Cultural heritage is an asset to communities and societies that should be preserved for future generations. It should be accessible to all citizens and be interpreted with care, as per Wiktor Mach (Citation2019).
When people think about cultural heritage, they usually picture artifacts like paintings, drawings and prints or historical monuments and buildings or archaeological sites. But the concept is wider than that.
Definition
Cultural heritage encompasses the material and immaterial elements that characterize a society’s identity. It includes a society’s values, beliefs, customs, laws, art and knowledge – both tangible and intangible – as well as historic places and monuments. It also includes natural heritage and biodiversity.
The definition of heritage is complex and is constantly evolving. Cultural boundaries are blurred as artists, writers and scientists draw inspiration from other cultures even if they are far removed from them in terms of time and space. For example, Pablo Picasso’s paintings were influenced by Japanese prints while the architecture of houses in Liberia was inspired by neoclassical mansions built on American plantations.
UNESCO defines cultural heritage as “the practices, representations, expressions, knowledge and skills that communities, groups and, in some cases, individuals recognize as part of their cultural heritage.” It is a broad framework that includes libraries, archives and museums. It also covers cultural memory and contested history, and issues such as inclusion and exclusion, nationality and identity, multiculturalism, and repatriation of human remains.
Origins
The concept of cultural heritage grew out of a series of historically changing values that are attached to monuments, buildings, works of art and natural landscapes. These values lead to different categories of heritage such as world heritage or national heritage.
Increasingly, a broader understanding of heritage is being developed that includes intangible cultural attributes. These include social customs and traditions, artistic expressions, languages, folklore, cuisines and other characteristics that distinguish a community.
These attributes often provide a sense of identity and continuity that can be eroded by violence. Whether motivated by love of country (as when Alexander the Great destroyed the temple at Ephesus or Rome razed Carthage) or a desire for recognition (like Herostratus burning the treasures of Hercules), destruction and looting of cultural heritage is a global problem. UNESCO has instituted laws and international conventions to combat the illicit trafficking and destruction of cultural heritage. However, there are still many problems to overcome.
Significance
A cultural heritage is what a society considers important and worthy of preservation. It includes artifacts and a wide range of places, buildings, towns, landscapes, museums and collections. It can also be intangible, such as beliefs and ideas. It is the subject of a growing amount of attention by scholars, policymakers, and governments.
It is also a source of identity and well-being. It can be a factor in the location decisions of businesses and individuals, and may be a primary factor in the sense of place enjoyed by residents of communities with significant cultural heritage.
Its loss can be caused by benign neglect or major natural disasters, war and armed conflict, or deliberate destruction. UNESCO and other organizations work to protect cultural heritage. Cultural heritage can also be lost by environmental change, such as climate change and urbanization. Cultural historians study how and why people value heritage, including what they see as a legacy of their ancestors.
Preservation
Cultural heritage is an important resource of our shared humanity. It fosters social cohesion and enables us to visualize the past and envision the future. It is also indispensable for sustainable development. But the preservation of cultural heritage is not without challenges. Illicit trafficking and pillaging of artifacts, apathy among communities, natural disasters, and climate change can lead to the destruction of cultural heritage.
The physical evidence of cultural heritage can be found in archaeological sites and historical buildings, collections of artworks and artifacts, digitized records of performing arts such as dance, music, and theatre, as well as intangible cultural heritage such as traditions and social customs, beliefs, representations, expressions, and skills that people recognize as part of their culture.
However, the process of collecting, describing, preserving, and showcasing cultural heritage can be complicated by its contested history. In addition, a unified representation of a community’s cultural heritage may not be something that all members of the community can easily accept.