Australia Icomos

Conservation Mangement Plan for Sarah Island Historic Site, Macquarie Harbour, Tasmania

European Association of Archaeologists Awards European Heritage Prize to Dr Henry Cleere

Invitation to nominate material for the Australian UNESCO Memory of the World Register

Two new publications reveal outstanding universal values of Australia's World Heritage places.

International Workshops to Combine Building Conservation Training with Hands-on Help to Historic Sites

Britain Signs up to UNESCO Convention to Tackle Illicit Trade in Cultural Goods

Inspirational Landscapes - Heritage Places? On-line Conference 6 & 7 November 2002

United Nations Year for Cultural Heritage: Prioriy on Reconciliation and Development

Cultural Ministers Council Releases Deakin University Study into Key Needs of Australia's Heritage Collections

Report of the 26th Session of the Bureau of the World Heritage Committee (8-13 April 2002)

UNESCO, ICCROM, Pilot International Workshop on Integrated Conservation of Territories & Landscapes of Heritage Value, Rome Nov-Dec 2002

E-Conference: Cultural Heritage and the struggle against poverty and social exclusion

The Director-General of UNESCO launches an appeal for the protection of historic, cultural and religious heritage in the Palestinian autonomous towns

Preliminary draft Convention on the Intangible Cultural Heritage: the legal experts get down to work

UNESCO’s Culture Sector in Afghanistan
Preserving and Restoring Afghanistan’s Monuments, Sites and Museums

Report of the 25th Session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee NOW AVAILABLE

The report contains contributions from over 40 national committees, several thematic contributions from the International Scientific Committees, interesting introductory texts from ICOMOS President Michael Petzet, and Mounir Bouchenaki, UNESCO's Assistant Director for Culture. There are many specific issues and case studies covered by the report, as well as comment on the threats to Iraq's cultural heritage and the widespread impacts of the Boxing Day tsunami in southern Asia and parts of eastern Africa. However, the majority of the risks and threats discussed are not related to war or natural disaster, but a wide range of management issues, and the report provides examples of resolution of such issues from around the world. This year, the Australian contribution focuses on landscape issues - thanks to members who contributed ideas for the text (especially Marilyn Truscott, Juliet Ramsay, Kristal Buckley, Jane Lennon).

Our congratulations to the many contributors to this interesting volume, and to Marilyn Truscott (Australia ICOMOS), Michael Petzet and John Ziesemer (ICOMOS Germany) who worked closely together to coax and cajole the many authors, and to collect, translate and edit the contributions.

The Australia ICOMOS Conference Corrugations: The Romance & Reality of Historic Roads will be held this year in Melbourne, 25-28th November. Information about the call for papers is now available from the website at www.corrugations.net.au . The online registration will be up and running soon.

Roads tie us together, and hold great cultural significance, but what bumps have there been along the way, and what rough patches do we face in their future conservation? The Corrugations Conference aims to explore a range of themes, and facilitate discourse on the emerging issues of historic roads and their conservation.

The organising committee members are principally based in Victoria, and come from a wide range of disciplines.

Dr. Timothy Hubbard (Chair)
Dr. Max Lay
Annabel Neylon
Helen Weston
Gary Vines
Gillian Miles
Roger Borrell

Each fortnight, we will post a brief introduction to a member of the organising committee and post updates and information on the conference.

This week, we will highlight the Conference Organising Committee Chair, Dr. Timothy Hubbard.

Dr. Timothy Hubbard
Timothy Hubbard. A long term member of Australia ICOMOS is a registered architect and planner with extensive qualifications and experience as a consultant in the conservation of historic buildings, gardens, sites and areas. Alone, and in association, he has authored over 80 heritage reports. His company, Timothy Hubbard Pty. Ltd currently provides heritage advisory services to four municipal governments in south west Victoria and provides consultant services to the Royal Melbourne Zoo. Prior to establishing his own practice in 1988, he worked with the Department of Planning during the formative years of the Historic Buildings Council and conservation planning controls under local planning schemes. From 1994 to 1998, he was a member of the RAIA Victorian Chapter Council. He has been a guest editor for Architect, the Chapter's monthly journal and has been the Chairman of the Conservation category for the Institute's Awards. He was founding chairman of the RAIA Victoria Heritage Committee until March 1998 and wrote the Institute's national Heritage Policy. From 1999-2002 he was an alternate member to the Heritage Council of Victoria. He still sits on its Landscape Committee and has written articles for its newsletter, Inherit.

He is currently restoring Old St. Andrews, the former Presbyterian Church and Manse at Port Fairy, where he now lives, for his own use. He recently passed his Ph.D. in architectural history at Deakin University. The thesis, titled Towering Over All, the Italianate Villa in the Colonial Landscape, looks at the origin and meaning of the architecture of Government House, Melbourne.

Australia ICOMOS National Conference 2005
- Call for Papers -
Corrugations - The Romance and Reality of Historic Roads
Closing Date: Friday 3rd June 2005

Abstracts are invited for Oral and Poster Presentations at the ICOMOS 2005 Conference to be held at the new RACV Club Melbourne from 25 - 28 November 2005.

Invitation from Convenor
Roads tie us together and hold great cultural significance, but what bumps have there been along the way and what rough patches do we face in their future conservation? Australia ICOMOS is calling for abstracts to be submitted from all quarters which explore the following themes. It should be remembered that Australia ICOMOS '... is devoted to improving conservation philosophy and practice for culturally significant places'.

15th General Assembly and Scientific Symposium of ICOMOS
Xi’an, China
17-21 October 2005
Monuments and Sites in their Setting – Conserving Cultural Heritage in Changing Townscapes and Landscapes

Information about the 15th General Assembly and the Scientific Symposium can be downloaded by clicking here: Xi'an Information (English version), including the call for papers.

The General Assembly will mark the 40th year of ICOMOS. The triennial General Assembly is a key part of the activities of ICOMOS and the theme of the Scientific Symposium is a very important one, with great relevance in Australia and in the Region.

ICOMOS China is working with the International Executive Committee to make the 15th General Assembly a memorable event - not to be missed!

