Improved Strategic Value Best Practices

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The Strategic Value of Archaeological Best Practices

On the 40th Anniversary of the World Heritage Convention

Douglas C. Comer (USA)

Co-President, ICAHM and Principal, Cultural Site Research and Management, Inc.

27 November 2012

Cusco, Peru


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The World Heritage Convention In 1972, UNESCO adopted the

Convention Concerning theProtection of the WorldCultural and Natural Heritage

Consideringthat protection ofthis heritage at the national

level often remainsincomplete,

Recallingthatthe Constitutionof the

Organization provides that itwill maintain, increase, anddiffuse knowledge, by assuringthe conservation andprotection of the world's

heritage
http://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.php@URL_ID=15244&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.htmlhttp://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.php@URL_ID=15244&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.htmlhttp://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.php@URL_ID=15244&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.htmlhttp://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.php@URL_ID=15244&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html


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Constitution of the

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

Adopted London, 16 November 1945

That since wars begin in the minds ofmen, it is in the minds of men that thedefences of peace must be constructed;

That ignorance of each others ways andlives has been a common cause,

throughout the history of mankind, ofthat suspicion and mistrust between thepeoples of the world through whichtheir differences have all too oftenbroken into war;

That the great and terrible war whichhas now ended was a war madepossible by the propagation throughignorance and prejudice, of thedoctrine of the inequality of men andraces;


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UNESCO Constitution ... peace must therefore be

founded, if it is not to fail, uponthe intellectual and moralsolidarity of mankind.

[We] are agreed anddetermined to develop and toincrease the means ofcommunication between theirpeoples and to employ these

means for the purposes ofmutual understanding and atruer and more perfectknowledge of each otherslives;


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The World Heritage Convention Article 5

To ensure that effective and active

measures are taken for theprotection, conservation andpresentation of the cultural andnatural heritage situated on itsterritory, each State Party to this

Convention shall endeavor, in so faras possible, and as appropriate foreach country

Article 8

Established a World HeritageCommittee (21 States Parties

Article 11

Established a World Heritage List and

a List of World Heritage in Danger Timbuktu


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Branding

the World

HeritageList

In the end, what

sets World

Heritage Sites

apart from otherlists of must

see sites?

If we look to the

founding

documents, they

should be models

of effective

resource

management


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Tourism at World Heritage Sites

Success in the industry is measured by numbers of visitors, but who benefits?


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World Peace Through Understanding

or Economic Benefit?

Surely it must be both

Yet, values are difficult toassess:

Who benefits?

The peculiar concerns ofarchaeology

At what cost to resourcesand communities?


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The Missing Statistics:

Phantom Benefits

How many visitors (really)?

Where do visitors come from?

How much do they spend?

Who receives what is spent? International corporations

Women and children

Entrepreneurs

How is tax revenuedistributed?

Site maintenance?

Local communities?


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Material in Context

Archaeologistsanalyze

uncontaminated

material in

context

Residue analysis to

reveal ancient diet

Stratigraphic

integrity


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The City Beneath the City

Brunalleschiexcavated 700years ago todiscover the

architecturalknowledge ofancient Romans

More recently, acat discovered2,000 yearcatacombs

Material in context is important Historic

Urban Settlements and Historic

Monuments in urban areas


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The Cost of Tourism: Abrasion


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The Cost of Tourism: Looting

Archaeological

materials are finite,

non-renewable, and

irreplaceable

Looting will occur in the

absence of protection

Original material can be

analyzed

Repair is not the solution

Authenticity is sacrificed

Attempted theft of

central medallion in

Biclinium 849, 2009

(Courtesy PNT andCourtauld)


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The Cost of Tourism:

Material Degradation

On a 3x4m surface, more than one

half m3 of sandstone eroded from

the inner chamber wall of Al-Khazna,

mostly in from 1980s to 2000s


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Most Important Threat: Environmental

Degradation

Example:

Development of

impervioussurfaces


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The Cost of Tourism: Environmental

Degradation

Flooding

damages

subsurface

archaeologicalsites by

erosion

Water carrieschemicals that

destroy stone


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The Cost of Tourism: Poor Preservation

Treatments

As popularityof a siteincreases, so

do thenumbers ofoffers to helpby means of

poorly fundedand conceivedtreatments.


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Tourism and Preservation ICAHM launches

a series ofpublicationsabout destructive

effects of poorlymanaged tourism

Petra

Machu Picchu

Angkor

Pompeii


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Best Practices The First International Conference on

Best Practices in World Heritage:Archaeology, the Island of Menorca,

Spain, April 2012. Complutense University of

Madrid,

the Council of Menorca Island

held in coordination withICAHM.

This was the largest conference everassembled for the express purpose ofdiscussing archaeological heritage

management.

Outcome:The Menorca

Statement on theDevelopment and Uses ofBest Practices in theManagement ofArchaeological WorldHeritage Sites


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Best Practices

The Menorca Statement

The Menorca Statement is of our intention to developbest practices for the management of archaeologicalmaterials at World Heritage Sites

Nomination dossiers must establish that sites nominatedwill adhere to best practices.

Alternately, nomination dossiers should include adetailed plan that will describe the means by whichcapacity to adhere to best practices will be developed.

This provides an opportunity for the nominatingcountry to access many sources that can helpbuild management capacity


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Core Best Practices Committee

Core Member Establish Advisory Groups for*

Chris Young Northern Europe

Tim Williams Silk Route Countries

Ian Lilley Southeast Asia

Willem J.H. Willems* Central and Eastern Europe, Russia

Douglas C. Comer* North and Central America

Liu Guo Xiang: China

Akira Ono Japan

Charles Musiba Sub-Saharan Africa

Alicia Castillo Southern Europe and South America

Assaad Seif Middle East

John Peterson Indo-pacific (especially islands)

* Chairs * including regional professional societies


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Invited Scientific Committees

ICOMOS Scientific Committees Representative

International Committee on Risk Preparedness (ICORP) Rohit Jigyasu

International Cultural Tourism Committee (ICTC) Sue Millar

International Committee on Underwater Cultural Heritage (ICUCH) Thjis Maarleveld

International Committee on Interpretation and Presentation of Cultural

Heritage Sites (ICIP) Niel Silberman


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Time Table

Task Date

Core Committee members identify participating individuals

and organizations for their regions

March 1, 2013

Draft list of topics circulated for review May 1, 2013

Reviews returned June 1, 2013

Topics assigned to individuals and work groups July 1, 2013

The Next 40 Years:


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The Next 40 Years:

The World as Las Vegas?We are at a crossroad

A World Heritage List of tourismattractions

OR

A model for effective archaeological

heritage management

World Heritage Sites sacrificed to

global development

OR

Building capacity to preserve the

common heritage of humanity

Moving toward the goals of

international understanding and

respect for diverse cultures

OR

Destroying and homogenizing

cultural heritage until it is a parody ofitself

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Improved Strategic Value Best Practices