City as palimpsest: Visible and invisible memory of “students square” in Belgrade

Abstract

The New heritage paradigm is changing the way in which the past is valued and affirming the pluralised and user-oriented presentation of visible and invisible urban memory. The assumption of the paper is that reading the city as a palimpsest can be the basis for a democratic heritage presentation and a multivocal and multitemporal understanding of the past by unveiling the visible and invisible layers of urban memory. The question arises to what extent traditional formats of heritage presentation in public spaces can respond to these demands. This paper aims to explain the concept and method of reading the city as a palimpsest and to demonstrate its application in the case of Students Square in Belgrade to discover and unveil invisible urban memory, while critically reviewing the traditional presentation formats and their ability to adequately present it in public spaces. The results of the research confirm the potential of the palimpsest method and point to a selective approach and physical limitations of traditional formats to present the complexity of urban memory in urban public spaces.