Szanowni Czytelnicy!

For quite some time the Polish conservation milieu has been involved in a lively discussion on the deteriorating state of our cultural heritage, assorted threats, unsatisfactory theoretical interpretations that do not provide answers to many simple questions, and mundane financial problems hampering suitable documentation or professional studies and the conservation of monuments. Against the backdrop of this discussion there have emerged conceptions of organisational and systemic transformations, which, briefly, refer to the direct supervision of the general conservator over the offices of the voivodeship conservators of monuments. Our editorial board has decided to expand this discussion by presenting various views concerning the theoretical aspects of the foundations of the protection of monuments. I regard opinions formulated outside the conservation circles to be of particular importance since they make it possible to view our problems without emulating well-worn schemes and reducing the discussion to a strictly organisational level. Within this context I heartily recommend the text by Dr. Simon Thurley, the head of English Heritage, read during the third annual European Heritage Heads Forum held in May 2008 in Copenhagen. The principles of the protection of historical monuments are simply a codification of the decision-making process, based on a modern assessment of the value of monuments. You will find all the details in an English Heritage publication entitled Conservation Principles, Policies and Guidance – try the English Heritage internet site or the library of the National Heritage Board of Poland. Knowledge about the reasons for protecting a historical monument, the basis of this protection, as well as the monument’s particular elements and environment should support the whole process of protection, from recording a given monument in a register, its suitable utilisation and administration to decision making and correctly conducted conservation or adaptation. Any gaps will lead to numerous errors and even the loss of valuable monuments. Many Readers may find the text about the phenomenological definition of the monuments to be of special interest. The study in question makes it possible to view the apparently completed concept of the monument from a wider perspective than the traditional one. Alongside questions dealing with the creation of modern conservation protection and a search for the sources of the definition and phenomenon of the monuments, we also tackle topics associated with the current shape of the Polish register of monuments, its contents and the role, which it should perform in the national system of the protection of the cultural heritage. Within the context of the binding statutory regulations, inclusion into the register, which until now has been the only universally applied form of the protection of monuments, proves to be not only ineffective but also incomplete, and does not reflect the richness and diversity of the Polish cultural heritage. I wish you pleasant reading. Respectfully yours Marcin Gawlicki Director of the National Heritage Board of Poland