for horses. These spaces were adapted to host short-term exhibitions. As in the case of the Stable, the building reveals the influence of British industrial architecture. Built with two floors to house the Official Medicines Service, the Figueiredo de Vasconcelos Pavilion (1919), known as Quinino, housed the laboratories for the production of quinine (used to prevent malaria). During the 1940s, the building underwent renovation supervised by architect Luiz Moraes and developed by the team from the Works Division of the Ministry of Education and Health, with two more floors being added. It currently houses the central administration of Fiocruz.

Designed to house a vivarium for small animals, the Pombal (Dovecote, in English) (1904) was built in an area slightly away from the Institute's main buildings. Composed of eight circular buildings that housed cages for animals used in research (birds, rats, and rabbits), and a central tower for carrier pigeons, it is surrounded by a wall made up of straight lines and curves, following the design of the small pavilions. Located inside the land, tanks were used to raise frogs, turtles and other aquatic animals. The Pombal is currently undergoing restoration work to house a new exhibition area to be included in Fiocruz’s Museum of Life (Museu da Vida Fiocruz, in Portuguese) visiting circuit.

The Evandro Chagas Hospital, located on another hill on the site, was built between 1912 and 1918 with the aim of developing clinical and experimental studies, both for endemic diseases that appeared in the interior of Brazil, and for those with an urban base. Oswaldo Cruz intended to place the institute at the forefront of epidemiological surveys and prophylactic intervention in rural areas of Brazil. Even today, the building maintains its hospital use, being one of the buildings of the Evandro Chagas Clinical Research Institute (INI). Its listing is under analysis by Iphan.

Modern buildings designed in the 1940s and 1950s by the team of the Works Division of the Ministry of Education and Health are also part of the historical ensemble of Manguinhos. The Courses Pavilion (Pavilhão de Cursos, in Portuguese), also known as Arthur Neiva Pavilion (1947-1951), was designed by architect Jorge Ferreira with the collaboration of Roberto Burle Marx, who was responsible for the landscaping project and the design of the tile panel in the auditorium block, which depicts the cycle of life of Trypanosoma cruzi, the etiological agent of Chagas disease. Located on the edge of the site facing Brasil Avenue, the building stands out mainly for the presence of the imposing tile panel, listed at municipal level, as it is part of the set of works by Burle Marx in the city of Rio de Janeiro. The building, listed by the State Institute of Cultural Heritage (Inepac), maintains its original use, housing teaching, and research activities of the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz.

The former Central Refectory, currently Carlos Augusto Silva Pavilion (1947-1951), planned to meet the food needs of campus employees, was built in an area far from the original architectural core due to concerns, during the 1940s, with the delimitation of the institution's land. Highlights include the brise- soleils that protect the internal spaces from sunlight and the tile panel made by the firm Osirarte (as well as that of the Courses Pavilion), by Paulo Rossi Osir, a company created in 1940 to produce the tile panels of the Ministry of Education and Health in Rio de Janeiro (current Gustavo Capanema Palace). Jorge Ferreira received an Honorable Mention for the building's design at the 1st São Paulo International Architecture Biennial, in 1951. The building was listed by Inepac and partially maintained its use as a restaurant, being also occupied by worker health services and administrative areas.

The Henrique Aragão Pavilion (also known as Yellow Fever Laboratory or LAFA for its acronym in Portuguese, 1954-1960), was projected by Roberto Nadalutti as a laboratory for preparing vaccines against yellow fever. For many years the building maintained its original use linked to manufacturing activities for healthcare. Current assessment, however, is that these activities need to be relocated to new buildings that can meet contemporary safety standards. This perspective of change of use brought the possibility of developing a requalification project for the building, currently under development, aiming to enhance the institution's industrial heritage, expand public access and offer more space for science communication on campus.

The Brasil Avenue Entrance building (1954-1955), designed by Nabor Foster, was built to consolidate a new access to the campus and organize the flow of people and vehicles because of the opening of Brasil Avenue in the 1940s. The project follows the modern language of the pavilions that had been under construction on campus since the 1940s. Like the Henrique Aragão Pavilion, its listing is under analysis by Inepac.

