Water heritage park
Water heritage park
The Parque Patrimonial das Águas (Water Heritage Park) is an open-air museum of the cultural heritage of water in the city of Porto, comprising all the city's material water heritage and the archival and intangible heritage inherent to it. Its museum center is the Parque das Águas (Water Park), located at the headquarters of the municipal company, which marks the beginning of the materialization of the desire to create a water heritage collection in the city of Porto, with roots in the 1930s.
The City of Water
The creation of the Parque Patrimonial das Águas (Water Heritage Park) was intended to recognize the city of Porto as the “city of water,” not only because of the abundance of water in the environment, but also because of the buildings that reflect Porto's identity and on which specific ways of doing and living in the city are based. The open-air museum responds to the origins of water heritage, a heritage of everyday life that remains alive in the city and in constant metamorphosis, respecting the past and projecting itself into the future.
The Living Museum
The vocation of the Parque Patrimonial das Águas (Water Heritage Park) is integrated into the open-air museology that gave rise to New Museology and the Ecomuseum. In line with the precepts of the Quebec Declaration (1984) and the concept of Spirit of Place, which emphasizes the correlation between the tangible and the intangible, recognizing the importance of the living, dynamic, and comprehensive nature of cultural heritage.
The heritage collection
It comprises all of Porto's water supply and wastewater infrastructure – springs, fountains, water taps, water tanks, mines, aqueducts, reservoirs, power stations, washing places – whether active or deactivated, which have taken on the role of cultural landmarks or archaeological remains, bearing witness to a long timeline of Porto's relationship with water.
Historical documentation
The Historical Archive is the result of a natural process that reflects the company's activity over time, since it was created in 1927, but also all existing documentation on the 19th-century water supply and sanitation network infrastructure, which, despite predating the company's existence, came to be managed by SMAS do Porto and are still assets of the company. It is an organic set of documentation that records constructions and interventions in the heritage and is therefore essential to its interpretation.
The collection of objects
A set of museum-quality objects has been preserved, which have been kept by SMAS over the years. These objects bear witness to the evolution of science and engineering in relation to water systems, but also to their technical and administrative management, such as water meters dating back to the 18th century and technical clothing and tools used in the workplace.
Territory Museum
It is a Territory Museum because it is about the territory of Porto and its community in its interconnection with the environment and water, which throughout history has created and still creates the city, as a space, memory, and identity. For this reason, it has been awarded the Territory Museum seal by CCDR Norte - Northern Regional Coordination and Development Commission, integrating it into the Regional Network of Territory Museums of the Northern Region.
UNESCO International Network of Water Museums
Since 2021, it has been part of WAMU-NET - Water Museums Global Network, created by UNESCO's Council of the Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme with the aim of strengthening the role of museums in education and awareness-raising for the protection and enhancement of water heritage.
The creation of the Parque Patrimonial das Águas (Water Heritage Park) was intended to recognize the city of Porto as the “city of water,” not only because of the abundance of water in the environment, but also because of the buildings that reflect Porto's identity and on which specific ways of doing and living in the city are based. The open-air museum responds to the origins of water heritage, a heritage of everyday life that remains alive in the city and in constant metamorphosis, respecting the past and projecting itself into the future.
The Living Museum
The vocation of the Parque Patrimonial das Águas (Water Heritage Park) is integrated into the open-air museology that gave rise to New Museology and the Ecomuseum. In line with the precepts of the Quebec Declaration (1984) and the concept of Spirit of Place, which emphasizes the correlation between the tangible and the intangible, recognizing the importance of the living, dynamic, and comprehensive nature of cultural heritage.
The heritage collection
It comprises all of Porto's water supply and wastewater infrastructure – springs, fountains, water taps, water tanks, mines, aqueducts, reservoirs, power stations, washing places – whether active or deactivated, which have taken on the role of cultural landmarks or archaeological remains, bearing witness to a long timeline of Porto's relationship with water.
Historical documentation
The Historical Archive is the result of a natural process that reflects the company's activity over time, since it was created in 1927, but also all existing documentation on the 19th-century water supply and sanitation network infrastructure, which, despite predating the company's existence, came to be managed by SMAS do Porto and are still assets of the company. It is an organic set of documentation that records constructions and interventions in the heritage and is therefore essential to its interpretation.
The collection of objects
A set of museum-quality objects has been preserved, which have been kept by SMAS over the years. These objects bear witness to the evolution of science and engineering in relation to water systems, but also to their technical and administrative management, such as water meters dating back to the 18th century and technical clothing and tools used in the workplace.
Territory Museum
It is a Territory Museum because it is about the territory of Porto and its community in its interconnection with the environment and water, which throughout history has created and still creates the city, as a space, memory, and identity. For this reason, it has been awarded the Territory Museum seal by CCDR Norte - Northern Regional Coordination and Development Commission, integrating it into the Regional Network of Territory Museums of the Northern Region.
UNESCO International Network of Water Museums
Since 2021, it has been part of WAMU-NET - Water Museums Global Network, created by UNESCO's Council of the Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme with the aim of strengthening the role of museums in education and awareness-raising for the protection and enhancement of water heritage.
