Cultural heritage politics in China

Author(s):  
Christina Maags
1970 ◽  
pp. 37-54
Author(s):  
Nanna Løkka

In this article, I examine ongoing debates in Norway on repatriation of cultural heritage in the form of antiquities. The focus is however not on international debates regarding colonial looting or indigenous’ rights to manage their own heritage as is usually the case within this topic, but rather on local claims for the return of cultural treasures from national museums. In cases such as those examined here, local institutions (museums and churches) have requested central museums to return cultural antiquities to the local community claiming that this is where they originally were in use and therefore belong. In this article I take a closer look at the arguments given by the local and the central stakeholders in heritage management. The arguments and practice reveal ideologies and ethical principles at work within the sector, but also show how these are constantly shifting. Further on, I discuss this practice in relation to Norwegian heritage politics.


Politeja ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (4(73)) ◽  
pp. 7-28
Author(s):  
Joanna Wardęga

The discussion on Chinese cultural heritage started to emerge as a result of inspiration coming from foreign travels of Chinese scholars-officials and as protective measures against looting of artifacts in the 19th and 20th centuries. The most spectacular robberies were carried out by Anglo-French forces in the Old Summer Palace (Yuanming Yuan) during the Second Opium War in 1860. That event became one of the cornerstones of the “century of humiliation” (bainian guochi) in the Chinese historical narrative. Even though the Communist Revolution classified historical sites as remnants of feudalism, today the Communist Party of China has assumed the role of a defender of the Chinese heritage. In contemporary China, its cultural heritage is a phenomenon of both domestic and international significance. The Chinese emphasize the antiquity of the Chinese nation, pointing to the origins of Chinese civilization as early as five thousand years ago. In contemporary China, recovering cultural treasures is important for the political legitimacy of a government and for erasing the national humiliation.


Inner Asia ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-103
Author(s):  
Dulam Bumochir ◽  
Gantulga Munkherdene

AbstractIn contemporary Mongolia—a country with 29 years’ history of international development policy—the conventional interpretation regarding the oppression of and liberation from the Soviet regime is no longer valid for understanding its politics of cultural heritage. Today, development projects and associated environmental, social and cultural assessments play a central role in safeguarding cultural heritage. Therefore, alternative interpretations are necessary to comprehend current and further processes of cultural heritage politics. This paper introduces two case studies of new cultural heritage politics involving Mongolia’s two ‘megaprojects’: Oyu Tolgoi gold and copper mining, and River Eg hydroelectric station.


Author(s):  
Anguley Isaza Urrego

<p>RESUMEN</p><p>A propósito de la declaración del 2013 como Año de la Cultura Agustiniana, y retomando las polémicas causadas por la realización de la exposición “El retorno de los ídolos” del Museo Nacional de Colombia y el Instituto Colombiano de Antropología e Historia (ICANH), se reflexiona sobre los propósitos de la actual administración del instituto en torno a los procesos que se desarrollan en el Parque Arqueológico, que implican, junto al trabajo de conservación del patrimonio cultural que allí reposa, un vínculo con la comunidad de San Agustín e Isnos. Este vínculo se plantea aquí en términos de la concepción de Rancière de la política como espacio de disenso, en contraposición al Estado/policía como espacio del ejercicio del poder.</p><p>Palabras claves</p><p>Cultura Agustiniana, ICANH, patrimonio, política, Rancière.</p><p>AGUSTINIANAPA PATSHA WATA KUNA IMASA KAGTAKUNA IMAPAPAS</p><p>Sugllapi Iskai waranga chunga kimsa watapi iacharirka imasata ka. Agustinianapa, kaugsaikuna (imami Niria) chi ñugpamanda kuna wakachidiru wasi colombiano Llagtapi (ICANH) iuiarispa imasami kaikunata kawariku, chikunapi chi plazapi kawaridirupi Kasapi chipi kaugsagkunapas. San Agustinpi e Isnoscopi mana licinciaruchu chi policiakuna o escritopas manaka wachukuna. Ima suti Rimai Simi: Agustinianapa kaugsai (ICANH) paikunapa, imasa kaugsai, Ranciére.</p><p> </p><p>ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF AUGUSTINIAN CULTURE: REFLECTIONS ON AN INTENT TURNED INTO DISCONTENT .Abstract</p><p>In the wake of the declaration of 2013 as the Year of the Augustinian Culture, and revisiting the controversy caused by the exhibition “The Return of the Idols” by the National Museum of Colombia and the Colombian Institute of Anthropology and History (ICANH), we reflect on the objectives of the current administration of the institute when carrying out the processes that are taking place in the Archaeological Park, which involve, alongside the work of preserving the cultural heritage that rests there, maintaining a link with the community of San Agustín and Isnos. This link is proposed here in terms of Rancière’s conception of politics as a space for dissent, as opposed to the state/police as a space of exercise of power. t San Agustín. Fotografía: Fabián Erazo Viveros, 2011</p><p>Keywords</p><p>Agustinian culture, ICANH, heritage, politics, Rancière.</p><p>CENT ANS DE CULTURE AUGUSTINIENNE : RÉFLEXIONS SUR UN BUT DEVENU UN NON-SENS .Résumé</p><p>A propos de la déclaration de l’année 2013 comme l’Année de la Culture Augustinienne, et reprenant les polémiques provoquées par la réalisation de l’exposition «Le retour des idoles» du Musée National de la Colombie et de l’Institut Colombien d’Anthropologie et d’Histoire (ICANH), on réfléchit sur les fins de l’administration actuelle de l’institut sur les processus qui se développent dans le Parc Archéologique, qui impliquent, en marge des travaux de préservation du patrimoine culturel qui y repose, un lien avec la communauté de San Agustín et Isnos. Ce lien est proposé ici en termes de la conception de la politique Rancière comme un espace pour la dissidence, par opposition à l’État / la police comme un espace de gouvernance.</p><p>Mots-clefs</p><p>Culture Augustinienne, ICANH, patrimoine, politique, Rancière.</p><p>CEM ANOS DA CULTURA AGUSTINIANA: REFLEXÕES ACERCA DE UM PROPÓSITO CONVERTIDO EM DESPROPÓSITO. Resumo</p><p>A propósito da declaração de 2013 como Ano da Cultura Agustiniana, e retomando as polêmicas causadas pela realização da exposição “O retorno dos ídolos” do Museu Nacional da Colômbia e o Instituto Colombiano de Antropologia e História (ICANH), reflete-se sobre os propósitos da atual administração do instituto em torno aos processos que se desenvolvem no Parque Arqueológico, que implicam, junto ao trabalho de conservação do patrimônio cultural que ali repousa, um vínculo com a comunidade de San Agustín e Isnos. Este vínculo se concebe aqui em termos da concepção de Rancière da política como espaço de dissenso, em contraposição ao Estado/polícia como espaço do exercício do poder.</p><p>Palavras chaves</p><p>Cultura Agustiniana, ICANH, patrimônio, política, Rancière.</p>