The campus also houses the Manguinhos Archaeological Site, inscribed by Iphan in the National Register of Historical Sites in 1966 based on archaeological research carried out according to a revealed prehistoric archaeological potential on the occasion of the collapse of an elevated barrier near Brasil Avenue due to heavy rain. Recent research has also identified archaeological remains of an old stable and the old municipal urban waste incineration oven, incorporated into the visitation circuit of Fiocruz’s Museum of Life.

The museum, created in 1999, aims to enable the integration of science, culture, and society. In addition to the campus visitation circuits, the museum promotes activities such as exhibitions, interactive activities, multimedia, and theatrical plays seeking to expand the participation of the population in issues related to health, science, and technology. The campus functions, therefore, as an important center of leisure and education for the communities of the territory and, in an expanded way, for the city of Rio de Janeiro.

Justification de la Valeur Universelle Exceptionnelle

Aware by the significance of having its historical ensemble – erected at its headquarters, in Manguinhos – recognized as the possessor of exceptional universal value, Fiocruz proposes to submit its candidacy for World Heritage. This aspiration resonates with the history of the institution, and with the principles that were behind the origins of Fiocruz. Those principles laid the foundation to an ambition to conform a modern nation, a young republic that longed to strengthen its identity based on its roots, and was aware of the emergence of modernity and the importance of science and technology for the conformation of its ethos. Those values were in tune with the modern world of which Brazil aspired to be part. As a result of that mentality, the institute now known as Fiocruz was not envisioned just as a set of facilities for the production of sera and vaccines, but rather as the pinnacle of a world-level science project aimed at improving health conditions.

Based on UNESCO’s reference documents to World Heritage List candidates, we claim that the historical ensemble of Manguinhos meets all the requirements regarding authenticity, integrity, and management. Moreover, there is vast research material on the historical emsemble produced by researchers in Fiocruz and other institutions. Fiocruz has also proven capacity to: a) produce research and inventories necessary for the candidacy, and b) hold the custody of historical documentation in its collections. It has the recognition, acceptance, and engagement of its scientific community, and those of the territory where it is located. We also argue that Fiocruz has attributes that attest its exceptional universal value, corresponding to criteria II and VI of the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention produced by UNESCO. As we will elaborate shortly, those attributes are related to the value of this ensemble as a heritage of science and health, recognized not only in Brazil, but in the region and in the world.

Fiocruz's proposition for World Heritage Site lies in the recognition of its value and importance as a cultural heritage of science and health, which has as its main symbol the historical ensemble of Manguinhos. To this day, Fiocruz carries out continued initiatives aimed at the preservation and the valorization of its vast and diverse cultural heritage. This commitment began in the 1980s, with the inscription of the Moorish Pavilion _– the main reference of this set – and its surroundings as national heritage by the Institute of Historical and Artistic Heritage and National (Iphan). This was followed by the recognition, at State level, of a set of buildings erected in the modern period of Brazilian architecture, between 1950 and 1960, and by the recognition, at Municipal level, of Roberto Burle Marx's artistic panel, present in one of the modernist buildings. Such initiatives have been systematically developed since then, through the Casa de Oswaldo Cruz, a technical-scientific unit created in 1986, with the purpose of establishing a Center for History and Memory of Sciences and Health.

Criterion (ii): The Historical Ensemble of Manguinhos – which has the Moorish Pavilion as its central and most prominent element, designed and built in the Twentieth Century to produce scientific knowledge on public health as well as vaccines and sera – is exemplary in harnessing the languages of architectural eclecticism and modern architecture and implementing the most advanced existing constructive technologies and equipment back then. Since the institution’s early days, it pursued intense scientific exchange with the main centers dedicated to research in science and technology in health in Europe, the United States, and Latin America. This tradition – which was initiated by Oswaldo Cruz, with his studies at the Pasteur Institute in Paris – was maintained by other Fiocruz’s scientists, shaping an institutional ethos for research, teaching, production, and cooperation that influenced national and regional scientific culture. The confluence of tropical medicine and microbiology resulted in an original type of scientific organization, which managed to align the interests surrounding the routines of knowledge production with the demands of public health. This model distinguished the then Instituto Oswaldo Cruz among other public research institutions in the country, marking its performance throughout the Twentieth Century. Relevance to the history of science and health for Brazil and the world, especially for the history of architecture designed for activities related to science and technology in health.