Download the following documents from this document by clicking on the document titles:

A compendium of abstracts of papers given at the Australia ICOMOS 2004 National Conference Loving it to Death are now avaialble for download. Click here to download the file.

20 November 2004. Sherdian Burke, Vice President of ICOMOCS reports:
Following the recent World Heritage Periodic Reports for Asia and the Pacific, a new world heritage programme “Pacific 2009” has been proposed by UNESCO with a focus on consultation, capacity building, education and the preparation of tentative lists and nominations for properties for inclusion in the World Heritage list, using a cooperative partnership approach.

A Roundtable meeting was organised October 17-22 in New Zealand for representatives of Pacific Island countries and territories, the Advisory Bodies and representatives of the World Heritage Centre. The Roundtable was set within the framework established by the Global Strategy meetings held in the Pacific (Fiji 1997 and Vanuatu 1999) to develop a credible, balanced and representative World Heritage List and in the context of the recent Representivity Report presented by ICOMOS to the 28th Session of the World Heritage Committee in July 2004, which had proved disappointing in its lack of Pacific region material.

Yamato Declaration on Integrated Approaches for Safeguarding Tangible and Intangible Cultural Heritage

The Yamato Declaration on Integrated Approaches for Safeguarding Tangible and Intangible Cultural Heritage was an outcome of a meeting held in Nara, Japan in October 2004 to mark the 10th anniversary of the Nara Document on Authenticity and the 40th anniversary of the Venice Charter. The meeting was organised by the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs (Bunka-cho), ACCU (the Asia-Pacific Cultural Centre for UNESCO), the Nara Prefecture and Nara City, and the UNESCO Division of Cultural Heritage.

Draft ICOMOS-Ename Charter on Heritage Interpretation -
COMMENT by 15 December 2004
(11 November 2004)

Following the discussions at of the ICOMOS Advisory Committee in Bergen, Norway in September, 2004, we are now seeking input from all members on the draft ICOMOS-Ename Charter on Heritage Interpretation.

The editorial group from the International ICOMOS Executive Committee has been Vice-President Sheridan Burke, Vice-President Gustavo Araoz, and the Treasurer-General Giora Solar. They have worked with a small group from the Ename Centre in Belgium. During 2004, the draft ICOMOS-Ename Charter was circulated for comment, first to all International Scientific Committees, and later, to all National Committees. A group of international experts was also consulted, as was the full Executive Committee of ICOMOS. Prior to the Bergen meeting, Australia ICOMOS submitted detailed comments on the previous draft based on input from a number of members (thanks!). Quite a few of those comments have been incorporated in the current draft.

The draft was the subject of very lively discussion at Bergen, and there was a surprising diversity of opinion expressed. It has become clear to the ICOMOS International Executive Committee that more discussion within ICOMOS is needed, starting with comment on the 'Bergen Draft' by National Committees. Although it was envisaged that the Charter could be submitted for approval by the General Assembly in China next year, the editorial group has decided to engage in a longer and more engaging international process. Following this round of comment, there will be other opportunities for members to participate in the discussion of the Charter - with the aim of submitting it for consideration by the 2008 General Assembly in Quebec, Canada.

The next draft, based on the comments received by the end of this year - will be the basis for further international dialogue - so if there are important comments to make, now is a very opportune moment.

At this stage, we are very keen to hear from as many members as possible. Comment is requested by 31 December 2004. It is a busy time for us all! To assist the Australia ICOMOS Executive Committee to meet this request, could you please:
1. Immediately let us know if you are planning to comment on the draft - send an email to the Secretariat (austicomos@deakin.edu.au).
2. Send your comments no later than 15 December 2004 to the Secretariat, and also copied to Kristal Buckley (kristal@bigpond.net.au).

This is an important process for ICOMOS, and is planned to be a remarkably inclusive, exciting and interactive process. To realise this possibility, we need everyone's input - now and in the coming few years. Don't miss it!

ICOMOS Advisory Committee
Bergen, Norway, 4-10 September, 2004
Report to Australia ICOMOS

Dear Members and Friends,
We have recently returned home from a full and busy week in Norway which included a 2-day meeting of the ICOMOS Advisory Committee, a 2-day ‘retreat’ concerning the structure and activities of the International Scientific Committees (ISCs), a 1-day conference (World Heritage: Intentions-In Action-Its Future), a session to discuss the forthcoming Heritage@Risk publication, and plenty of opportunities for enjoyable discussions with colleagues from many parts of the world. Sheri also managed to fit in a 2-day meeting of the ICOMOS Executive Committee during the very full program.

To read the rest of the report click here to download it: BERGEN REPORT

As the Australian representative in the US-ICOMOS Summer Intern Program, I was sent to Charleston, South Carolina. Besides being a wonderfully beautiful place, the staggering historical significance of the town is still dawning upon me.

Charleston, established in 1670, quickly became a wealthy colony and one of the major ports of America. Great city personages contributed to the declaration of independence, the constitution and the succession from the Union. The first shots of the Civil War were fired here; a war which ended Charleston's prosperity and slowed redevelopment, much to the benefit of historical fabric.

More recently, Charleston was very early in preservation action and takes great pride in its past.

Charleston
Click to enlarge. Photo: C. Hartnell

My project has been to develop a GIS (Geographic Information System) to cover the historic section of town. GIS is a valuable research and documentation tool which allows a spatial comparison of historical time periods and database queries which empower researchers in many ways. That Charleston did not have such a system put it 'behind-the-game' in current preservation standard. We hope that the project will open new avenues for the preservation community here and abroad.

Our final goal is to have all information publicly available on-line to allow local and foreign researchers to benefit alike. The project is advancing well and daily we are seeing its potential grow.

Our thanks and congratulations to US ICOMOS: its Summer Internship Program is a wonderful initiative which has enabled many young heritage practitioners worldwide to gain valuable hands-on experience on heritage projects in the USA.

As part of the implementation of the amended Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC), the Department of Environment and Heritage has developed a guide to assist Commonwealth agencies in preparing their Heritage Strategies. Australia ICOMOS is currently reviewing the guideline - anyone interested in a copy of this document should contact Duncan Marshall (mars@austarmetro.com.au).

