19/04/2025
Yesterday was International Day of Monuments and Sites, and this year’s theme is: “Heritage under Threat from Disasters and Conflicts.”
This theme is relevant for Curaçao and its historic city center, Willemstad—home to 743 listed monuments. As climate change intensifies, this built heritage faces growing vulnerability due to threats like rising sea levels, heavy rainfall, flooding, increasing temperatures, and hurricanes.
While these threats are cause for concern, they also serve as a reminder to adapt and build resilience.
A local example of climate-responsive design after a hurricane disaster in 1877 can be found in the historic neighborhood of Scharloo. After this event, families moved from Pietermaai to the higher-lying neighborhood of Scharloo and built their new houses on basements, raised between 50 centimeters to one meter above ground. This design, visible by the grand stair entrances of the homes, served among others to protect the wooden floors from water damage during heavy rains or tropical storms, and to allow cooler air to circulate beneath the house to reduce indoor heat. These design features reflect an early understanding of environmental challenges and illustrate how architecture was adapted to local conditions.
Such examples show that monuments can offer insights into how people have responded to their environments over time. Studying and preserving these buildings not only protects cultural value but can also inspire how today we approach future challenges in the built environment.
📄source: Winkel, P. P. (1987). Scharloo: A nineteenth-century quarter of Willemstad, Curaçao: Historical architecture and its background [Doctoral dissertation, Delft University of Technology].
📷 photo of Villa Maria in Scharloo taken by Soublette et Fils (1890-1900)