Criterion (vi): Fiocruz has been a crucial institution in shaping the transition from a stage in which local and regional science relied on individual endeavors and were dependent on the scientific advancements of central countries to a new phase, marked by the genesis of an organized and institutional model of scientific doing set to be worthy of international recognition. Fiocruz has contributed significantly in the construction of a modern nation, a young republic that longed to strengthen its identity based on its roots, and was aware of the emergence of modernity and the importance of science and technology for the conformation of its culture. The effects of such contributions have been felt beyond Brazil’s borders, in the Latin American region. The expeditions of Fiocruz’s scientists to remote regions in Brazil, which took place during the early decades of the Twentieth Century, represented a milestone for scientific research and the production of knowledge on the country. While inspired by civilizing ideals, they intended to help integrate the backlands of Brazil with the rest of the Connected with economic activities of that time (such as the construction of railways, the sanitation of ports, and the extraction of rubber in the Amazon), those expeditions made possible the conduction of research in the fields of medicine, hygiene, and natural history, expanding the Oswaldo Cruz Institute’s activities thoughout the national territory. The portrait of uneducated, sick, and overexploited populations living far from the allegedly cosmopolitan and “civilized” coastal cities, revealed by the expeditions, resonated among intellectuals, the middle class and urban elites, especially in Rio de Janeiro, then capital of Brazil.

Déclarations d’authenticité et/ou d’intégrité

Authenticity

Form and design

Fiocruz’s historical ensemble brings together examples from different phases of Brazilian architecture, especially eclecticism and modernism. In line with a national project that aimed at the modernization of the nascent Brazilian Republic, the erection of Fiocruz’s eclectic buildings represents the materialization of Oswaldo Cruz's original plans for the Institute in the first decades of the 20th century based on Luiz Moraes Junior's projects. The modern buildings, designed by a team from the Ministry of Education and Health, bear witness to the expansion of the institution's activities, which occurred from the 1940s onwards. The main attributes of this ensemble, recognized by individual listings and by Fiocruz's preservation policy, were preserved over time, and the necessary adaptations were made respecting their characteristics.

The definition by Iphan of a preservation polygon around the listed buildings also made it possible to maintain urban landscape characteristics. The configuration of the urban layout in the preserved area reflects the two main moments of occupation of the site: from the 1900’s to the 1920’s (implementation of the Federal Serum Therapy Institute) and from the 1940’s to the 1950’s (expansion of the institution and of the campus’ limits). They have been adapted to contemporary standards of accessibility.

Fiocruz’s campus is home to archaeological remains that testify to the different occupations of the site. They have a potential to generate new knowledge, including on scientific activities in the institution since its creation.

Resulting from the combination of art and science, Fiocruz’s historical ensemble emerges and remains a symbol of a modern nation and of an institution that maintains the balance between tradition and innovation.

Materials and substance

The combination of materials used in the eclectic buildings – many of which were imported, as the national manufacturing industry was still rudimentary at that time – resulted in a distinguished ensemble, admired for its aesthetic. They are also an expression of the ideals of modernity that guided those who envisioned the buildings. Modern buildings are representative examples of the combination of manufactured materials and new construction techniques (such as reinforced concrete) with traditional materials and techniques, characteristic of Brazilian modernism. The existing vegetation in the preservation area stands out in contrast to the aridity of this region of the city.

Thanks to the preservation strategies adopted by the institution – which include monitoring and carrying out periodic conservation works, as well as training professionals in traditional construction techniques – these materials are in a good state of conservation. Restoration interventions, when necessary, are carried out by qualified professionals using techniques and materials compatible with existing ones.