Call For Nomination To
ICOMOS 'Shared Built Heritage'
International Scientific Committee

(2 May 2004)

The Australia ICOMOS Executive Committee wishes to fill a current vacancy on the ICOMOS 'Shared Built Heritage' International Scientific Committee.

The Shared Built Heritage ISC has in previous years taken a particular interest in colonial heritage issues, notably in South Africa, and has been led from ICOMOS Netherlands. Currently the chair of this ISC is Cor Dijkgraaf from Amsterdam. Previously our Full member was Graham Brooks, but Graham stepped down from this position when he assumed the chair of the Cultural Tourism ISC.

Australia ICOMOS Members interested in being nominated for either Full or Corresponding membership of this ISC should contact Bill Logan, ISC Coordinator on the Aus ICOMOS Executive Committee (wl@deakin.edu.au) or Nola Miles in the Aus ICOMOS Secretariat (austicomos@deakin.edu.au).

Nominees must meet the criteria laid down in the Australia ICOMOS Procedures Manual. In summary, those seeking Full membership must have a strong record of involvement in relevant professional activities at least at a national level of importance. Nominees for Full membership must also be able to fund their own overseas travel to attend ISC meetings. The criteria for Corresponding members are less demanding and there is no expectation of personal attendance at meetings.

Members of ISCs are expected to report regularly to the general Australia ICOMOS membership on their ISC activities. Such reporting is particularly important for the Annual Report presented to the Australia ICOMOS Annual General Meeting each November, but other reports will be distributed through E-News.

It is anticipated that the Australia ICOMOS nominee(s) would develop a national working group of interested members. This will assist the ISC member and the Australia ICOMOS Executive Committee to respond to issues raised by the ISC as well as to bring issues raised within Australia to the ISC's attention.

Call for Papers - Third Great Asian Street Symposium
A Public Forum of Asian Urban Design

6-7 December 2004
Department of Architecture
School of Design and Environment
National University of Singapore
Theme of 2004: Street, Urban Space and Representation

We are pleased to announce the call-for-paper for the "3rd Great Asian Street Symposium (GASS3)", which is to be held in National University of Singapore, 6-7 December 2004. Please find the details of GASS3 through the website: http://www.arch.nus.edu.sg/conferences/gass2004/swf/default.html

The GASS was established in 2001. As a discussion platform, it aims for the urban researchers and professionals committed to the study of streets and public spaces in Asian region. The success of the 2nd GASS in 2002 brought in significant number of diverse participants and high quality papers. It makes us feel that there is a potential for GASS to be further developed as an Asian forum for urban scholars and practitioners, where the term "Great Asian Street" becomes a metaphor of public space, public sphere and public forum of Asian cities.

For the coming GASS 3 in 2004, the research on "street" is still very much emphasized, we would like to extend the theme to "Street, Urban Space and Representation" as the special topic of the 3rd GASS in 2004. Beside the existing focus on Asian streets, we create one more session on urban space and representation for this particular year. The representations of street, urban space and city cover varieties of traditional and new approaches, which are essential to the practices and researches in architecture, urban design and city planning. It is especially interesting to see how emerging technologies influence the way we observe, analyze and design the city and physical environment.
We look forward to your participation and invite you to submit an abstract (max 500 words) of a proposed paper by August 20 of 2004.

Best regards
Dr Perry YANG
Dr HUO, Ning
Mr L'Heureux, Eric Gerard
Organizing Committee of the 3rd Great Asian Street Symposium (GASS3)
Department of Architecture
School of Design and Environment
National University of Singapore
4 Architecture Drive, Singapore 117566
Office: (65) 6874 3454
Fax: (65) 6779 3078
Email: GASS3@nus.edu.sg
website: http://www.arch.nus.edu.sg/conferences/gass2004/swf/default.html

Call For Papers - Rooms with a view Historic House Museums and their Surroundings

This year's annual meeting and conference of DEMHIST will take place between 2-4 September 2004, in Berlin, Germany.

The Conference will focus on the urban house museum and its social environment as well as the historic house park in suburban settings. Other relevant topics may include security issues, conservation strategies as regards public events and the public function of historic house museums. All curators, directors, museums professionals and those with an interest in the preservation and interpretation of historic house museums are invited to attend.

The deadline for concise 250-300 word abstracts is 31, May. Presented papers should be no more than 20 mins in length. Preference in the selection of papers may be given to members of DEMHIST. For membership please contact your local office, or national chair, of ICOM. Please indicate your full contact details and professional affiliation if any. Submissions should be made in Word compatible format.

The Historic House Museums International Committee/DEMHIST came into being in 1999 as part of the International Council of Museums/ICOM with the express aim of working to increase international awareness of the importance and great value of house museums. DEMHIST is the forum for proposing and debating key criteria for the management and conservation of house-museums. The enormous variety characteristic of the artistic assets displayed in such museums calls for innovative strategies to deal with specific challenges in the areas of conservation and restoration, safety, education and communication.

Dr. Hugh Maguire
Secretary / Treasurer: DEMHIST
Tel: + 353 (0)1 8307527
Mob: + 353 (0)87 968 3754
or:
Sibylle Hoiman
Stiftung Schlösser und Gärten Berlin-Brandenburg
Postfach 601462
14414 Potsdam

The Australasian Society for Historical Archaeology (ASHA)
and the Australasian Institute of Maritime Archaeology (AIMA)

Wellington & Picton, New Zealand - Thurs 23 Sept – Monday 27 September 2004

This is a 'new concept' twin venue conference. The conference will begin in Wellington (the capital city located at the southern end of the North Island) on Thursday 23rd September 2004. After two days there the whole conference party will board the inter-island ferry (early evening) and have a sunset cruise to Picton (top end of the South Island, 3 hour voyage) for two more days of conferencing and fieldtrips. At both Wellington and Picton visits to major ship conservation projects are scheduled - the 'Inconstant' and the 'Edwin Fox'. An optional post conference fieldtrip runs Mon 27-Wed 29. It involves train and bus travel from Picton to Christchurch via Kaikoura looking at maritime heritage and other sites en route. Conference goers may choose to fly into Wellington, and depart from Christchurch.

