Abstract:
The view that heritage is not merely a physical entity has raised the attention paid for its
intangible part. The problem is the dilemma between the present priorities of a society and its
contradictory preservation practices. The dilemma is felt stronger in societies with experienced radical
transformations throughout their history. The historic residential neighborhoods of Ardabil City are
examples of this dilemma with a unique social and cultural history and its intangible heritage shaped on
that base, which is visible today in the dissolutions in their physical heritage. This study presents the
outcomes of the in-situ research in the historic Uch Dukkan Neighborhood in Ardabil City with its
spatial configurations, historic functions and current conditions. It is discussed that, due to the
controversies between differing political and economic priorities of different eras, the intention to
preserve the historicity of the neighborhood remains challenging in terms of adapting the intangible
content of the heritage and the contradicting premises of the current local life to each other. This study
intends to demonstrate how blurred the boundary between preservation and conservatism can be.
