Elegantly produced with fine pictures and informative texts, this book comprises six papers presented during an international seminar conceived by the National Monuments Authority in New Delhi during December 2013, with the objective of highlighting the archaeological context and cultural landscapes relating to monuments inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage list and drawing attention to urban pressures that impact the conservation and preservation of the sites.
Though the number of identified sites in India is 30, of which six are natural properties and the others under the control of the ASI, the papers in this book deal with only a few sites but concentrates more on the problems encountered in inscription and preservation.
In the first paper the parameters for deciding a site as World Heritage is described by one of the editors, Himanshu Prabha Ray, who is the chairperson of the National Monuments Authority. The author takes Sarnath Varanasi as a case study. From the time Alexander Cunningham’s findings were published, excavations undertaken at various times have altered the understanding of the site. The Ashoka pillar was unearthed along with lion capital in 1905 and later the monastery. That showed continuous activity in that area unlike what was stated by Cunningham, that the site was destroyed when Buddhism was driven out and Buddhists were expelled from India. Though the first monument was erected by Ashoka, it was in the fourth to sixth centuries that Sarnath reached its high watermark.
According to the author, this continued till the 12th century and during excavations, Jain and Hindu icons were also unearthed from the site along with a colossal image of Shiva killing the demon. Quoting a timeline she questions the validity of the UNESCO charter describing Mahabodhi temple as the oldest. She goes on to explain the problems connected with declaring a site under the World Heritage category and laments the woefully inadequate skill of the government agencies to carefully select and present hard data about a site to be included in the list. In addition, shared cultural heritage sites and zones across boundaries have no partner-state promoters like the exquisite terracotta temples of West Bengal and Bangladesh. She raises logical questions as well, “Is the investment getting a listing of a particular monument or site as World Heritage status worth the tremendous costs to Third World Countries? Has the inscription contributed to the ultimate goal of preservation for posterity?”
Lynn Meskell, a professor of anthropology in Stanford University questions the right to heritage. She discusses the problems connected with an inscription by UNESCO. With less than 70 people working at the World Heritage Centre and with negligible funding, it is not an easy task for the Centre. She highlights the lacuna in decision-making by the the committee comprising members from representative countries; she notes that there is a strong correlation between the countries represented in the committee and the locations of properties nominated. According to her, statistically, 42% of nominations benefitted from those countries with Committee members during their mandate.
However the radical step taken by the UNESCO, in recognising Palestine made it possible to nominate the Church of the Nativity, the first Palestinian site in 2012, resulting in the wrath of the US. This proves, according to the author, that creation of something called World Heritage and the recognition that ensues can be incredibly powerful and liberating but it can also divide and get punitive actions imposed! She cautions that UNESCO exists poised between the impossible expectations of its charter and the abysmal realities it has to confront.
Andrew M. Bauer deals with the case of Hire Benakal of Karnataka, a megalithic site and one of the largest of necropolises that contains several funerary remains. The author, after discussing the spatial distribution of the monuments, stresses the importance of archaeological evidence found in the site that suggests a long period of sustained occupation in the region spanning the entirety of the 1 millennium BCE.
An important point is that from the archaeological evidences it can be assumed that many temporarily occupied prehistoric places documented reflect dispersions from relatively permanent settlements by small segments of the population as part of animal herding routines. His study shows that the site does not simply come under just one of the three criteria prescribed by the UNESCO for recognition of a site as World Heritage, but embraces almost all of them.
Susan Verma Mishra takes up the case of Rani-Ki-Vav or the Queen’s step well of Gujarat for study. Since the merchants of Gujarat were traders through sea route, they could import material from distant places to construct temples in timber as neither Sal nor teak was available in Gujarat. Therefore the material must have been shipped from the Malabar area. The step-wells were part of a wider network of wells linking trade routes, in addition to being sacred spots having spiritual significance. Even the traded articles are identified with possibilities of market places in the route in this paper. Fascinating pictures showing the intricate sculptures and structures makes the paper captivating to read.
Kathleen D. Morrison, professor of Anthropology of University of Chicago, deals with Vijayanagara Metropolitan Region. As a member of the Vijayanagara Metropolitan Survey team along with C. M. Sinopoli, the survey was taken in two phases and the paper details the study. The focus has been on the three centuries between 1300 and 1600. She notes that there are very specific patterns in the location, size and dedication of shrines and temples, of which many of them are associated with roads, settlements and hilltops, even violating norms of shrines normally to be facing east. The pattern of having large triumphal Hanuman images in the major gateways and crossroads are also seen within the city itself. The study of the vast area, according to her, has the potential to foster understanding of the social dynamics around the city of Vijayanagara.
Edgar F. Ribeiro, former chief town planner for Town and Country Planning Organisation, India, deals with old Goa. He points out that there is no agreed global definition of heritage. He says immovable heritage is in continuous danger of being obliterated. He stresses the importance of legalised mapping that is transparent so that planned programmed development through conservation strategies can take place within and around the legally identified sites. He has produced sketches to show the parameters. He has recommended certain points that need to be considered by the Heritage Conservation Committees in India.
Handsomely produced with excellent images of the sites discussed, this publication is timely as in India there are demands to declare certain sites as World Heritage Sites, while, there is continuous and almost criminal destruction of some under the name of development or commercial activities like quarrying.