Information on conference fees, early bird discounts (payment by August 31st), accommodation options etc will be posted on the AIMA (http://aima.iinet.net.au/) and ASHA websites (http://www.asha.org.au) within the next month, and in the mid-year Newsletters of both organisations.

The Conference theme will focus on aspects of maritime history and historical archaeology, particularly the trans-Tasman connection (opposite sides of the 'big pond') between Australia and New Zealand and beyond. The theme however takes an inter-disciplinary perspective and encourages participants to consider historical events encompassing Australia and New Zealand as well as the role of the sea in human history in the widest sense. We hope to have sessions on topics such as the contact period, ports and harbours, coastal defences, fishing, sealing, and whaling, and the high level of interaction between Australia and New Zealand during the nineteenth century goldrushes and the New Zealand Wars (between Maori tribes and British & Colonial forces).

Intending participants are encouraged to consider submitting their papers for publication in one of the two Associations fully refereed journals - The AIMA Bulletin or Australasian Historical Archaeology.

Proposals for sessions or individual papers should be sent to the Programme Convenor at the address below by 30 June 2004. Papers will be of 20 minutes duration with 5 minutes question time. Longer or shorter time slots may be possible by arrangement.

Programme Convenor
'Trans-Tasman Connections Archaeology Conference'
email nritchie@doc.govt.nz

For information about the Advisory Council on Underwater Archaeology (ACUA)
see: www.acuaonline.org/

Australia ICOMOS announces seminars for practitioners on the new national heritage system

The new national heritage system for Australia came into force in January this year. It takes a broad view of heritage and will affect practitioners at every level. Australia ICOMOS is running a series of one-day workshops around Australia in February, March and April 2004. These are designed for heritage managers and practitioners who will need to be familiar with the implications of the new system for their clients and stakeholders.

Further information and a registration form can be downloaded here: DOWNLOAD

or by contacting the ICOMOS Representative in your State or Territory.

Through the US/ICOMOS internship programme for 2003, I spent my summer (from mid May to the second half of August) with the National Park Service, Outer Banks Group, at Cape Hatteras National Seashore, North Carolina. My work was based on three main sites, the Cape Hatteras and Bodie Island Lighthouses and the Hatteras Island Weather Bureau Station.

I began work in Washington, DC without having set foot in any lighthouse - ever - seeking the source of the marble and slate tiling in the Cape Hatteras (1870) and Bodie Island (built 1872) Lighthouses at the monumental National Archives.

My first task upon arrival on the Outer Banks of North Carolina was to put together our assessed condition of the tiled floor area of Bodie Island Lighthouse, and complete a report detailing our research findings as part of the preparation for future conservation works.

As part of my work I was fortunate enough to be able to climb Bodie Island Lighthouse twice and also observe the laser-measuring of the original first order Fresnel lens. This began my mission to climb the lighthouses of the Outer Banks. Of the five lighthouses on the Outer and Core Banks of North Carolina, I got to all of them and was only denied access to one!

A large part of my internship was taken up by the National Register-listed Hatteras Island Weather Bureau Station at Hatteras Village. A fantastic two-storey, Colonial Yellow siding and cedar shingled building built in 1901, it is currently being restored by the National Park Service (NPS). I was involved in documenting the restoration works for the building, which was not far from where I was housed by the National Park Service in the village of Buxton.

Venturing as far as Busch Gardens amusement park in Virginia, where Apollo's Chariot dropped myself and friends 210ft in the first dip, I also drove north to Currituck Beach Lighthouse and Jockeys Ridge State Park (climbing the giant sand dune), and soared in a plane over the Wright Brothers Historic Site, which is celebrating 100yrs of flight in December.

There were also quieter things to do, especially with the beach next door. There was also the small village of Ocracoke (and Ocracoke Lighthouse), the village where Blackbeard met his gruesome end, I learned about the Civil War through 11hrs of my housemate's Ken Burn's videos (we didn't have cable), discovered the local nightspots (well….. the one nightspot aptly named the Lighthouse Bar), and cruised the Sound with my workmates from Manteo.

I had a fantastic three months, and as a result I am also taking away with me some really fun memories and experiences (oh yes, and over 600 digital photographs….) and am still in touch with my new friends. I've taken away with me not just new skills and knowledge, but a better understanding of heritage in broader terms, of other approaches and different situations, with a particular appreciation for how severe environmental factors can impact on historic sites (I just missed hurricane Isabel, which wreaked havoc on the Outer Banks).

I would like to once again thank Australia ICOMOS for selecting me as their representative, and US/ICOMOS for such an amazing opportunity. I thoroughly recommend the programme to anyone thinking of applying and would be more than happy to provide further information for anyone who might be interested.

Report from the ICOMOS 14th General Assembly & Scientific Symposium
Mosi Oa Tunya (Victoria Falls), Zimbabwe 27-31 October, 2003

Place – Memory – Meaning Preserving Intangible Values in Monuments & Sites

A brief overview of the 14th ICOMOS General Assembly at Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe (also known as Mosi Oa Tunya – the smoke that thunders) is now available. This report is intended as general information for Australia ICOMOS members – the formal proceedings from the meetings will be available later.

To download the report click here: ZIMBABWE REPORT

ICOMOS has released a Mandarin translation of the ICOMOS Charter on Cultural Tourism 2002.

Click below to download the charter:

Mandarin

English.

"Earth, water fire and spirit" were the themes of the 2003 Outback Summit organised by the Environment Institute of Australia and New Zealand, with the National Environmental Law Association and the newly formed Regional Cultural Alliance (including the National Trusts).

To read a report on the summit, click here: OUTBACK SUMMIT REPORT

17-10-2003
Oral traditions and expressions, including language as a vehicle of the intangible cultural heritage, the performing arts, social practices, rituals and festive events, as well as knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe and traditional craftsmanship, now benefit from an international legal instrument to safeguard intangible heritage through cooperation.

