UNESCO Cultural Heritage Research Articles

Seismic Hazard Assessment at Municipality Scale: UNESCO Cultural Heritage Site of San Gimignano, Italy

AbstractIn the frame of the project Rischio Sismico negli Edifici Monumentali-RiSEM (Seismic Risk in Monumental Buildings), a seismogeological reference model was developed for the historical cente...

A viewpoint on the reconstruction of destroyed UNESCO Cultural World Heritage Sites

The destruction of UNESCO Cultural World Heritage Sites (WHS) in conflict zones is devastating and continues to spark heated debate on reconstruction. Craft skills and construction materials can reinstate lost physical fabric. Communities who identify with WHS can ascribe meanings and values to the new fabric, thereby reclaiming their heritage. However, it is difficult to retrieve Outstanding Universal Value (OUV), including authenticity and integrity after irreversible damage has been done. ‘If a World Heritage property is destroyed and later reconstructed, could it still be recognised as World Heritage?’ is a critical question, open to debate. It was raised during a colloquium on ‘Post-Trauma Reconstruction’ held at ICOMOS Headquarters in March 2016. A participant commented that ‘it is not possible to punish the State Party if a disaster or a war occurred’, but ‘there was no further exchange on this aspect’. In this paper, I argue that the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention may need to shift the spotlight from ‘exceptional circumstances’ to the contemporaneity of heritage. An oxymoron, perhaps, but it may sustain the culture of World Heritage inscription in conflict and post-conflict zones. A new category, in concert with three qualifying conditions, is proposed.

Volcanic Geoheritage and Geotourism Perspectives in Hungary: a Case of an UNESCO World Heritage Site, Tokaj Wine Region Historic Cultural Landscape, Hungary

In protected areas (e.g. geoparks, UNESCO sites), the identification of the different aspects of geoheritage site values is part of a holistic concept of protection, education and sustainable development. In the past years, significant progress has been achieved in the volcano tourism in Hungary as shown by the acceptance of two geoparks as members of Global Geoparks Network. They are the Bakony–Balaton Geopark and the Novohrad–Nograd Geopark, which involves also the old village of Hollokő UNESCO cultural heritage site. These geoparks as well as the recently (2013) opened Kemenes Volcano Park used primarily the volcanological natural values in their application, and these play still an important role to attract the visitors. The Tokaj Wine Region (TWR) Historic Cultural Landscape (inscribed on the World Heritage List in 2002 as a cultural site) is also characterized by high geodiversity due to complex volcanic settings (andesite–dacite composite cones, silicic pyroclastites, lava domes, hydrothermal activity) and specialized viticultural land use of the cultural landscape. While the area of the Bakony–Balaton Geopark is situated in a well-known region and has a long tradition in tourism with a lot of innovation, the Tokaj wine region needs a significant effort to introduce their volcanic geoheritage values into the tourism market. The systematic inventory and assessment of the geoheritage elements are essential steps in different scales of geoconservation and establishment of the priorities in site management. This inventory work emphasizes the relationship between the sites at different scales and highlights the interaction between eroded volcanic relief and human activity. The inventory classifies the objects in two main geosite categories: (a) volcanic edifices resulting from denudation and inversion of the relief and (b) geodiversity sites connected to land use traditions of the cultural landscape. The assessment evaluates the scientific, cultural/historical, aesthetic and socio-economic values and helps to define priorities in site management. The recently suggested 900 km long, cross-Hungary volcano route starts at the TWR and involves additional 50 planned stations all along the country. They represent various volcanological phenomena from silicic ignimbrite sheets through andesitic stratocones to basaltic volcanic fields. These meet significant historic, cultural, gastronomic tourism attractions to support the promotion of volcanic geoheritage.

Heritage Conservation, UNESCO and Intangible Cultural Heritage in Eastern Canada

Since Canada has signed the UNESCOConvention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritageof 1972, it has had some eighteen cultural and natural sites selected for the World Heritage List that represent internationally significant nature reserves and natural wonders, significant Canadian architectural history, important sites representing Canadian aboriginal culture and geological treasures of world-wide importance. These internationally significant sites have put Canada on the world stage in both the heritage conservation field and in the national and international tourism sector. What Canada has decided to inscribe on this list has had a major impact at the local, regional, national and international arenas. The author of this paper reflects on some of the ancillary guiding charters and conventions since the World Heritage Convention was implemented that have led to where we are today in the field of heritage conservation in Canada. He goes on to predict some areas where heritage conservation will be going in Canada in the near future. He argues that Canada could likewise have its rich intangible culture play a similarly significant role if the Canadian government signed the UNESCOConvention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritageof 2003. Last, he discusses some of the recent developments in eastern Canada in intangible cultural heritage, conservation and the sustaining of traditions.