Use and function

The uses of the buildings remain linked to the institution's original operating purpose, that is, research, production, and teaching for health. The original use of Fiocruz’s historic buildings can still be apprehended through the observation of their spatial configuration and preserved architectural elements, as well as interpretive materials and exhibitions held on campus.

Public spaces are used by the internal and external community for scientific, cultural, contemplation, and leisure activities, as well as for holding events and demonstrations.

Permanent heritage education and science communication initiatives are carried out on campus, enabling interaction between the work carried out by the institution and society. These spaces remain as reference points for exchange processes carried out by Fiocruz with other national and international scientific institutions, with researchers and the general population.

Traditions, techniques, and management systems

The historical ensemble is the locus of Fiocruz's scientific tradition, witnessing different important historical moments in the history of public health. The preservation polygonal delimited by Iphan houses important collections that have been accumulated since the institution's creation, even with the first scientific expeditions, and which continue to grow as a result of contemporary activities. Biological collections and archival, bibliographic, and museum collections make up – together with architectural and urban heritage – a unique set and source of knowledge for research. An institutional preservation policy establishes guidelines for the integrated preservation of this scientific and cultural heritage.

Fiocruz has always recognized the importance of preserving its cultural heritage, proposing the listing of historic buildings and creating its own structures to guarantee their long-term conservation. Heritage education is recognized as a fundamental guideline for preservation initiatives, ensuring engagement with the different stakeholders who interact with the property and offering training opportunities for the workforce employed in conservation and restoration works.

Location and setting

The location of the historic ensemble on the two main hills of the site and on the edge facing Brasil Avenue guaranteed monumentality to the complex and a striking presence in the landscape of the city of Rio de Janeiro.

The green mass that surrounds the historic buildings guarantees environmental quality to the ensemble and the campus as a whole, making it also stand out in terms of environmental quality in the territory where it is located, which underwent significant changes throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, with the opening of land roads and urban densification. Due to the delimitation, in the 1980s, of the preservation area surrounding historic buildings, special attention has been given to maintaining the ensemble's characteristics in environmental and landscape terms, with the construction of new buildings or expansions that may impact visibility of existing buildings being prohibited. may impact your visibility.

Spirit and feeling

The Manguinhos site is associated with scientific production and the provision of quality services to society. This spirit, present since the institution's creation, has strengthened over the years as contributions to society have become more numerous and diverse, and as the campus has become increasingly open and accessible for public appreciation, offering cultural and scientific dissemination activities. The historical ensemble and the activities carried out in these spaces contribute to the establishment of symbolic relationships with the internal community, the communities in the territory where it is located and the population as a whole.

The physical presence of the main building, the Moorish Pavilion, has remained prominent in the landscape of the city of Rio de Janeiro since its construction, remaining strongly linked in the popular imagination to the activities developed by Fiocruz. The documentation on the assets that make up the ensemble – which includes plans, photographs, footage, books, articles, interviews – is abundant and can be consulted in the institution's own archive.

Integrity

The Historical ensemble of Manguinhos is complete, having all the necessary elements to express its exceptional universal value. Respect for the attributes that guarantee their significance has always guided the interventions carried out on the assets, which aim to recover deteriorated elements and guarantee the maintenance of uses linked to institutional representation, research, teaching, production and scientific dissemination through the adaptation of spaces to contemporary comfort requirements, security, and accessibility.

The preservation of the ensemble is the responsibility of Casa de Oswaldo Cruz. In addition to having its own teams that carry out routine conservation actions, the unit's technical teams are responsible for contracting and managing restoration works and physical adaptation of buildings. Guided by the institution's preservation policy, preventive conservation plans are developed for each building to establish strategies to mitigate risks that may impact the value of and assets and reduce the need for large-scale interventions.

