Options
The Chinese making of the maritime Silk Road heritage = 中國製造的海上絲綢之路遺產
Principal Investigator
Department
Grant Awarding Body
Research Grants Council
Grant Type
Faculty Development Scheme
Project Code
UGC/FDS15/H23/24
Amount Awarded
HK$650,811
Funding Year
2024-2025
Duration of the Project
18 months
Status
Ongoing
Abstract
When we think about World Heritage Sites, we often picture a straightforward relationship between UNESCO, national governments, and local communities. However, this view misses crucial players in between – regional governments, museums, and cultural institutions that do much of the actual work in heritage management and promotion. These organizations, which operate between national and local levels, play vital roles in World Heritage nominations. They invest significant resources, manage heritage sites, and shape how cultural heritage is presented to the public. Yet, current research tends to overlook their importance, focusing instead on national-local relationships. This study examines China’s Maritime Silk Road (MSR) World Heritage project to understand how these regional cultural institutions contribute to national heritage initiatives. The research traces the development of the MSR concept from its emergence in UNESCO during the 1960s to 2024, looking at two main aspects:
• How new museums, exhibitions, and research centres present the Maritime Silk Road
• How existing historical sites adapt their stories to connect with this cultural route
This research bridges heritage studies and sociology by examining heritage as a form of capital that shapes institutional power dynamics. Traditional sociological theories of cultural capital focus on individuals, but this study shows how institutions strategically use heritage resources, revealing new dimensions of how cultural power operates at organizational levels. The study also challenges conventional understanding of heritage governance. By examining how regional cultural institutions create their own spaces of influence within seemingly top-down heritage systems, it provides new insights into how cultural governance actually works in practice, offering fresh perspectives on the relationship between global heritage frameworks and local institutional practices.
• How new museums, exhibitions, and research centres present the Maritime Silk Road
• How existing historical sites adapt their stories to connect with this cultural route
This research bridges heritage studies and sociology by examining heritage as a form of capital that shapes institutional power dynamics. Traditional sociological theories of cultural capital focus on individuals, but this study shows how institutions strategically use heritage resources, revealing new dimensions of how cultural power operates at organizational levels. The study also challenges conventional understanding of heritage governance. By examining how regional cultural institutions create their own spaces of influence within seemingly top-down heritage systems, it provides new insights into how cultural governance actually works in practice, offering fresh perspectives on the relationship between global heritage frameworks and local institutional practices.