The Ministry of Culture believes that “it is not an architectural monument of singular importance, neither because of its floor plan, nor because of the figure of the architect, nor because of the construction technique, nor because of the materials used”
The Ministry of Culture will not declare the Valley of the Fallen to be of Cultural Interest (BIC), considering that, “beyond its symbolic and political nature”, its exterior architectural contributions “do not have sufficient relevance in the context of the production of the time”.
This is how the ministry considers it in the letter sent by the general director of General Heritage and Fine Arts, Isaac Sastre, to Pablo Linares Clemente, in his capacity as president of the Association for the Defense of the Valley of the Fallen, who in 2018 requested this statement as an asset of cultural interest.
According to the document to which Efe has had access this Thursday, this construction located in the Madrid town of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, “it is not an architectural monument of singular importance neither because of its plan, nor because of the figure of the architect, nor because of the construction technique, nor because of the materials used”.
The assessment of Culture clarifies, in advance, that the documentation presented by the Association for the Defense of the Valley of the Fallen is limited to one “basic description of some elements that make up the set“.
“It suffers from the necessary technical characteristics for this type of files, which is required by article 11 of Law 16/1985, of June 25, on Spanish Historical Heritage, such as the delimitation of the environment affected by the declaration and the well-differentiated integrating parts , as well as the belongings and accessories included in the declaration,” he adds.
“Environmental Consequences”
However, after the request was examined by the technical services of the General Subdirectorate for Management and Coordination of Cultural Assets, among other conclusions to deny the BIC declaration, it is stated that the construction of the monumental complex of the Valley of the Fallen “had produced a notable alteration of the natural environment without having foreseen the consequences that the intervention could cause in the environmental conditions“.
After the intervention, nuances Culture, “the landscape and environmental values of the Cuelgamuros valley were lostnot being able to justify in them the declaration of good of cultural interest”.
It is also concluded that it is perceived in the construction (…) “an absence of compositional interest in any dependency or space away from public vision”.
For all the above, Culture will not initiate the BIC declaration file, although it clarifies that it does not end the administrative procedure and an appeal may be filed before the hierarchical superior body within a month.