Management system

Fiocruz maintains a permanent commitment to the preservation of its cultural heritage and the enhancement of institutional and health memory, which includes, in addition to the architectural, archaeological and urban collections, the archival, bibliographic, scientific and museum collections that are under its custody. It is expressed in its institutional mission, especially item X of Article 1, Chapter I of the institution's Statute, which defines as one of its purposes: "to preserve, value and disseminate the historical, cultural and scientific heritage of Fiocruz and to contribute to the preservation of the memory of the areas of health and biomedical sciences".

In this context, it is important to highlight the distinction given by the UNESCO World Memory Program as a regional record to the personal archives of Carlos Chagas, scientist of the Pioneer Generation of the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, and the photographic archive of the Rockefeller Foundation in Brazil (1930-1940) activities. Also recognized by the UNESCO World Memory Program were the National Registry of Oswaldo Cruz's personal archives; The set of photographs in glass negatives of the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz file; and the Medical Form, manuscript produced between the late 17^th century and the beginning of the 18^th century.

One of the leading institutions in the organization of the Latin American Network of History and Cultural Heritage of Health, established in 2005⁷, Fiocruz institutionalized the Preservation Policy for Scientific and Cultural Collections of Fiocruz that guides and articulates its preservation actions in relation to architectural, archaeological and urbanistic heritage, as well as the archival, bibliographic, biological and museum collections. To improve preservation actions, expand access to the public and promote greater integration of these types of cultural assets was created the Preservo – Integrated Fiocruz Collections, which acts as a formulator, advisor, and consultative for the formation and action of a network among the Fiocruz technical-scientific units that hold the custody of these collections. The Preservo is the articulating instance to implement the Preservation Policy for Scientific and Cultural Collections of Fiocruz.

In 2019, Fiocruz approved its Institutional Memory Policy in its Deliberative Council. This initiative was motivated by the institution's recognition of its regional, cultural and historical diversity, and considering the different institutes that comprise it in different national states, allowing it to reflect and think critically about its own trajectory, in the most diverse contexts, referring to - both “the preservation of the heritage and legacy of an institution's past throughout its permanence, and, on the other hand, the creation and updating of a collective identity, which moves continuously in the present and projects itself into the future”.

In August 2021, Law 14,196, proposed by the National Congress, was approved and published in the Federal Official Gazette, which creates the title of Public Health Heritage and grants it to Fiocruz and the Butantan Institute. Among the selection criteria is the development of activities for at least 70 years, a period in which Fiocruz stood out on several fronts, including its performance during the COVID-19 pandemic. The title can be awarded to public and private non-profit institutions that provide relevant and notorious services to public health by developing activities of a technical, scientific, educational, assistance and social participation nature in the promotion, protection and recovery of health, in the public and community spheres.

In 1986, Fiocruz created a unit, Casa de Oswaldo Cruz, whose mission includes the production and dissemination of historical knowledge, the preservation and appreciation of the cultural heritage and memory of the institution and health. In addition to education, research, documentation, and scientific dissemination activities, Casa de Oswaldo Cruz has a department dedicated to the protection of architectural, archaeological and urban heritage, recognized nationally and internationally for its work in preserving the historical ensemble of Manguinhos and awarded several times, including the Special Mention of the Rodrigo Melo Franco de Andrade Award (1996). Its professionals are responsible for research, project development and heritage education activities carried out by Oficina Escola de Manguinhos (OEM) (Manguinhos School Workshop, in English), and at postgraduate level.

From 2010 onwards, the preservation of the institution's cultural heritage was favored by the possibility of expanding new areas of occupation at Fiocruz capable of housing administrative functions that are currently installed in the architectural historical ensemble. This fact challenged the institution to propose new uses for the historic spaces, which generated the Requalification Plan for the Historic Architectural Center of Manguinhos, gradually being implemented. The plan seeks to enhance the historical architectural ensemble through interventions that preserve its identity and uniqueness and generate a greater supply of socio-cultural activities based on Fiocruz's vocations aimed at society, and in particular the populations of the territory where the Manguinhos campus is located.