The Member States attending the UNESCO General Conference at Headquarters (September 29 to October 17), today adopted by overwhelming majority the International Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage*, which completes the Organization’s existing legal instruments for the safeguarding of heritage.

To read further click here: UNESCO

The Graduate Certificate in Art Authentication has been developed jointly by the Centre for Cultural Materials Conservation at the University of Melbourne and Melbourne University Private. The course is a response to industry demands for specialist training and for a clearer definition to the processes involved in art authentication and the policing and prosecution of art fraud. The program will be presented by experts from a broad range of disciplines including art history, conservation, criminology and analytical chemistry. The topics covered have been identified and developed in consultation with the art industry.

The spectacular Purnululu National Park, in Western Australia's isolated East Kimberley region, has been declared a World Heritage listed area by the World Heritage Committee, which met in Paris on 3 July.

"This superlative natural phenomenon joins 14 other internationally outstanding Australian places that have qualified for this rare honour, which includes the Uluru Kata Tjuta and Kakadu national parks," Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Dr David Kemp, said today.

Purnululu – famous for its fascinating banded beehive structures, sandstone cliffs and towers of the Bungle Bungle Range, and its rich Aboriginal cultural heritage – has been World Heritage-listed for its unrivalled natural values.

"Its domes, gorges and wet season waterfalls were virtually unknown except to pastoralists, scientists and the local Aboriginal community until 1982, when aerial pictures were first released and widely circulated. It is now seen as one of the scenic jewels of outback Australia," Dr Kemp said.

Dr Kemp said World Heritage listing is so prestigious in Australia and overseas that it attracts widespread interest from tourists and provides a financial boost to the region.

"The World Heritage listing process is detailed, demanding and exhaustive. It ensures that only the very best examples of the world's heritage make it onto the world's premier heritage list," he said.

"Since Australia submitted a comprehensive nomination document to the World Heritage Centre early last year, assessors from two international heritage bodies – the International Committee on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and the International Union for Nature Conservation (IUCN) – have visited Purnululu to carry out a comprehensive assessment of its World Heritage credentials.

"Purnululu has also been nominated for its rich Aboriginal cultural heritage spanning over some 20,000 years. The Park provides exceptional testimony to this hunter-gatherer cultural tradition which has survived to present day despite the impact of colonisation. Australia will continue to pursue the cultural element of the nomination.

"Officers from my department, Environment Australia, provided support to the assessors and in preparing ancillary information to meet their requirements."

The World Heritage Committee – which comprises 21 countries who are States Parties to the World Heritage Convention – considered the nomination and reports at its meeting in Paris and agreed to inscribe Purnululu National Park on the World Heritage List.

Under the categories of natural heritage set out in Article 2 of the World Heritage Convention, Purnululu National Park is a site representing 'natural features consisting of physical and biological formations, or groups of such formations, that are of outstanding universal value from the aesthetic or scientific point of view'; and 'natural sites, or precisely delineated natural areas, of outstanding universal value from the point of view of science, conservation or natural beauty'.

According to the natural criteria, Purnululu is 'an outstanding example representing major stages of earth's history, including the record of life, significant on-going geological processes in the development of landforms, or significant geomorphic or physiographic features' and 'contains superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance.'

The Western Australian Government also strongly supports the World Heritage listing which joins Shark Bay as Western Australia's second World Heritage property.

Making Tracks Conference Papers

A wide range of papers given at the Australia ICOMOS Making Tracks conference held in Alice Springs in May 2001 are now available online. Click here to go to the Making Tracks page.

Major Charter for heritage conservation practice in China launched in Melbourne

Principles for the Conservation of Heritage Sites in China
now available for download.
Click here to download: DOWNLOAD CHINA PRINCIPLES

Sunday 11 May saw the launch of a new publication Principles for the Conservation of Heritage Sites in China (the China Charter) in Melbourne at the Chinese Museum.

The launch was attended by Hon. Dr. Sharman Stone, Parliamentary Secretary for the Environment and Heritage, Tom Harley, Chairman of the Australian Heritage Commission and by officials of the People's Republic of China. Dr. Martha Demas and Dr. Neville Agnew from the Getty Conservation Institute also visited Australia for the launch of the publication, Principles for the Conservation of Heritage Sites in China and spoke at the launch.

The Australian Heritage Commission (http://www.ahc.gov.au/), the Getty Conservation Institute (http://www.getty.edu/conservation/ ) and the Chinese State Administration of Cultural Heritage have been working for several years to develop a Charter for heritage conservation practice in the China. The original model for the Charter was the Australia ICOMOS Burra Charter, and the final product is both like and unlike the original in interesting ways. It has been eagerly anticipated for some time while reaching finalisation and publication, but is now available in English and Chinese. The Charter is being published by the Getty Conservation Institute, and includes an English-Chinese glossary.

The launch consisted of the launch followed by a short lecture on the development of conservation plans in China using the Charter. The lecture focused on the Qing Imperial Summer Resort of Chengde - a huge and splendid complex of palaces, temples, gardens and artificial landscapes and a panel discussion on the Charter, led by Dr. Neville Agnew, Dr. Martha Demas, Sharon Sullivan and Kirsty Altenburg.

The event was sponsored jointly by Australia ICOMOS, the Australian Heritage Commission, the Getty Conservation Institute and the Chinese Museum.

The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, in his address to the international experts meeting on 17 April 2003 convened at his initiative in UNESCO Headquarters, stated: "Despite all your expertise and good will, the fate of Iraqi heritage does not lie in your hands. It lies in the hands of the international community as a whole, and the only way that we will be able to safeguard these treasures and give them back to humanity is if we can count on the cohesion, coordination and determination of all concerned, at every level". He renewed his appeal to "all States to adopt the emergency legal and administrative measures required to prevent the importation into their territory of any cultural, archaeological or bibliographical object having recently left Iraq" and again called upon "all museums, art dealers and private collectors to exclude these objects from any commercial transactions".

