The following text is the resuming, in an improved version, of a subchapter with the same title of a book published more than ten years ago. Although my position regarding what I stated then has remained fundamentally the same, the passing of time and a series of developments involving built heritage have led me to reconsider certain formulations and to take further some of the ideas that were not matured enough at the time of writing the book. 

Keywords: authenticity, historic buildings, conservation, the Nara Document on Authenticity

Based on the study of written sources, historical maps and archaeological field work, the present article discusses the use and reconstruction of the only Pauline monastic landscape situated on the territory of the medieval Szekler Land. The monastery was located on a hilltop in today’s Sâncraiu de Mureş, named by the sources as Szentkirály or seldomly Székelyháza. The monastery buildings were destroyed by a fire and a part of them was used in the 17^th century, for the rebuilding of the fortification in Târgu Mureş. This was one of the wealthiest Pauline monasteries in medieval Transylvania. The monks received a great number of donations and support from the local noble families. Most of the donations consisted of various types of landed estates, the study of which offers insight into the land use and economy of this monastery. 

Keywords: medieval, Pauline order, Szekler Land, land use, monastic landscape, estate structure, economy

The article presents several landmarks from the history of construction and landscape design of the Teleki Manor House Park in Luna de Jos (Cluj Co.), the building of which starts in the mid-17^th century and receives influences, over time, from the Renaissance, Baroque and Neoclassical styles. The manor house park, listed in the 2004, respectively 2010 Historic Buildings List, and with a possibility to be documented, in its mixed style appearance created at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, has suffered serious degradations after its nationalisation, so that at present the traces of its former landscaping are undecipherable. The article presents the main built and landscaped elements of the ensemble, the relationships developed between them and with the settlement and the surrounding landscape, as they were observed by the author in the summer of 2009, in an attempt to sketch a brief inventory of the current state of the ensemble. 

Keywords: residential historical garden, mixed style landscaping, 19^th century

Persian gardens are known around the world for their unique style, with the watering system as one of their main features displaying great appetency for showing and using water. Since Iran is in an arid region, one of its main goals would be to create better microclimates for its inhabitants, making water streams necessary for its existence. Water, with its various qualities such as the ability to create and sustain life, brightness, cleanliness, light, stillness and motion, brings forward many feelings in the human spirit. Moreover, its various running structures such as brooks, streams, rivers, and fountains provide mental comfort as well as technical functions. It is thus seen in several representations of human-made structures, especially in relation with gardens. This paper aims to prove that water is not only used as a symbol of cleanliness and motion in Iranian gardens, but it is also considered to be a basic compositional and spatial element. 

Keywords: water system, Persian garden, garden composition, water feature, garden spatial structure

This article is the first of two, in which we analyse the relation between the landscape as a natural system and landscape development from a point of view of regional development. It is an explorative study based on a field trip with students in 2014 and a short analysis of texts and maps. The geological context of the Carpathian Basin and surrounding mountain range forms a necessary point of departure for regional development. Two case studies of settlements in the Călata Region, south-west of Cluj-Napoca, have been studied and show how the morphology of valleys and their relation to rivers can influence the settling and structure of villages. In the second part of the article, the land and its historical context are related to three goals of contemporary landscape architecture in general: the problem of water management, of energy transition, and of creation of healthy environments for people. One of the conclusions of the study is that the water system offers opportunities for future landscape development in the long run. The principles of water management based on the European Water Framework Directive – very well known in landscape architecture – are an excellent basis for restructuring and design. At regional level, the landscape structure is largely determined by geology and geomorphology in the form of watersheds. Landscape structure forms a link between landscape development in the long run and the material form of the landscape. Given the rich cultural diversity in population, the enormous diversity in topography, and a rich history, the region has a potential for improving the qualities for contemporary use and living. 

Keywords: landscape architecture, landscape, road system, water system, development, Transylvania