Monumental Lies: Culture Wars and the Truth about the Past

The past is being weaponized in culture wars and manipulated by those who wish to impose their ideology upon the physical spaces around us. Robert Bevan's book, "Monumental Lies," argues that monuments, architecture, and cities are material evidence of history and that when they are reshaped as fantasies about the past or destroyed, the historical record is being manipulated. This threat to the material evidence of the truth about history is growing, and we must be able to trust the tangible world around us to tell us the truth.

Format: Hardback
Length: 384 pages
Publication date: 11 October 2022
Publisher: Verso Books

The past is weaponized in culture wars, cynically edited by those who seek to impose their ideology upon the physical spaces around us. Holocaust deniers exploit details of the ruins of Auschwitz's gas chambers to propagate their lies: "No Holes; No Holocaust." Yet, long-standing concepts such as authenticity in heritage are undermined and trivialized by gatekeepers such as UNESCO. Simultaneously, opposition to this manipulation is being eroded by cultural ideas that prioritize memory and impressions over history and facts.

In Monumental Lies, Robert Bevan argues that monuments, architecture, and cities are material evidence of history. They are the physical trace of past events, previous ways of thinking, and politics, economics, and values that permeate to today. When our cities are reshaped as fantasies about the past, when monuments tell lies about who deserves honor, or are destroyed, and the struggle for justice is forgotten, the historical record is being manipulated. When decisions are based on misinformed assumptions about how the built environment influences our behavior, or we are told falsely that certain architectural styles are alien to our cities, or when space pretends to be public but is private, or that physical separation is natural, we are being manipulated.

There is a growing threat to the material evidence of the truth about history. We are in serious trouble if we cannot trust the tangible world around us to tell us the truth.

Monumental Lies explores the threats to our understanding of the built environment and how it impacts our lives, as well as offers solutions to combat the ideological manipulations. Chosen as one of the best Architecture and Design books of 2022 by The Financial Times, this book is a must-read for anyone interested in preserving the integrity of our cultural heritage and protecting against historical manipulation.

Weight: 546g
Dimension: 162 x 242 x 32 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781839761874