Article:

Cultural landscapes, although complex realities, give shape and meaning to the tangible and intangible components which form the foundations of human cultural background. The architecture of the city of Colonia del Sacramento fits within this context, and builds up a unique cultural landscape inserted in the logic of the historical heritage protection system. This concept, which implies wealth but also conflicts, demands a multidisciplinary approach grounded on a wide vision of this issue. Likewise, this comprehensive approach contributes to reverse and correct the lack of capacity and/or interest to save these examples of man-made landscape (prefabrication, mega-projects of the beginnings of the 20th Century, etc.), which are essential pieces of heritage conservation. Since 1943 the bullring is owned by the Municipality of Colonia. In the last decade the building was fenced to prevent breakdown risk. Still, illegal access occurs quite easily, increasing the risk and potential damage, in addition to the spoilage caused by more than one hundred years of inactivity and lack of maintenance. This paper proposes a method to survey and record the current status of the building, from photos taken by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV, drones), allowing the registry without the need of direct access to the site. The survey will enable three types of results: series of mapped photographs, 3D models and an interactive platform for aerial view. The aim is to provide valuable and essential documentation for next stages of consolidation works, competitions and eventualy, new uses of the heritage building.