Apuntes del pasado nacional: aproximación al estudio de los dibujos de monumentos aragoneses de Valentín Carderera

Abstract

In this article, a series of drawings and water colours of Aragonese monuments by the artist Valentín Carderera y Solano (Huesca, 1796 – Madrid, 1880) are analysed. Not forgetting the documentary value of the sketches to study the state of those buildings – some of them disappeared – in the 19th century, their value as witnesses of the creation of an awareness of the “national heritage” is highlighted. Thus they are studied in the light of its author’s learned activities in the field of history and of fine arts, as well as to his work in favour of monument safekeeping. Although many of these sketches had not previously been published, some of them had been disseminated in the form of engravings in illustrated works or in newspapers in the 19th century. In this manner, they contributed to the definition of a Spanish monumental heritage, fostered by the Liberal State, and based on the artistic testimonies of the former peninsular kingdoms.