The Mediterranean Diet from Ancel Keys to the UNESCO Cultural Heritage. A Pattern of Sustainable Development between Myth and Reality

This paper deals with the Mediterranean Diet as a potential tool for increasing knowledge and promoting a sustainable development especially in least developed and developing regions. The confirmation of the MD as an Intangible Heritage of Humanity, recognized by UNESCO in 2010, is producing a significant social effect in the seven nations and communities involved. In addition in 2012 the MD has been included by the FAO at the top of the list of the most sustainable diets in the planet. The double recognition of this life style is generating a new approach to this cultural heritage by the stakeholders who are progressively recognizing that it may become a new tool to develop green economy and eco-tourism. To this end the author analyses the real and mythological genealogy of the MD in order to bring out its cultural, economic and social potentiality.

Creative Pansori: A New Korean Approach in Music Therapy.

Creative Pansori is a music therapeutic method especially designed for people receiving treatment for depression. Developed by the Korean music therapist Hyunju Kim, Creative Pansori was internationally presented at the World Congress for Music Therapy 2014 in Krems / Austria. Based on elements of the Korean UNESCO cultural heritage “Pansori”, Hyunju Kim created a clinical method integrating the patient’s self-expressive narration, the therapist’s drumming, and specific verbal and non-verbal interactivities.Creative Pansori mirrors the spirit of traditional forms of Pansori which date back to the 17th century and are considered to have their roots in Korean shamanism. This fact raises two crucial questions: How can tradition-based practices be applied in modern clinical, namely psychiatric contexts? And can these methods also be used in a cross-cultural way? As epic biographical practices, therapeutic drumming, and highly nuanced arts-related communication between therapist and patient are important phenomena in various cultures, we assume Creative Pansori to be of possibly cross-cultural music therapeutic value. To verify this hypothesis, however, requires further international and interdisciplinary investigations.Creative Pansori seems to trigger multifaceted psychological and neurobiological processes which facilitate therapeutic coping and cognitive re-organisation. In order to synchronise somatic micro-structures the therapist’s high empathetic reactivity is required.

Protecting the past for the future: How does law protect tangible and intangible cultural heritage in armed conflict?

AbstractIn war, individuals are vulnerable not only physically but also in terms of their cultural identity, and the obliteration of cultural heritage often becomes a central issue. This is particularly the case in armed conflicts with an ethnic, cultural or religious character. In some regions, cultural heritage consists more of monuments and objects; it is a “tangible” heritage, mostly protected by the law of armed conflict. Elsewhere, where structures are impermanent, cultural heritage is mainly expressed through orality, gestures, rituals, music and other forms of expression that individuals create using various media and instruments. Such heritage is mainly “intangible”. This essay aims to show that cultural heritage is both tangible and intangible, and that the law which protects such heritage is not limited to the law of armed conflict. Cultural heritage also benefits from the protection of other applicable instruments, such as human rights treaties and the UNESCO cultural heritage conventions.

Macedonia, UNESCO, and Intangible Cultural Heritage: The Challenging Fate of Teškoto

In Macedonia debates about heritage are played out along the fault lines of ethnic and religious conflict as well as a faltering economy and threats from neighbors about interpretations of history. The country’s 2002 and 2004 failed applications for a UNESCO Masterpiece of Intangible Cultural Heritage and its ongoing submissions of representative lists provide a valuable case study of how rural folklore symbols are selectively adopted into heritage discourse and elevated to iconic status. This essay analyzes Teskoto (the Heavy/Difficult Dance) as featured in two UNESCO Masterpiece applications as well as in village contexts, ensemble performances, an annual staged ritual, and tourist appropriations. The story of how Teskoto became a national symbol but failed to achieve UNESCO status as ICH illuminates the manner in which nationalist discourse shapes performance practices.

New Research in Polarimetric SAR Technique for Archaeological Purposes using ALOS PALSAR Data

ABSTRACTThe work presented here is a further study of the UNESCO Cultural Heritage sites of Samarra (Iraq) and Djebel Barkal archaeological area (Sudan) by means of polarimetric products of the Japanese satellite ALOS PALSAR. Despite the Iraqi war ending in 2011, the city of Samarra is still included on the UNESCO List of Sites in Danger (since 2007). The study of the city presented here began three years ago with the analysis of optical data. The work showed an urban and agricultural expansion affecting the integrity of the city. An attempt to study Samarra by using the polarimetric SAR technique was made in previous years with the employment of the ALOS PALSAR satellite. That study was limited to the analysis of polarimetric descriptors such as entropy and alpha angle, parameters that gave results regarding prevalence of double‐bounce and volume scattering mechanisms in the area investigated. The second archaeological site, Djebel Barkal, is one of five archaeological sites located in a semi‐desert area along the River Nile, in the Napatan Region considered to be part of Nubia. The site was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2003. Polarimetric descriptors considered in previous studies of the zone were entropy and alpha angle. Also in this case, a deeper analysis was carried out with the addition of a second ALOS PALSAR polarimetric SAR image, acquired 3 years later. In the present work, more polarimetric parameters, such as Freeman and Yamaguchi decompositions, are taken into account in order to observe scattering mechanisms both upon the structures already known and the area around them. Thanks to these decompositions and the archaeological maps that were available, it was possible to validate backscattered responses in ALOS PALSAR images as archaeological structures. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

