The world is full of traces of the past, ranging from things as different as monuments and factories to farms, eco-museums, landscapes, mountaineering and even woven-grass bridges. These traces must be protected and passed on to future generations.

Communicational analysis shows that these traces have acquired the status of heritage by becoming communicative beings imbued with a new social life. Up until the 1970s and 1980s, granting this status was the prerogative of the state. New modes then emerged, increasingly involving social actors and the publicization of knowledge. Today, the heritage recognition of these traces also depends on interpretative schemes that circulate in society, notably through the media.

Heritage Traces in the Making is aimed at anyone – researchers, professionals and students – who is interested in how heritage is created and how it evolves.

Jean Davallon is Professor Emeritus at Avignon University, France, and contributes to the development of national and international research and training in museology. His work focuses on the symbolic and communicative dimensions of museums and heritage.