‘Restored’ Spanish Castle Infuriated Locals

The Matrera Castle in southern Spain has recently been restored to prevent it from collapsing, but the result did not make the locals happy.

According to Domain, locals were infuriated upon seeing the results of the repair that made the landmark look like multistory parking garage. This is evidently contrary to what many have expected that the castle will be restored to its former glory.

The residents took to social media to express their disappointments, with one resident saying that it's a "barbarity" while others presume the project handlers used builders instead of restorers.

As per Domain, Hispania Nostra, a preservationist group, said that the project is "truly lamentable." Even foreigners were surprised with the results. Carlos Morenes, Hispania Nostra's vice president, said that it is a "massacre" of a Spanish heritage.

Meanwhile, Carlos Quevedo Rojas, the architect behind the Matrera Castle restoration project, acknowledged that the outcome is not what people would expect and accepted the criticisms. But to his defense, he said, "the principle objective was to prevent the collapse of the structure." And unfortunately, modern standards for restoring buildings would not allow making the structure look the same way it used to be.

"You have to distinguish and maintain the historical value and architectural integrity," he added. "You can't make the structure have the same appearance as the original. You can't falsify the appearance. It has to be clear which parts are new and which are old."

Quevedo Rojas has the support of Jose Maria Gutierrez Lopez, the director of Villamartin's small history museum who has written a book about the castle and the area's history. He said, "I think the criticism comes from people without any knowledge of the criteria of modern restoration. They wanted it to be restored to the same condition as it was before, but that's not what happens."