Cultural Heritage is an expression of the ways of living
developed by a community and passed on from generation to
generation, including customs, practices, places, objects, artistic
expressions and values. Cultural Heritage is often expressed as
either Intangible or Tangible Cultural Heritage (ICOMOS, 2002).
As part of human activity Cultural Heritage produces tangible
representations of the value systems, beliefs, traditions and
lifestyles. As an essential part of culture as a whole, Cultural
Heritage, contains these visible and tangible traces form antiquity
to the recent past.
Cultural Heritage is a wide concept. We prefer to concentrate on
the similarities between the various heritage sectors, instead of
on their differences.
Cultural Heritage types
Cultural Heritage can be distinguished in:
- Built Environment (Buildings, Townscapes, Archaeological
remains)
- Natural Environment (Rural landscapes, Coasts and shorelines,
Agricultural heritage)
- Artefacts (Books & Documents, Objects, Pictures)
Driving force behind all definitions of Cultural Heritage
is:
it is a human
creation intended to inform (John Feather, 2006).
Tangible & Intangable Heritage
Having at one time referred exclusively to the monumental
remains of cultures, cultural heritage as a concept has gradually
come to include new categories. Today, we find that heritage is not
only manifested through tangible forms such as artefacts, buildings
or landscapes but also through intangible forms. Intangible
heritage includes voices, values, traditions, oral history.
Popularly this is perceived through cuisine, clothing, forms of
shelter, traditional skills and technologies, religious ceremonies,
performing arts, storytelling. Today, we consider the tangible
heritage inextricably bound up with the intangible heritage. In
conservation projects we aim to preserve both the tangible as well
as the intangible heritage.
Heritage Cycle
The Heritage Cycle diagram gives us an idea how we can make the
past part of our future (Simon Thurley, 2005). In a clockwise
direction the wedges and arrows read:
- By understanding (cultural heritage)
- By valuing it
- people want to care for it
- By caring for it
- it will help people enjoy it
- From enjoying it
- comes a thirst to understand
- By understanding it………..etc
- A World Heritage Site is a natural or cultural site that
demonstrates influence or significance in a global context, has
Outstanding Universal Value, and is inscribed on the World Heritage
List by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Committee.
- As defined by the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation
of theWorld Heritage Convention, Outstanding Universal Value means
that a site has cultural and/or natural significance which is so
exceptional that it transcends national boundaries and is of
importance to present and future generations of all humanity.
- The list is maintained by the World Heritage Programme
administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee. The Committee
is made up of representatives of 21 of the current 189 countries
that have signed and ratified The World Heritage Convention. These
countries are referred to as State Parties.
- Being inscribed on the World Heritage List does not place any
restrictions or regulations on private property or private property
owners. Direct authority over individual sites remains with the
national, state, tribal, or local government or private
organization that owns and manages the site. National authorities
routinely report to the World Heritage Committee on issues
affecting their sites.
- A site must meet one or more of the ten World Heritage
Committee selection criteria, be on a State Party's Tentative List,
and go through a nomination process before being considered for
inscription on the World Heritage List. A site can be proposed for
inscription only by the country in which the property is
located.
- The Tentative List is an inventory of natural and cultural
heritage sites, which a country believes meet the World Heritage
Committee selection criteria and from which it intends to nominate
sites within 10 years. In order for a site to be nominated to the
World Heritage List, it must be included on its country's Tentative
List. The List may be updated at any time, but a site must be
included on the Tentative List for at least one year to be
considered for nomination.
- The Secretary of the Interior, through the National Park
Service Office of International Affairs (NPS-OIA), is responsible
for identifying sites for the United States (U.S.) Tentative List
and nominating sites to the World Heritage List. Only sites already
designated as National Historic Landmarks (NHLs) or National
Natural Landmarks (NNLs) or otherwise officially recognized as
being nationally significant (such as National Parks) are eligible
for the U.S. Tentative List.
- The Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Fish and Wildlife
and Parks, acting on behalf of the Secretary of the Interior, can
add sites to the U.S. Tentative List. NPS-OIA usually accepts site
recommendations from the public; however, at this time they are
developing new forms and procedures for updating the current List
and are not accepting new recommendations until they are complete.
An updated U.S. Tentative List will be published in 2016.