Mr Matsuura also announced his intention "to request the Secretary-General of the United Nations to submit the question of illicit traffic to the Security Council so that a resolution can be adopted which imposes an embargo, for a limited period, on the acquisition of all Iraqi cultural objects and calls for the return of such goods to Iraq if acquisitions or exports of this kind have already taken place. This resolution could thus be made applicable to the191 Member States of the United Nations and not only to the 97 States Parties to the 1970 Convention", he explained.

After recalling all the initiatives taken by UNESCO before the conflict and following the news of the looting and destruction of numerous Iraqi cultural institutions and archaeological sites, the Director-General stressed the necessity "to take emergency measures, such as the setting-up by the authorities on the ground of a nation-wide 'heritage police', entrusted with the task of watching over cultural sites and institutions, including libraries and buildings where archives are stored". He also said he would like "a database to be compiled as soon as possible, combining all of the archives, lists and inventories relating to the Iraqi heritage, which would enable customs and police authorities, as well as art dealers and all concerned parties, to identify and check the status of a particular object. Naturally, this database could only become operational once a precise appraisal has been made of the objects which have been stolen or destroyed, something that could only be done by an on-site mission".

The Director-General thanked the numerous States who have expressed their readiness to contribute to emergency measures taken by UNESCO by means of expert help or financial support. He welcomed the initiatives of Italy, which was the first to offer a contribution of $400,000 for the protection of the Iraqi heritage. This initiative was followed by many others, growing daily in number, from States including Qatar, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Egypt, from institutions such as the United Nations Foundation and the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (ALECSO), from scientific networks and from individuals. The Director-General expressed his delight with such initiatives, which will boost the Special Fund for the Iraqi Cultural Heritage that he has just established.

20TH CENTURY HERITAGE
ICOMOS-UK publishes its list of Top Twenty 20th Century Heritage Sites within the UK.

The list is part of an ICOMOS world-wide survey which aims to promote understanding of the full diversity of 20th century heritage and to highlight the issues relating to its recognition and conservation.
The ICOMOS-UK list has been compiled with help from English Heritage, CADW (Welsh Historic Monuments), Historic Scotland, the 20th Century Society and the Association for Industrial Archaeology, but reflects the views of ICOMOS-UK alone. The list has no official or statutory basis, nor is it in order of importance: rather it is an attempt by ICOMOS-UK, in response to growing interest in this subject, to add to the international drive for greater recognition and protection as well as to contribute to the debate on how we define what is of value and significance from the 20th century.
20th century heritage is often seen as too close to the present day to allow selection by the perspective of history. It is also seen by some as being too plentiful, creating problems for establishing conservation priorities. Furthermore sophisticated designs and often experimental technologies give it added vulnerability. For all these reasons, the heritage of the 20th century suffers from lack of recognition and protection especially when compared to 'older' or more traditional heritage.
The List:
The ICOMOS-UK list reflects the wide diversity of 20th Century Heritage and some of the main social and economic trends of the century.
Social housing
The great, designed, social housing schemes built in response to changing social and industrial pressures, are reflected by Letchworth Garden City, the first garden city in Hertfordshire built from 1903 by Parker and Unwin, by Cumbernauld New Town built between 1963 to the mid 1970s, the initial phases by Geoffrey Copcutt, and most recently by the innovative public housing of the Byker Estate in Newcastle Upon Tyne, built between 1970 and 1981 by Ralph Erskine. All of these have fed off each other and together reflect the re-writing of so much of the urban landscape that took place in the last century.
Industrial monuments
The industrial wealth of Wales is represented by the monumental Penallta Colliery Engine Hall and Fan House, Caerphilly, built between 1905 and 1909, at the height on the South Wales coal trade to a staggering size of 100 by 23 metres. It had a significant influence on colliery buildings all over Britain. Other industrial monuments are the Lovell Telescope, near Macclesfield Cheshire, 1952-7 and the Cruchan and Hollow Mountain Hydro-Electric Power Station, Argyll, completed in 1965.
Cathedrals
Perhaps more predictable are the last two great cathedral building projects - the Liverpool Anglican Cathedral from 1902-79, to the designs of Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, and the re-built Coventry Cathedral by Sir Basil Spence and Partners.
Classical modern buildings
Buildings associated with the classical modem style are in the minority - the list nevertheless includes key buildings such as Impington Village College school building, 1938-9 to the designs of Walter Gropius, a major figure in the modem movement, working with E Maxwell Fry, and the De La Warr Pavilion at Bexhill, East Sussex, the first, major, public building in the International style in Britain built in 1935 to the designs of Erich Mendelsohn and Serge l Chermayeff
Private houses
Only two private houses make the list - Marsh Court, near Stockbridge, Hampshire, by Edwin Luytens, built 1901-4 and Hill House, Glasgow, 1902, part of a group listing of the works of Charles Rennie Mackintosh in Glasgow. The dearth of private houses compared to lists from say the 19th and 18th centuries reflects the shift from private to industrial and institutional clients.
World Heritage
Two sites, the Forth Railway and Road Bridges, engineers Mott, May and Anderson, 1958-64 and the Liverpool Pier Head Buildings (the Royal Liver Building, 1908-10 by W Aubrey Thomas, the Cunard Building, 1913-16 by Willinck and Thickness, and the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board Offices, 1907 by ArnolfThornley and others) are already included on the Government's Tentative list of World Heritage Sites. Perhaps the list as a whole could be seen as highlighting other buildings or assemblies of buildings which may in the future be considered for inclusion in future tentative lists. There is for instance much interest in other parts of the world in the extensive legacy of garden suburbs in the UK.
Recent debate on what should or should not be put forward for World Heritage status from the 20th century has been given a boost by a suggestion from a leading historian of 20th century architecture that Camden, London, with its rich and dense assembly of 20th century buildings should be considered as a potential World Heritage site.
Absentee
Notable in the list is the absence of buildings which, despite being of national importance, (and listed appropriately), have failed to survive. An example is the Brynmawr Rubber Factory, Brynmawr, Gwent, listed Grade 11* which would certainly have been on the list had it not been
demolished only in mid-2001. If a building as spectacular as this - built by Ove Arup & Partners
1946-51 - can be lost, in spite of enormous local efforts to find a new use for it, then there is a need for more public debate on how we sustain our 20th century heritage.
Quote:
Sherban Cantacuzino, President Emeritus of ICOMOS-UK and former executive editor of the Architectural Review, sums up the significance of the list as
"lying in the way it clearly acknowledges what distinguishes the twentieth century from any other - the pre-eminence of planning and the dedication to a social programme - whilst not forgetting the works of the great architects and engineers of the century ". END
Background:
The ICOMOS Montreal Action Plan was drawn up in Canada in September 2001 to try and define a consistent ICOMOS approach to more recent heritage. The Plan aims to promote understanding of the full diversity of 20th Century heritage and the issues relating to its recognition and conservation.
ICOMOS-UK ran a successful seminar on 20th Century Heritage, in association with the RIBA and the 20th Century Society at the RIBA to celebrate International Sites and Monuments Day on April 18th,
ICOMOS internationally will this year be compiling the third of its major Heritage at Risk Reports on the theme of 20th Century Heritage.

