A new life of the Ottoman fortress Ram

Abstract

Taking into account the general suggestions and European standards in the field of education in conservation, at the Faculty of Architecture University of Belgrade in the recent years a series of students' projects has been carried out in order to investigate possibilities of protection, presentation and utilisation of historic sites. The idea was to broaden the students' knowledge and to educate them so that they could be able to solve complex issues while investigating, evaluating and renewing historic areas. This paper presents a one-semester work with students investigating renewal and modern utilisation potentials of the medieval Ottoman fortress Ram on the Danube bank (Serbia). The project empowered the students to be informed about: general methodology of the site condition valorisation; its character, significance and values; the destroyed buildings restoration and regeneration potentials; and 3D models implementation in assessing and comparing approaches to the protection and presentation. The historic and architectural analysis included several research stages of the origin and development of the fortress and data collection from various sources, archives and institutes. Conducting such research, the students were able to find out tangible and intangible characteristics and the basic architectural elements of the fortress and the surrounding buildings. Theory, investigation and education were complementary within the project, promoting an integrated approach in order to finding the most effective form of the historic site and its active inclusion in everyday life.