Plan de refuncionalización de El Barranco, Cuenca, Ecuador. Una propuesta desde la arqueología urbana

Abstract

Since the declaration of the historic center of Cuenca as a World Heritage Site in 1999, urban interventions in El Barranco sector have emerged as strategies for the revaluation of heritage urban centers based on monumentalist conservation plans. These plans seek to promote touristification through the beautification and enhancement of urban infrastructure towards the internationalization of tourism in the city, gradually leading to the commoditization of the space and the loss of its community values. In the El Barranco area, these interventions have focused on the built heritage, excluding its final section known as archaeological area, a space of significant historical-cultural interest and pivotal in territorial configuration processes since pre-Hispanic times. This thesis addresses the development of an urban refunctionalization plan for the El Barranco sector of Cuenca, Ecuador, from the perspectives of urban archaeology and the social production of space. To this end, the topographical, archaeological, urbanistic, and social characteristics that have conferred upon this place a fundamental role in the history and understanding of the city in its various socio-temporal periods are examined. Under these methodological tools, archaeological sites and elements are recognized as relevant urban pieces in the historical and contemporary understanding of the site. Simultaneously, usage practices and social appropriation of these spaces are analyzed aiming to identify common characteristics that make it possible to clarify the connections between present and past dynamics over time. As a result, a series of strategies and guidelines are established to guide the planning of El Barranco towards the dignification of inhabiting public spaces in accordance with both current and historical expressions of use.