1970 ◽  
pp. 105
Author(s):  
Magdalena Hillström

The thesis traces and analyses important changes in cultural heritage and museum politics during the nineteenth century. It tells two overlapping narratives. One is about the creation and expansion of Nordiska museet, and about the museum founder, Artur Hazelius. The other concerns the indecisive construction of meaning and organisational forms for state responsibility for the cultural heritage. The nineteenth century is commonly described as a time when cultural heritage became a concern of the state. This thesis instead sheds light on the uncertainties involved in the construction of national cultural heritage politics. It emphasises the crucial role played by voluntary organisations. It observes the significance of histories and of counter-histories in the controversies obout the ownership of the cultural heritage and responsibility for maintaining it. The thesis also focuses on the emergence of a museum profession and its implications for the development of Nordiska museet and for museum politics in general.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 163-190
Author(s):  
Carlotta Capurro ◽  
Gertjan Plets

Abstract Over the past two decades, the European Commission has mobilised cultural heritage to bolster a European identity. One of the main flagship initiatives promoted to this end has been Europeana, the most extensive digital cultural project financed by the EU. At the core of the project stands europeana.eu, a digital cultural portal aggregating metadata provided by national and local heritage institutions. Central in our analysis is the Europeana Data Model (EDM). Using standardised thesauri and vocabularies, EDM offers the possibility to create a semantic contextualisation for objects, allowing semantic operations on the metadata and their enrichment with Linked Open Data on the web. Due to its overarching nature, EDM cannot deliver the granularity that cultural heritage institutions need when documenting their resources. Nonetheless, heritage institutions accept to sacrifice accuracy to have their information represented in a Europewide collection. We study how this digital heritage infrastructure was designed to enact a sense of Europeanness amongst national and local institutions. Policy documents, ethnographic research and a systematic survey amongst the European heritage institutions enabled us to trace how a standardised European metadata structure plays a role in governing local and national heritage institutions. The EDM might enable heritage stakeholders to benefit from Europeana’s online exposure while enacting a European mindset. Ultimately, this study of the metadata model enriches the debate on the EU’s cultural heritage politics, which has not fully explored the role of the digital. At the same time, it also taps into debates about infrastructure and digital governmentality.


Author(s):  
Rosa De Jorio

Up to 2012, Mali was a poster child for African democracy, despite multiple signs of growing dissatisfaction with the democratic experiment. Then disaster struck, bringing many of the nation's unresolved contradictions to international attention. A military coup carved off the country's south. A revolt by a coalition of Tuareg and extremist Islamist forces shook the north. The events, so violent and unexpected, forced experts to reassess Mali's democratic institutions and the neoliberal economic reforms enacted in conjunction with the move toward democracy. This book's detailed study of cultural heritage and its transformations provides a key to understanding the impasse that confronts Malian democracy. As the book shows, postcolonial Mali privileged its cultural heritage to display itself on the regional and international scene. The neoliberal reforms both intensified and altered this trend. Profiling heritage sites ranging from statues of colonial leaders to women's museums to historic Timbuktu, the book portrays how various actors have deployed and contested notions of heritage. These actors include not just Malian administrators and politicians but UNESCO, and non-state NGOs. The book also delves into the intricacies of heritage politics from the perspective of Malian actors and groups, as producers and receivers—but always highly informed and critically engaged—of international, national and local cultural initiatives.


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