When the term cultural heritage is used, it usually refers to artifacts (paintings, drawings, prints, mosaics, sculptures and the like), historical monuments and buildings, archaeological sites and even landscapes. It also encompasses a range of intangible elements, such as customary practices, representations and expressions, knowledge and skills and the instruments and objects associated with them. This notion of culture is much broader than that of tangible heritage, and it aims to include all the evidence of human creativity.
Intangible cultural heritage, a term that has been formulated only recently, is the part of a community’s identity that is not physically present but which is transmitted from generation to generation and which enables them to perceive their environment and interact with it. It includes the way they live their lives, their values and traditions, their interaction with nature and their history (Article 2.1 of the ICH Convention).
It is also the means by which individuals can relate to one another, and the source of community spirit and solidarity. Heritage is therefore a vital part of the very fabric of societies and communities and its loss can have catastrophic effects in times of war or natural disasters.
There are a number of difficulties inherent in the protection of cultural heritage. First of all, it is not always easy to determine what is and is not cultural heritage. Moreover, what might constitute cultural heritage in one context may not be in the next or vice versa, especially when there are changes in government, social values, war and conflict or the marginalisation of particular groups.
The cultural heritage concept has evolved to reflect these changes in our understanding of the world and our sense of identity, and it is important that it continues to do so in the future. It is also vital that the world’s cultural heritage continues to be protected, not just in individual nations but at international level by a legally binding convention.
While UNESCO’s criteria for the inscription of cultural heritage on the World Heritage List are based on universal principles, there is a risk that these criteria will limit the diversity of the past and lead to an uncritical acceptance of the heritage that is being sold. For example, in 2013 a Skinner auction house retracted a Sioux beaded and quilled hide shirt that it had advertised as being of the Little Thunder family because of questions about its authenticity.
As the definition of cultural heritage evolves and becomes more pervasive, federal policies – whether in Canada or elsewhere – will likely move away from a model of protecting only physical heritage objects and towards giving greater attention to intangible heritage. This will require a concerted effort from universities, folk arts groups and local museums to encourage the development of cultural heritage initiatives at the regional level. Only then can the true richness of cultural heritage be recognised and preserved. In the end, it is the intangible heritage of peoples that will ensure their survival in the face of change and the challenges of the future.