LAWS7828 Cultural Heritage Law

Cultural Heritage Law explores the interface between law and cultural heritage. It covers as wide a scope as the term cultural heritage implies, from the tangible to the intangible, addressing the philosophical and contextual framework that shapes and gives content to the notion of cultural heritage. The process of determining what objects should be elevated to the status of cultural heritage is, however, more complex than might be at first apparent.

This course begins with a consideration of the nature of this complex process and its dynamic components, including the nature of the process itself, interest groups that affect the process and the nature of the conflicting interests that arise. It includes for example, addressing questions such as who ‘owns’ cultural heritage, what interests can claim to be protected, how notions of heritage underpin social structures and social regulation, and the difficulties of addressing these questions in the formulation of culture policies. A comparison is made of categories of objects protected as cultural heritage in a number of international and national laws.