The UK Committee of ICOMOS was formed in 1965.
Contact: International Sites and Monuments, UK 10 Barley Mow Passage London W4 4PH
Tel0208 8994 6477
Email: icomos-uk@icomos.org

The lengthy process to develop the new Australian Commonwealth heritage legislation seems to have reached its final stage. The package of three revised Bills was introduced into the Parliament by the Government in mid 2002. The first set of Bills lapsed with the last Federal election. The revised Bills were passed by the House of Representatives at the end of that year amidst some little controversy, because of the restrictions imposed on the parliamentary process by the Government.

The Bills are currently before the Senate but the key negotiations are happening behind the scenes. The Government is seeking the support of other parties in order to achieve the numbers for passage in that chamber. It seems possible the Bills may be passed during May.

Australia ICOMOS, along with other heritage and environment groups, have been promoting improvements to the Bills. However, at the end of the day we are seeking passage of the Bills, and do not wish to see them fail.

Kristal Buckley, Sharon Sullivan and Duncan Marshall have been working on this matter for Australia ICOMOS. For further information please feel free to contact Duncan on: mars@austarmetro.com.au

The ICCROM Internship and Fellows Programme is open to candidates from all of its Member States. Internships are offered to those interested in increasing their experience of current issues of heritage preservation at the international level by working with one of the programmes at ICCROM.
Fellowships are made available to those wishing to undertake research in a particular field of heritage preservation. See Internships or Fellowships, depending on which category is of interest to you.
http://www.iccrom.org/eng/training/events/if.htm

On 7 April 2003 the National Trust of Australia (W.A.) chaired a most successful forum at the Alexander Library in Perth which, for the first time, brought together representatives of most of the key organisations collaborating to preserve the spectacular rock art of the Dampier Archipelago in Western Australia. The "Murujuga Group" had been a loosely composed coalition of interest groups focused principally on the petroglyphs of Murujuga, known also as the Burrup Peninsula. Spearheaded principally by the International Federation of Rock Art Organisations (IFRAO) and Green parliamentarian Robin Chapple MLC, this group includes a number of bodies concerned with environmental and cultural heritage issues, including relevant Traditional Custodians, ICOMOS Australia, the Australian Rock Art Research Association, the National Trust, the Conservation Council of Western Australia, the Australian Conservation Foundation and the Australian Association of Anthropologists and Archaeologists.

These bodies had been communicating about the Murujuga rock art for up to a year, so the level of consensus among them came as no great surprise. But what was surprising was the strength of support that now emerged from some unexpected quarters. Most particularly, the unashamedly pro-development Leader of the Opposition of Western Australia, The Hon. Colin Barnett MLC, presented a well-researched expose of why he vehemently opposes the siting of more industry at Murujuga. He also explained his economic reasons for advocating the urgent establishment of the Maitland Heavy Industry Estate, an alternative site for the proposed new industries. He accepted unequivocally that the Dampier rock art precinct represents the largest concentration of petroglyphs in the world, that it is the greatest cultural heritage property in Australia and that the state has an ironclad obligation to preserve it for all future. Moreover, at the request of IFRAO, the Commonwealth Minister for the Environment and Heritage, The Hon. Dr David Kemp MP, has recently written to his Western Australian counterpart to ask for the state government's co-operation in the nomination of the Dampier rock art to the World Heritage List. This places the ball well and truly in the court of the present state government. If it were to fail in supporting IFRAO's motion for such listing, it would find itself opposed by just about every other relevant party-and no doubt in opposition after the next state election in early 2005.

For the moment, the state government is very much on the defensive over its handling of the protection of the Murujuga (Burrup) rock art. It still advocates the destruction of more of the irreplaceable rock art, having sanctioned the destruction of between 20 and 25 per cent of it already. Yet several of the companies it has attempted to lure to the Dampier Archipelago have already pulled out of the respective projects, partly because they don't wish to be labelled rock art vandals, partly because the costs of establishing structures on Murujuga are greater than at alternative locations. Moreover, some of the sites allocated to them by the government have been found to be subject to inundation by surge tides-an incredible admission when one considers the almost unlimited supply of eminently suitable land available nearby on the mainland. Finally, it emerged at the Murujuga Forum that the committee the government has appointed to establish whether the industrial emissions are causing deterioration of the rock art is likely to be ineffective in influencing the course of industrial development in the region. To make matters worse, one of the main polluters in the area, Woodside Energy Ltd, has just admitted to having made a very significant error in calculating the rate of their nitrogen oxide emissions. This has exposed yet another festering problem, the inability of the Department of Environmental Protection to effectively monitor the level of emissions by major polluters. It is apparent from this admission that the values reported in the National Pollutant Inventory, maintained by Environment Australia, may reflect quite meaningless random figures that are effectively not checked by anyone. This follows the result of a series of internal reviews of the W.A. Department of Environmental Protection that led to the finding that this "organisation is incapable of fulfilling its functions". Such scandalous disclosures about the ineptness of government departments will continue until Australia develops a culture of fostering the influence of NGOs in public life, as it exists in more mature democracies of former British colonies such as India.