In situ static and dynamic investigations on the “Torre Grossa” masonry tower

Many ancient masonry towers represent one of the most relevant characteristics of both the Italian and the whole European territory. To preserve their cultural and economic value, they often call for a deeper investigation to assess their state of conservation. This paper offers a contribution to the issue of monitoring and analysis of monumental masonry tower, by discussing an experimental investigation survey made on an illustrative masonry tower: the Italian Medieval “Torre Grossa” (Big Tower) of San Gimignano in Toscana (Italy). The tower is part of the UNESCO cultural heritage after 1990 together with the city centre; it dates back to the thirteenth century and its height is about 55m (one of the tallest masonry tower in Italy) with a square cross-section whose side is about 9.5m. During the experimental campaign, both static and dynamic tests were performed. Static tests (flat-jack and laboratory test on cored specimens) were used to estimate the mechanical properties and the ultimate strength of masonry. Dynamic tests led to the measurements of the natural frequencies and corresponding modal shapes of the whole monument. By using the finite element technique, a 3D model of the tower was built (macro-modelling) and it was calibrated on the basis of the in situ investigation survey; the degree of restrain offered by the neighbouring buildings was estimated by tuning the numerical results with those obtained from the dynamic tests. The paper, by discussing the design and results of the experimental campaign, aims at offering a contribution to both the investigation and the structural behaviour of historic masonry towers providing useful hints to deepen the knowledge on their structural behaviour.

Landslide temporal analysis and susceptibility assessment as bases for landslide mitigation, Machu Picchu, Peru

Multi-temporal landslide occurrence information acquired through aerial photo interpretation and field mapping was used to assess occurrence frequencies on the slopes around the UNESCO cultural world heritage site of Machu Picchu, Peru. This showed that the coarse time resolution of the historical landslide information may lead to inaccurate interpretations regarding landslide occurrence frequencies in some parts of the study area. In addition, the assumption that the past landslide frequency can be used to describe the future landslide occurrence was not proved in the study area. Thereafter, unique conditional analyses were undertaken to assess landslide susceptibility using a limited number of preparatory factor maps. It showed that large majority of the Inca City is located on least susceptible areas within the region. The results of the susceptibility assessment combined with landslide occurrence frequencies may serve as a basis for the landslide hazard mitigation in the studied area. For these purposes, pixel-based susceptibility maps were generalized into expert-defined landslide management units. These units provide site managers with easily understandable and applicable hence reliable information about future landslide occurrences. An approach describing usage of the resulting susceptibility maps for onsite mitigation purposes was described with respect to the needs of Machu Picchu site managers.

Border wars: the ongoing temple dispute between Thailand and Cambodia and UNESCO’s World Heritage List

This article traces the history of the ongoing tension between Thailand and Cambodia over a beautiful Khmer temple located on the unresolved border between the two countries. The struggle is noteworthy for its transethnic character, the deep and imbricated history of the players, and the fight’s intersection with dramatic contemporary politics in both countries. The paper argues that the dispute implicates existential challenges to ancient and contemporary political legitimacy. It emphasizes the significant role iconic sites can play in the construction of national identity as well as in the competitive global tourism market. The paper questions UNESCO cultural heritage policy concerning contested nominations to the World Heritage List and offers a recommendation for future treatment of similar cases.

Preliminary Investigations on Odonata from the Lake Ohrid (Macedonia)

ABSTRACTThere is much information about odonates in lakes in the whole Europe. The lack of data about this group of invertebrates in the Lake Ohrid—the UNESCO natural and cultural heritage is unusual. The aim of our paper is to cover that field. Material included 17 species and 476 specimens of only adult Odonata, which was collected in June 2009 year on 21 stations of the Lake Ohrid. Such number of species is not very high and appears in low differential of phyto-littoral of the lake. The most numerous species is Enallagma cyathigerum, which is widespread and associated with nymphaeid and elodeid plant species. Such big number of individuals the species is supported by a large belt of elodeids (Potamegeton perfoliatus) occurring in the Lake Ohrid. Four odonates belong to South-European species; the other ones are widespread European species. Probably the reason is position of the Lake Ohrid in the mountains, which made climate more moderate.

Veto Players and Central Bank Gold Sales

In this article I explore the effects of veto players in formal government institutions on gold sale policies in Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Germany. One of the most active areas of recent ...