Among the various programs being implemented under the Plan, the Sustainability Program stands out, which aims to support interventions and new uses for urban and historic buildings on the site, reinforcing its vocation of “Campus-Park” from the perspective of a sustainable and healthy territory.

The buildings and urban spaces of the historic ensemble are conserved through continuous service carried out by a specialized company hired with budgetary resources from Fiocruz, under the coordination of the Department of Historical Heritage (DPH). This type of contracting has occurred since 2000, through a programmatic action by the federal government, included in the Annual Budget Program of the DPH.

Preventive conservation and risk management plans are being developed for the NAHM Requalification Plan for each building and historic space, where schedules of preventive conservation and risk management actions¹⁴, environmental monitoring of collections, cleaning, as well as actions to value and publicize heritage and training professionals.

The Moorish Pavilion, the Stables and the Clock Pavilion were selected for the first phase of the actions developed by the Risk Management and Preventive Conservation Working Group, constituted in 2013 by the Casa de Oswaldo Cruz management. The results of this first cycle are published in a report and resulted in a book funded by the Rio de Janeiro State Research Support Foundation - FAPERJ. This work is in line with the studies developed by the research line “Preventive Conservation of Science and Health Heritage” of the research group “Health and City: Architecture, Urbanism and Cultural Heritage” at CNPq, coordinated by Casa de Oswaldo Cruz. The systematic application of the ABC Risk Management Method for Cultural Heritage at the institution resulted in a cooperation between the Casa de Oswaldo Cruz/Fiocruz , the International Center for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) and the Canadian Conservation Institute (CCI) for the development of the ABC Risk Management System for Cultural Heritage (or ABC System), a free tool available on the web.

The performance and capacity of this institution in preventive conservation were first recognized when Casa de Oswaldo Cruz received in 2011 the Annual Award of the Institute of Architects of Brazil - IAB (RJ) in the theoretical production category for its publication entitled “Methodology and Technology in the area of Maintenance and Conservation of built heritage: the case of the Historical Architectural Nucleus of Manguinhos”. Subsequently, in June 2015, the Arthur Neiva Pavilion Preventive Conservation Plan, a building listed by Inepac, was selected for financial support by the Conserving Modern Architecture Program Initiative: Keeping It Modern, from Getty Conservation Institute, an American institution that supports initiatives. preservation and conservation of arts and heritage. This support resulted in a bilingual publication included in the Getty Foundation repository, international reference in the area of cultural heritage preservation.

Legal instruments for preservation and protection

The request for federal listing of the “Manguinhos Architectural Ensemble” was made in September 1980 by then Fiocruz president Guilardo Martins Alves in correspondence addressed to Iphan (Official Letter nº 462/80-PR/FIOCRUZ, September 8^th 1980), in which he comments that the proposal had already been accepted by the National Academy of Medicine. In 1981, Iphan approved the listing of the Moorish Pavilion, along with the Cavalariça and Peste pavilions through publication in the DOU on January 14^th 1981, p. 883, Section I. In 1985, Fiocruz requested the extension of the listing to the green area around these buildings and others from the eclectic period.

The buildings designed by architect Jorge Ferreira (1913-2008), the Central Refectory – Carlos Augusto da Silva Pavilion, and the Courses Pavilion Arthur Neiva, were listed by the State Institute of Cultural Heritage between 1998 and 2001, through Resolution no. 50 of October 17, 2001. This last building also has its tile panel listed, granted by the Rio World Heritage Institute within the Landscape works by Roberto Burle Marx in Rio de Janeiro, by decree no. 30,936, of August 4^th, 2009. The extension of state listing to include the Brasil Avenue Entrance building (1955), designed by Nabor Foster, and the Yellow Fever Laboratory (1954-1960), by Roberto Nadalutti, is currently under analysis.

Comparaison avec d’autres biens similaires

The Oswaldo Cruz Foundation's historical ensemble brings together a series of characteristics that make it relevant in comparison to others listed and not listed as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.

