Throughout the world, different laws exist that protect monuments.
Under international criminal law, monuments are considered a type of cultural heritage and their systematic destruction is prohibited by various international agreements. [1]
Austrian laws protecting and preserving monuments have existed since 1853. The current law dates from 1923, and also protects the historic centers of Salzburg, Graz, and Vienna. The Federal Monuments Office oversees monuments protection. [2]
The Commission to Preserve National Monuments oversees monuments in Bosnia and Herzegovina. [3]
The number of protected monuments in France has increased, so has the budget for maintaining them. [4] [5]
German law protects monuments from being destroyed during redevelopment. [6]
Like other countries, Hungary has laws to regulate and protect historical monuments. [7]
The main legislation covering the protection of historical monuments in Thailand is the Act on Ancient Monuments, Antiques, Objects of Art and National Museums, B.E. 2504 (1961).
In the UK, a bill against desecration of war memorials is being considered. [8] [9]
The National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 protects historic sites in the United States, including monuments. [10]
A Pennsylvania law states that a person commits a misdemeanor of the second degree if he: (1) intentionally desecrates any public monument or structure, or place of worship or burial; or (2) intentionally desecrates any other object of veneration by the public or a substantial segment thereof in any public place; Desecrate means defacing, damaging, polluting or otherwise physically mistreating in a way that the actor knows will outrage the sensibilities of persons likely to observe or discover the action. [11]
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic value". A property listed in the National Register or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred in preserving the property.
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change.
In the broadest sense, cultural resource management (CRM) is the vocation and practice of managing heritage assets, and other cultural resources such as contemporary art. It incorporates Cultural Heritage Management which is concerned with traditional and historic culture. It also delves into the material culture of archaeology. Cultural resource management encompasses current culture, including progressive and innovative culture, such as urban culture, rather than simply preserving and presenting traditional forms of culture.
A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical, political, technical or architectural importance. Some of the first monuments were dolmens or menhirs, megalithic constructions built for religious or funerary purposes. Examples of monuments include statues, (war) memorials, historical buildings, archaeological sites, and cultural assets. If there is a public interest in its preservation, a monument can for example be listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Historic preservation (US), built heritage preservation or built heritage conservation (UK) is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance. It is a philosophical concept that became popular in the twentieth century, which maintains that cities as products of centuries' development should be obligated to protect their patrimonial legacy. The term refers specifically to the preservation of the built environment, and not to preservation of, for example, primeval forests or wilderness.
The National Historic Preservation Act is legislation intended to preserve historic and archaeological sites in the United States of America. The act created the National Register of Historic Places, the list of National Historic Landmarks, and the State Historic Preservation Offices.
Conservation and restoration of immovable cultural property describes the process through which the material, historical, and design integrity of any immovable cultural property are prolonged through carefully planned interventions. The individual engaged in this pursuit is known as an architectural conservator-restorer. Decisions of when and how to engage in an intervention are critical to the ultimate conservation-restoration of cultural heritage. Ultimately, the decision is value based: a combination of artistic, contextual, and informational values is normally considered. In some cases, a decision to not intervene may be the most appropriate choice.
Archaeological ethics refers to the moral issues raised through the study of the material past. It is a branch of the philosophy of archaeology. This article will touch on human remains, the preservation and laws protecting remains and cultural items, issues around the globe, as well as preservation and ethnoarchaeology.
An ancient monument can refer to any early or historical manmade structure and/or architecture. Certain ancient monuments are of cultural importance for nations and become symbols of international recognition, including the ruins of Baalbek on Lebanese currency, the Angkor Wat on Cambodian currency and the Great Wall of China on the Chinese currency. There are some countries that display ancient buildings as symbols on their coats of arms as a way to affirm national identity. In this way, ancient monuments in the modern world are used as icons to represent a country. The importance of ancient monuments extends to cultural heritage and how the people of a nation or city identify themselves.
Cultural heritage is the heritage of tangible and intangible heritage assets of a group or society that is inherited from past generations. Not all heritages of past generations are "heritage"; rather, heritage is a product of selection by society.
The Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage is a treaty that was adopted on 2 November 2001 by the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The convention is intended to protect "all traces of human existence having a cultural, historical or archaeological character" which have been under water for over 100 years. This extends to the protection of shipwrecks, sunken cities, prehistoric art work, treasures that may be looted, sacrificial and burial sites, and old ports that cover the oceans' floors. The preservation of underwater cultural heritage is significant as it allows for the retelling of numerous historical events. As part of its duty to conduct scientific research and provide continuous education on the importance of underwater cultural heritage, UNESCO strives to maintain these sites for the enjoyment of current and future generations. The convention may provide a customary framework to help raise awareness and seek to combat the illegal looting and pirating occurring in waters worldwide. As an international body, member states of the convention agree to work towards the preservation of sunken cultural property within their jurisdiction and the high seas.
Australian heritage laws exist at the national (Commonwealth) level, and at each of Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia state and territory levels. Generally there are separate laws governing Aboriginal cultural heritage and sacred sites, and historical heritage. State laws also allow heritage to be protected through local government regulations, such as planning schemes, as well.
The Aboriginal Heritage Act 1988 (AHA) is the principal South Australian legislation protecting and preserving the state's Aboriginal heritage. It repealed and replaced the Aboriginal and Historic Relics Preservation Act 1965, which was the first state legislation to protect Aboriginal Australian heritage in Australia.
The national cultural heritage register of Russia is a registry of historically or culturally significant man-made immovable properties – landmark buildings, industrial facilities, memorial homes of notable people of the past, monuments, cemeteries and tombs, archaeological sites and cultural landscapes – man-made environments and natural habitats significantly altered by humans. The register continues a tradition established in 1947 and is governed by a 2002 law "On the objects of cultural heritage ". The register is maintained by the Federal Service for Monitoring Compliance with Cultural Heritage Legislation ; the publicly available online database is hosted by the Ministry of Culture. Its primary purpose is to aggregate the regional heritage registers maintained by the federal subjects of Russia, monitor the state of heritage objects and compliance with relevant laws.
A Cultural Property is administered by the Japanese government's Agency for Cultural Affairs, and includes tangible properties ; intangible properties ; folk properties both tangible and intangible; monuments historic, scenic and natural; cultural landscapes; and groups of traditional buildings. Buried properties and conservation techniques are also protected. Together these cultural properties are to be preserved and utilized as the heritage of the Japanese people.
Immovable Cultural Heritage of Exceptional Importance are those objects of Immovable cultural heritage that enjoy the highest level of state protection in the Republic of Serbia. Immovable Cultural Heritage is classified as being of Exceptional Importance upon decision by the National Assembly of Serbia. They are inscribed in the Central Register of Immovable cultural property maintained by the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments of Serbia. Objects of Immovable cultural heritage have to fulfill one or more of those criteria defined in the Law on Cultural Heritage of 1994 in order to be categorized as being "of exceptional importance":
Protected areas of Ukraine are special areas of Ukraine established with the goal of protecting the natural and cultural heritage of the country from excessive changes as a result of human activity. The protection of the areas is the responsibility of the government of Ukraine, specifically the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.
The cultural monuments of the Czech Republic are protected properties designated by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic. Cultural monuments that constitute the most important part of the Czech cultural heritage may be declared national cultural monuments by a regulation of the Government of the Czech Republic. Government may also proclaim a territory, whose character and environment is determined by a group of immovable cultural monuments or archaeological finds, as a whole, as a monument reservation. Ministry of Culture may proclaim a territory of a settlement with a smaller number of cultural monuments, historical environment or part of a landscape area that display significant cultural values as a monument zone.
The Commission to Preserve National Monuments of Bosnia and Herzegovina, abbr. KONS, is Bosnia and Herzegovina commission (agency) which declares and registers national heritage monuments/sites, including natural/urban/architectural assembles, immovable and movable heritage of historical and cultural importance to Bosnia and Herzegovina, as an institution at state level. The sites of exclusively natural heritage are not subject of Annex 8 and the KONS.