Modelling methods of historic masonry buildings under seismic excitation

Historic masonry buildings in seismically active regions are severely damaged by earthquakes, since they certainly have not been explicitly designed by the original builders to withstand seismic effects, at least not in a ‘scientific’ way from today’s point of view. The assessment of their seismic safety is an important first step in planning the appropriate interventions for improving their pertinent resistance. This paper presents a procedure for assessing the seismic safety of historic masonry buildings based on measurements of their natural frequencies and numerical simulations. The modelling of the brittle nonlinear behaviour of masonry is carried out on the macro-level. As an example, a recently completed investigation of the seismic behaviour of the Aachen Cathedral is given, this being the first German cultural monument to be included in the UNESCO cultural heritage list in 1978. Its construction goes back to the 9th century a.d. and it is considered as one of the finest examples of religious architecture in Central Europe. The investigation is based on measurements of the natural frequencies at different positions and numerical simulations using a detailed finite element model of the Cathedral.

The role of environmental sulfur on degradation of ignimbrites of the Cathedral in Morelia, Mexico

We assess the damage on ignimbrite blocks used to build major architectonic monuments in Morelia, Mexico. Morelia belongs to the UNESCO Cultural Heritage and is located at the crossing of the Mexican Volcanic Belt, the Sierra Madre Mountains, the Coconuts and the Rivera plaques. The Cathedral and a beautiful Aqueduct are the main monuments built with blocks of ignimbrites. This study was performed on blocks of ignimbrites removed from the cathedral during a restoration campaign. We characterized the mechanical, chemical and physical properties of ignimbrite blocks from the four facades and the balustrade of the cathedral and compared them with the corresponding properties of “healthy” blocks from recently excavated nearby quarries. Techniques include mechanical testing with a sclerometer, Scanning Electron Microscopy and Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy, Petrography, sulfur and carbon analyses by combustion technique, X Ray fluorescence and X Ray diffraction. The blocks from nearby quarries have lower values of mechanical strengths than those used to built the cathedral, therefore, the former blocks cannot be used to replace particularly damaged blocks. We found a clear correlation between the contents of environmental sulfur and the degradation of the mechanical strength of the ignimbrites. Since the main sources of environmental sulfur in the city are motor vehicles and a paper factory in the southwest from where the main winds come from, we conclude that the damage is from anthropogenic origin.

Eighteenth-Century Cultural Process in Delaware Valley Folk Building

Previous articleNext article No AccessEighteenth-Century Cultural Process in Delaware Valley Folk BuildingHenry GlassieHenry Glassie Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUS Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Winterthur Portfolio Volume 71972 Published for the Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, Inc. Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/495804 Views: 18Total views on this site Citations: 9Citations are reported from Crossref Copyright 1972 The Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur MuseumPDF download Crossref reports the following articles citing this article:Brian D. Crane Language, Church, Material Culture, and Identity among Eighteenth-Century Swedish Descendant Communities in the Delaware Valley Region, Historical Archaeology 56, no.11 (Nov 2021): 104–130.https://doi.org/10.1007/s41636-021-00312-5Meghann E. Jack An Architecture of Closeness: The Ross Family Double Farmhouse in St. Mary’s, Nova Scotia, Material Culture Review 90-91 (Apr 2021): 59–89.https://doi.org/10.7202/1076798arRichard MacKinnon Heritage Conservation, UNESCO and Intangible Cultural Heritage in Eastern Canada, Ethnologies 36, no.1-21-2 (Oct 2016): 383–403.https://doi.org/10.7202/1037614arFredrik Ekengren Materialities on the Move: Identity and Material Culture Among the Forest Finns in Seventeenth-Century Sweden and America, (Jan 2013): 147–165.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6202-6_9Angèle Smith Mapped Landscapes: The Politics of Metaphor, Knowledge, and Representation on Nineteenth-Century Irish Ordnance Survey Maps, Historical Archaeology 41, no.11 (Oct 2016): 81–91.https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03376995Bradford Botwick, Debra A. McClane Landscapes of Resistance: A View of the Nineteenth-Century Chesapeake Bay Oyster Fishery, Historical Archaeology 39, no.33 (Oct 2016): 94–112.https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03376696 William Chapman Irreconcilable Differences: Urban Residences in the Danish West Indies, 1700-1900, Winterthur Portfolio 30, no.2/32/3 (Oct 2015): 129–172.https://doi.org/10.1086/wp.30.2_3.4618498 Dell Upton Vernacular Domestic Architecture in Eighteenth-Century Virginia, Winterthur Portfolio 17, no.2/32/3 (Oct 2015): 95–119.https://doi.org/10.1086/496075Bushman Richard L. Family Security in the Transition From Farm To City, 1750-1850, Journal of Family History 6, no.33 (Sep 1981): 238–256.https://doi.org/10.1177/036319908100600301