World Heritage, Archaeological Tourism and Social Value in China

Abstract

This doctoral thesis explores the relationship between archaeological tourism, World Heritage and social value in contemporary China. It intends to provide an innovative insight into such connections by scrutinizing the impact of archaeological tourism on the social values that local communities attribute to archaeological sites that are either inscribed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites or in the process of becoming one. Archaeological tourism refers to people’s activity of consuming the past through visiting places of archaeological significance. In this doctoral thesis, the discussion concerning archaeological tourism focuses on specific types of archaeological sites; those that are either inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List or are in the process of achieving World Heritage Status. The growing commercialization of archaeological sites for tourism, compounded by the rising influence of the World Heritage List, has greatly affected the lives of communities in the immediate vicinity of archaeological sites. One way to comprehend such an effect is to analyze the changes in the social values assigned to those sites by their local residents. This is because archaeological tourism has an ability to (re)create and modify those social values attributed to archaeological sites by their local population, by changing their function, capacity, quality and meaning. In this process, the UNESCO World Heritage List also plays an important role in providing advice on the touristic transformation of these sites in preparation for World Heritage inscription, especially during the pre-nomination period.Set against this background, this doctoral thesis aims to analyze the impact of tourism on the social values that local communities attribute to archaeological sites that are either on the UNESCO World Heritage List or in the process of being assigned World Heritage status. The Daming Palace archaeological site and the Huashan rock art area are taken as its case studies. Both sites are excellent examples when it comes to representing Chinese archaeological sites in the two main phases of attaining World Heritage status; nomination and full designation. In order to achieve the general aim of this doctoral research, four objectives are proposed. The first is the identification ofthe main issues that have emerged from the current development of archaeological tourism in China. Secondly, this thesis critically examines the development of archaeological tourism at the two case study sites. Thirdly, an in-depth analysis is made of the perceptions and attitudes of local communities towards such development in the two cases studied. The final objective is the discussion of the impact of archaeological tourism on social values attributed to the two sites by their local communities with reference to the influence of the World Heritage List. To attain these objectives, the investigation undertaken in this doctoral thesis employs qualitative approaches under the theoretical framework of archaeological ethnography. The ultimate goal of the research is to encourage further reflection on the existing management mechanisms of archaeological heritage in China and worldwide.

Esta tesis doctoral analiza la relación entre turismo arqueológico, Patrimonio Mundial y valor social en China, proporcionando una visión innovadora en las conexiones establecidas entre cada uno de estos tres parámetros. Se pretende examinar el efecto que el turismo arqueológico está teniendo en los valores sociales que las comunidades locales atribuyen a los sitios arqueológicos que, o están inscritos ya como Patrimonio Mundial de la UNESCO, o que están en proceso de convertirse en tales. El primero de los elementos centrales en este trabajo es el “turismo arqueológico”, concepto con el que nos referimos a la actividad de consumir el pasado a través de la visita a lugares que contienen monumentos y otro tipo de cultural material del pasado. En muchas partes del mundo, los sitios arqueológicos se utilizan cada vez más para fines comerciales sobre todo mediante la promoción del turismo cultural, a la vez que, dada su capacidad para hacer propaganda narrativas nacionales y siguiendo una tradición establecida durante los dos últimos siglos, siguen siendo explotados como medio de promoción del nacionalismo. Con esto quiero dar a entender que estas dos funciones que acabo de exponer más arriba, por una parte la promoción de la identidad nacional y la educación del público sobre la narrativa nacional y por la otra el turismo arqueológico-cultural no son incompatibles, siendo este último el de más reciente aparición pero habiéndose convertido hoy en día en un componente cada vez más importante de la economía local e incluso nacional, puesto que fomenta la generación de ingresos y la creación de puestos de trabajo. El segundo de los elementos centrales a esta tesis doctoral es el Patrimonio Mundial. El análisis de la forma en la que el turismo está afectando a la arqueología se centrará no en todos los sitios arqueológicos sin distinción, sino en aquellos que ya han inscritos en la Lista del Patrimonio Mundial o están en proceso avanzado de conseguirlo. Con “Lista del Patrimonio Mundial”. El valor social, el tercer elemento crucial en esta tesis doctoral, está relacionado con la reflexión sobre las comunidades locales en áreas de Patrimonio Mundial.