• Digital Humanities and Cultural Heritage

Abstract A concept such as that of “cultural identity” seems primarily belonging to the historic-artistic domain, but understanding its meaning is also fundamental for legal scholars dealing with cultural heritage policies and administration. This article examines how that notion has been shaped by legislators at different levels, revealing specific meanings depending on whether we are dealing with international conventions or national norms, and with tangible or intangible cultural heritage. The comparison of international conventions and national legislation highlights the clash between different orientations in the cultural heritage sector, namely between nationalists and internationalists. From a regulatory perspective, this clash of interests is reflected in the opposing concepts of “common heritage of mankind” and “national cultural identity,” whose legal implications need to be addressed. These two definitions are examined and challenged in an effort to understand whether they still have a legal meaning or if they have been replaced by a “global” notion of cultural identity. From a more general perspective, through an analysis of three case studies, the article reveals the role played by legal traditions when the same matter is regulated both by national and international legislative interventions enacted in different time periods. Think globally, act locally.

A particularly important issue in the context of cultural heritage management is currently the question of sustainable development, in which cultural heritage objects are analyzed in terms of their economic, social and cultural values. Most accepted perspective in the current discussions focuses on the formulation and implementation of cultural policies. While on the other hand much less space is given to local communities, their needs and expectations in relation to the available resources of cultural heritage. In this text I will discuss the issue of the functioning of various objects of cultural heritage within local communities and management of those objects at the local level. Particular emphasis will be placed on the issue of multiplicity of cultural heritage stakeholders and interactions between them.

A territorial condition for the inscription on the UNESCO Lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage was posed by two Decisions adopted by the Committee in Bali. It was thereby established that in future, the Committee will not inscribe on the Lists elements that focus on practices within the territories of States different than the ones nominating the elements. On the one hand, this condition for inscription promotes cooperation amongst State Parties in the field of Intangible Cultural Heritage, since the inscription of an element with practices performed in territories of several States can only be achieved for all the practices at stake through multinational nominations. On the other hand, the condition of territoriality may hinder inscription on the Lists and the corresponding safeguarding of elements, since it is complex to propose multinational nominations. Moreover, this condition reserves the inscription and therefore the safeguarding of one element to only its territorial State, therefore problems may arise if this State has not ratified the Convention of 2003 and so may not be able to nominate the element at stake, or if it does not have sufficient resources to do so, or otherwise does not want to nominate the element in question. Furthermore, the new condition of territoriality prevents a State Party from nominating an element that is located wholly or partly in the territory of a different State, paradoxically even if the latter consents. The condition of territoriality was then applied during the Committee’s eighth session in 2013, in relation to an element nominated by Azerbaijan for inscription on the Urgent Safeguarding List. Yet, the issue arises in regards to the legality of the Decisions of the Committee posing the territorial condition examined here.

Multimedia technologies have recently created the conditions for a true revolution in the Cultural Heritage domain, particularly in reference to the study, exploitation, and fruition of artistic works. New opportunities are arising for researchers in the field of multimedia to share their research results with people coming from the field of art and culture, and viceversa. This paper gathers together opinions and ideas shared during the final discussion session at the 1st International Workshop on Multimedia for Cultural Heritage, as a summary of the problems and possible directions to solve to them.

The paper presents all the issues and problems that arose during the second international conference of the Project HEURIGHT1 on Cultural Heritage in the European Union: Legal Perspectives and Contemporary Challenges, whihch took place at the Institute of Art of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw (Poland), offering some reflections on the intermediate results reached by HEURIGHT project.