For comparison purposes, we establish some points of view to consider:

1. Headquarters of a Science and Technology institution;
2. Headquarters of a healthcare institution;
3. Headquarters of an educational institution;
4. Architectural ensemble from the 20^thcentury using neo-Moorish language with spaces designed to carry out biomedical research and production of health supplies that retain their original

There are few assets on this list that combine one or another of these qualities at the same time. None presents all these characteristics in a single property, considering the main building and its complex.

Analyzing from the Science and Technology aspect, the eclectic set of Manguinhos, with emphasis on the main pavilion, was erected to house a modern scientific institution, specializing in microbiology and tropical medicine, capable of responding to the national dimension challenges that the young republic Brazilian faced in its consolidation process. Its construction reveals constructive advances used in a pioneering way at the time, such as metallic structure in the slabs and support columns; installations (hydraulic, electrical, laboratory and sanitary) and communication (telephone, time clocks, elevators). More than a building, or a castle, we can have elements to reveal this space as a unique example, designed with the specific purpose of scientific production in the field of microbiology. This building functioned as a large technological set of interconnected research lines and work processes.

Examples around the world, listed by UNESCO, such as the headquarters of Editora Plantin-Moretus bring together on its site the most representative technological, cultural and scientific complex of the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, and is specifically identified with European typographic production. Another scientific example, the Radziwill family architectural complex in Nesvizh symbolizes the performance of a dynasty to Central Belarus in almost five centuries. This seems to us the closest reference in the field of activity, as it is a complex that combines science, arts, crafts and architecture.

The relevance of the construction of the Manguinhos complex meant, at the time in Rio de Janeiro, an opening for the development of scientific research in the field of experimental medicine like never before. Today it remains in the landscape, attracts the attention and curiosity of those who see it, and its image is associated with the high reputation of the institution it represents.

Especially in relation to the Health area, no item listed as world heritage clearly presents itself as such, which reveals a gap in the UNESCO list. The closest examples of healthcare, namely the Sant Pau and Divrigi Hospitals, were classified together with other works, considering their architectural qualities, respectively in relation to Catalan Art Nouveau –with the Palácio da Música building; and because it is attached to an important mosque, built in the 11th century, in the case of the Turkish example. Conversely, the architectural quality of the main Pavilion of Manguinhos, or even its ensemble, does not in itself represent architectural exceptionality that justifies its recognition as world heritage, but its relationship of great symbolic and representative appeal to health, back then and today, represent a unique contribution to the List.

There are few cultural assets recognized as world heritage sites that are representative and give visibility to the fields of education and science, as well as other areas of modern human activity, such as those related to health; practices, sciences and technologies aimed at producing health; and everyday social relations with health, understanding it as one of the constituent elements of culture. Health, due to the most recent pandemic, strengthened the symbolic values attributed to it by society and demonstrated its role in the construction of history in civilizations, reinforcing the thesis that its recognition through assets listed as world heritage is necessary for an increased cultural diversity representation.

Since its inception, the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation has developed activities that have structured public health in Brazil and its research has resulted in major contributions to tropical medicine, recognized internationally through several awards throughout its history. Among the most recent are recognition as the Best Public Health Institution in the world in 2006 by the World Federation of Public Health Associations; in 2014 it was recognized as the best research institution in Brazil, by the University of Leiden (Netherlands), in 2016 the election by Nature magazine of the institution's researcher among the ten personalities of the year in science, and the Christophe Mérieux Scientific Award 2018, to support research into infectious diseases in developing countries, awarded to a Brazilian researcher.

In the area of production and technological development, Fiocruz's operations make the country the largest producer of yellow fever vaccine in the world. Its strategic role in the production of immunobiologicals, and especially in fighting Covid-19, has national and international recognition, which resulted in the designation of Fiocruz, by the World Health Organization (WHO), as a hub for the development and production of vaccines with RNA technology in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Oswaldo Cruz Foundation is also recognized for its achievements in the area of education. It is the main non-university institution for training and qualifying human resources for the Unified Health System and for the area of science and technology in Brazil. It was one of the first to offer courses of pathological anatomy and histology at its facilities in Manguinhos. In 2020, UNESCO approved the creation of the Oswaldo Cruz Chair in Science, Health and Culture, proposed by Casa de Oswaldo Cruz, paving the way for a new research agenda. The Oswaldo Cruz Chair is aligned with UNESCO's strategic objectives of promoting the relationship between science, politics and society and cooperation in the Americas and with Europe. It aims to be a space for reflection on the historical studies of science and health to gain knowledge about the formation of a scientific culture, its cultural exchanges, as well as to disseminate the understanding of health as a social and cultural construction.

