Work

The spirit of place of Bhaktapur, Nepal

Year: 2015

Type: article

Abstract: There is no clear approach to defining the authenticity of the ‘spirit and feeling’ of a place or how it could inform heritage conservation. I argue that the notion of spirit of place may be defined in a manner that directly links it with the concept of cultural significance of historic places, how it is understood by a community and with heritage conservation goals and development needs of that place. Residents in the World Heritage Town of Bhaktapur, Nepal, were interviewed to explore their shared understanding of its spirit of place. The residents identify the spirit of place of Bhaktapur in terms of four interrelated place dimensions; that is, the ‘sense of sacrality’, the ‘sense of community’, the ‘sense of historicity’ and the ‘sense of serenity’.

Source: International Journal of Heritage Studies

DOI: 10.1080/13527258.2015.1028962

Author: Kapila D. Silva

Institution: University of Kansas

Language: English

Topic: Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation

Subfield: Archeology

Field: Arts and Humanities

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Sustainable cities and communities

Open Access status: green

Funder: University of Kansas