Cultural Heritage: An Introduction to Entanglements of Knowledge, Politics and Property Cover Image

Cultural Heritage: An Introduction to Entanglements of Knowledge, Politics and Property
Cultural Heritage: An Introduction to Entanglements of Knowledge, Politics and Property

Author(s): Kristin Kuutma
Subject(s): Anthropology
Published by: Tartu Ülikool, Eesti Rahva Muuseum, Eesti Kirjandusmuuseum
Keywords: heritage theorisation; critical assessment; knowledge production

Summary/Abstract: Heritage is today actively implemented in policies globally, and yet the categorisation and instrumentalisation of the realm of cultural heritage entails rather contradictory aspects. In the discourse of culture, heritage is an abstraction, and what it signifies is subject to interpretation. This contribution gives a brief overview of the contemporary discussion of the epistemological and ontological premises of cultural heritage. It has been stated that heritage is a social construction, and a mode of cultural production that emanates from a metacultural relationship. The critical assessment and theorisation of heritage includes an enquiry into tangible and intangible heritagisation, knowledge production, heritage politics, and the question of ownership.

  • Issue Year: III/2009
  • Issue No: 2
  • Page Range: 5-12
  • Page Count: 8
  • Language: English