 From the list of assets listed by UNESCO in the area of education, they form some of the most recognized universities in the world and their campuses, such as Coimbra (Portugal), Mexico City (Mexico), Caracas (Venezuela), Virginia (United States) and Alcalá de Henares (Spain). In such institutions, the spaces in which classes were offered are valued, as well as spaces for welcoming students, such as amphitheaters and libraries. The first classes of the Application Course offered by Fiocruz were held in the Lecture Rooms located in the main building (Moorish Pavilion), whose current space still keeps a physical record of such activities. The library, for example, a great help to students and researchers from that time until today, still operates in the same original facilities, with its historical elements and attributes preserved, such as the Reading Room and the shelves imported from New York. The modernist Arthur Neiva Pavilion, designed as a course pavilion, is still used today for teaching and research activities.

The buildings designed by Luiz Moraes Júnior at the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz are in line with the language of architectural eclecticism, which emerged at the end of the 19th century and advocated the combination of multiple artistic influences. Eclecticism emerged as a reaction to the predominant classicism, configuring itself as a historicist and traditionalist language, and at the same time, modern, by using materials and techniques typical of industrialization. There are few assets listed by UNESCO that belong to the period covered by the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation headquarters ensemble (1903-1919).

The Moorish Pavilion, the main building in this ensemble, was designed based on a drawing by the scientist Oswaldo Cruz himself. In the hands of the architect, this original version was embodied in a Moorish style project, referenced by the Alhambra in Granada, listed by UNESCO, and the Palace of Montsouris, in Paris. The final configuration of the project, from 1908, with five floors, would have been presented after trips by the scientist and the architect to Germany, when they came into contact with the New Synagogue in Berlin . The Arabic style of the Castle would be mixed with English and Portuguese references, also harmoniously composed in other buildings that make up the Historical Ensemble of Manguinhos.

The presence of Orientalism in the Americas, which occurred between the mid-19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, accompanied the formation of a new European culture in search of approaching the aesthetics formed by the East, North Africa and also southern Spain, represented for the picturesque and the sublime, “together with the desires for scientific investigation and, of course, a certain economic and political expansionism.

We are therefore witnessing the orientalist moment of romanticism that is translated into literature, painting and travel books that are at the origin of this Arabic aesthetic”. A primary component for this approach would be, above all, through architecture, with the Fiocruz headquarters building being a perfect example of this in Brazil and Latin America. The taste for the picturesque, rare and sublime was fundamental for architectures that would break with the monotony of the utilitarian buildings of the industrial city). It would be recurrent to identify this architecture as “Moorish” or “neo-Moorish ”, as a derivation of the Anglo-Saxon term, Moorish style. The publication in 1832 of the Tales of Alhambra and its subsequent editions and translations, whose 1906 copy is in the Fiocruz Library of Rare Works, would begin an appropriation of this aesthetic, first in England and then in the United States, reaching other American countries, including in Brazil.

In comparison with non-listed assets, it is necessary to start with the Pasteur Institute, a great source of inspiration for the Fiocruz patron. Oswaldo Cruz studied at the French institute between 1896 and 1899. His experience with the institute's units in Paris and Garches certainly influenced the construction of the institute that he would command from 1902 onwards, in Brazil. The French institution, which to this day maintains relationships of scientific and academic interest with the Brazilian institution, is perhaps the one in the world that most resembles the Fundação Oswaldo Cruz in relation to its history, its scientific development, its relationship with health area and the bond of constitution and tribute to its patrons.