The “Cultural Turn” and the Reconstruction of Heritage

Frowe, Helen and Matravers, Derek (2022). The “Cultural Turn” and the Reconstruction of Heritage. In: Finkelstein, Claire; Gillman, Derek and Rosén, Frederik eds. The Preservation of Art and Culture in Times of War. New York, USA: Oxford University Press, pp. 53–69.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780197610565.003.0003

Abstract

Over the past four decades there has been a shift in approach about the conservation of cultural heritage from preserving the historical integrity of the object (“the object-centered stance”) to preserving the meaning of the object for specific cultures (“the cultural stance”). The latter approach has foregrounded the involvement of “stakeholders” in deciding about heritage. This has led to a tension; the former approach tends to oppose reconstruction of damaged or destroyed heritage, the latter not necessarily so. The cultural stance can only take us so far in sorting this out as it only identifies who should decide rather than the substantial issue of what decision should be made. In circumstances in which the damage or destruction of heritage constitutes an injustice to the stakeholders, our focus should be on the nature of the compensation owed. Arguably, compensation provides stakeholders with an argument in favor of reconstruction. The chapter concludes with an examination of the features of damaged or destroyed heritage that could be reconstructed as part of compensation.

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