Each year US ICOMOS runs a summer internship program for young ICOMOS members from around the world. The Australia ICOMOS nominee this year is Jennifer Armstrong. Jennifer writes:

First of all I would like to extend a huge thank you to Australia ICOMOS, US/ICOMOS and the National Park Service for giving me this fantastic opportunity to explore heritage conservation/historic preservation in the USA. I have seven weeks remaining in my work programme here and I plan on learning and experiencing as much as I can possibly fit into this time.

I am currently involved in two major projects being undertaken by the National Parks Service within the Cape Hatteras National Seashore area.

They comprise documentation for the restoration works currently being undertaken at the Hatteras Island Weather Bureau Station, Hatteras Village, North Carolina through measured drawings on AutoCAD and photographs. The Station was constructed in 1901, and is a two-storey timber framed building with weatherboard cladding and shingle roof. It was used for early weather detection, particularly during hurricane season (which we entered on the 1 June).

The second project on which I am working concurrently is the investigation into the type and source of the marble and slate floor tiling, as well as condition assessment of Cape Hatteras and Bodie Island Lighthouses, constructed in 1870 and 1872 respectively. This has involved research at the National Archives in Washington DC as well as physical investigation and comparative analysis at these lighthouses and others.

I am having a great time in my new work environment and am being provided plenty of opportunities to see other sites within the area during my spare time, including the Wright Brothers Memorial at Kitty Hawk, which is celebrating the centenary of first flight this year.

Royal Exhibition Building & Carlton Gardens Australia's Next World Heritage Site?

Australia ICOMOS held a symposium to consider the recent nomination of Melbourne's Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens to the World Heritage List on 11 May.

The Seminar was held Museum of Victoria, adjacent to the Royal Exhibition Building.

The Royal Exhibition Building was built in Melbourne's Carlton Gardens in 1880. It is one of the great enduring monuments to the International Exhibition movement, which began in the mid-nineteenth century. These events were staged around the world to demonstrate the confidence and achievements of the industrial age. By bringing people and ideas together on such a grand scale, the movement supported the development of the world trade and manufacturing which today underpins modern society.

The Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens were nominated to the World Heritage List in 2002 . The nomination was prepared by Environment Australia, with the cooperation and assistance from Heritage Victoria, Museum Victoria and the City of Melbourne (and a number of Australia ICOMOS members who have been involved with the care for the building and gardens over the years).

The nomination document was submitted to the World Heritage Centre (UNESCO) in Paris in December 2002. While the course of these nominations can be difficult to predict, the nomination could be considered by the World Heritage Committee in mid-2004.

If successful, this will be the first world heritage building in Australia to be listed for its non-Indigenous/post-contact heritage values.

New Australia ICOMOS Book
20th Century Heritage Our Recent Cultural Legacy
Proceedings of the Australia ICOMOS National Conference 2001

A new book published by Australia ICOMOS, 20th Century Heritage, Our Recent Cultural Legacy may prove a landmark publication for the growing interest in 20th Century heritage. Edited by David Jones it contains the proceedings of the Australia ICOMOS 2001 National Conference held in Adelaide. With more than sixty articles by leading heritage experts from Australia and around the world it represents a contribution to the field covering subjects as diverse as the renovation of modernist buildings, the heritage value of 50s houses and the heritage value of automobile culture. The full contents can be downloaded in pdf format by clicking here: contents.

The book has 496 pages, is generously illustrated and fully refereed. It can be ordered for the price of AUD $42.00 plus postage and handling ($7.80 within Australia). Orders should be sent to the Australia ICOMOS Secretariat at: austicomos@deakin.edu.au

Robin Chapple MLC (WA Greens) introduced a Bill in the Western Australian parliament to protect the Burrup Peninsula (Murujuga) on 19 December. To read the Bill and the Second Reading speech click here: http://www.mp.wa.gov.au/rchapple/issues/burrup/

Murujuga (the Burrup Peninsula) is home to a vast collection of Indigenous Australian ancient rock art threatened by industrial development in the area.

The Dampier Archipelago in the Pilbara region of north-western Australia features what is regarded as the world's largest concentration of petroglyphs (rock engravings or carvings). It also possesses a major corpus of standing stones, similar to megalithic monuments in Europe, the largest such occurrence in Australia. This outstanding body of Aboriginal rock art is considered to be the greatest non-European cultural heritage property in Australia, and is thus one of the major heritage sites in the world.

During the 1960s major industrial facilities were established in the remote archipelago. Current plans by the Western Australian government of further extensions to this industrial complex designate 38% of the land area to be occupied by petrochemical and other plants.

At present levels of atmospheric pollution, most of the Dampier petroglyphs will disappear during the second half of the 21st century. However, if the emissions are trebled, as proposed by the W.A. government, this process will be accelerated greatly, and scientific data predict that the rock art will begin to disappear by about 2030.

The expansion of the industrial complex by adding a multi-billion dollar petrochemical industry is opposed by scientists, conservators, conservationists and by the owners of the rock art, Aboriginal people of the region. It is also opposed by the Australian National Trust and other national and international bodies, and even by most of the local redidents in the region.

This is not a confrontation between those who are for or against development. None of the parties opposes the development as such, they merely want it relocated away from the Aboriginal sites. The previous state government earmarked a huge land area on the mainland, called the Maitland Heavy Industry Estate for this very purpose, but the present state government refuses to develop this alternative area and insists that the Burrup Peninsula (Murujuga) be instead destroyed.

The International Federation of Rock Art Organisations (IFRAO) demands that the State Government exercises its responsibility of protecting the Dampier rock art, and that it implements a management plan for the archipelago after proper consultation of the stakeholders.

IFRAO is a federation of 39 national and regional organisations promoting the study of rock art, palaeoart and cognitive archaeology. IFRAO facilitates international cooperation, initiates and pursues common policies and projects, and acts as an altruistic focus and cohesive medium for the discipline.
http://www.cesmap.it/ifrao/ifrao.html

Melbourne's Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens may become the first building in Australia to be listed for its World Heritage value and Victoria's first World Heritage Place, Minister for the Environment and Heritage,