Heritage Interpretation as Part of Tourism Experience - Coursework Example

Heritage Interpretation as Part of Tourism Experience Introduction Heritage interpretation is an educational activity as well as full range potential activities whose main agenda is to reveal and enhance understanding of past cultural heritage sites. These sites could be in form of science centre, museum, or cultural centre. According to Waterton and Watson (2010, p. 220) heritage interpretation helps a visitor have an exceptional experience of almost first hand information concerning a particular aspect. Unlike historical sites, heritage sites tend to recreate a replica of the original circumstances. Agnew (2010. p. 63) argues that while allot of emphasis is put on preservation of history; there is need for presentation and display of monuments and real time activities that are part of the history. Heritage Interpretation and tourism Heritage forms part of the wider range of tourism. It does not only reflect on the historical part of tourism but also the cultural practices of people. Heritage tourism can be said to be an experience and observation that has an incorporation of both entertainment and education at heritage sites, cultural landscapes, Interpretation on the other hand can be seen as a process that has been designed purposely to reveal meanings as well as relationships of both cultural and heritage o visitors. This is done through first hand experiences with artefacts, sites and landscapes. This report aims at analysis how heritage interpretation as part of tourism was used in the following three heritage sites and activates; Jorvik Viking York Festivals 2015 (York, UK) ST Peter church (Sunderland, UK) SUNDERLAND museum & winter gardens (SUNDERLAND, UK) The Jorvik Viking Festival This is an annual festival held at York. It is a city-wide celebration aimed at celebrating Yorks Viking heritage. The festival attracts over 40,000 visitors from all over the world each year. The event is characterised by family-friendly events, guided walks, and lecture and battle re-enactment. The festival involves most of the people from York and other interested groups. The festival is based on Vikings based on a century old history. York was once under the Vikings and on February of each year, they would hold a celebration known as Jolablat". This was mainly held to celebrate the coming of spring season and also the end of winter season and it hardships. This festival is jointly organized by The York Trust and JORVIK Group of Attractions. St. Peters Church, Sunderland, UK One of three churches making up Parish of Monkwearmouth, it is one of the first churches in UK to be built by stone. The church was established in the mid 7th Century and is one of the most peculiar archaeological sites in UK. The site is well known main for the presence of the Anglo-Saxon features like the west wall as well as the towers. The initial intention for the centre was based on education/learning as well as the Christian religion. Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens Based in Sunderland, the Museum is enriched with both prehistoric past information as well as the present day stories of the city. The museum contains masterpieces and artefacts from all over the world. The Art Gallery has paintings from famous artists like L.S Lowry and many others. The spectacular Winter Gardens have a powerful display of the natural beauty of the world with over 2,000 flowers as well as other plants. The museum has temporary displays and exhibitions that are also combined with other activates and re-enactments of the past. Interactive methods of heritage interpretation The above three sites utilized different methods in order to facilitate heritage interpretation here are some of them. Exhibitions In the Sunderland Museum and Winter gardens, there were exhibitions of artefacts and paintings from the prehistoric period. There were displays of the masterpiece done by famous scholars and artists in the past century. The exhibitions had labels illustrating the approximate year when these artefacts were in use or created. The use of exhibitions was also experienced at St. Peters Church where there were displays of pictures of the deacons and bishops who at one point were in leadership in the church. There were also exhibitions of the remains of the tools used in the 7th century. At the Jorvik Viking Festival, there were exhibitions of weapons and armoury used by the Vikings during combat. The use of exhibition is very significant because it gives and individual a visual experience and they are able to see the real tools and equipments that can be related to particular story. This method is unique compared to others in that it does not involve so many people in order to communicate and be interpreted. The use of exhibitions can be helpful to people who prefer self-guide. According to Lollino (2015, p. 172) the use of exhibitions has great impact to tourism as it enables individuals have a visual experience and this plays key role in interpretation. Guided walks In all the three sites visited, there were walks facilitated by the tour guides. At the Sunderland Museum, the tourists were given a walk through different sections as the tour guided explained and elaborated on different displays and exhibitions. The tour guides elaborated on the life of different artists featured in the museum and also gave information regarding where the artefacts were collected from. The same thing was experienced at the St. Peters church where individuals were guided into different areas. The tourists walked through the site viewing and different remains of the walls of the church as well as artefacts that were used by the Anglo-Saxon. At the Jorvik Viking Festival, a similar thing was experienced. The walk was so real because the tourists were able to experience a well rebuild of the situations as they were during the Viking rule at York. The walks went into the streets and markets where there were people doing their daily activities just like the Vikings did in the past century. The use of guided walks has an advantage of variety. As individuals walk, they experience and interpret different things. The walk had a touch of time line as it was like walking back in time. This method is appropriate as it is able to help the tourist relate different scenarios at the same time. The walk at the Jorvik Viking festival in the market, showed some many details at the same time. The tourists were able to observe the dressing styles, the accents, the commodities at the market among other details all at the same time. With the help of a tour guide, this method is appropriate as the tourists can ask questions as they continue with the walk. This forms an important part of heritage interpretation. There is allot that can be learnt as an individual makes walks in historic sites. The advantage of walks is that it brings multiple features and gives an individual high expectations in the next site Else at al. (2007, p. 56). Use of Signage and banners A walk through all the three sites showed signage as well as labelled banners. At the St. Peters Church in Sunderland, there were signage put at every area we visited, these signage had details such as dates, names of people, titles of people among other details. There was also signage at the remains of the wall. This signage had details about when the wall was first built and when it was brought down. At the Sunderland Museum, the use of signage and banners proved to be very much in use. There were signage next to the artefacts and the paintings at the gallery. They had names of the artists and the year they lived. There were also details concerning where the painting came from as most were from the other parts of the world. At the Winter gardens, there was also signage used within the flower gardens. They displayed names of different plants and flowers. The same thing happened at the Jorvik Viking Festival. At the central camp, there were illustrations and drawings by the archaeologists. These drawings had signage and banners giving more details about them. At the Yorkshire Museum, there signage and banners next to some tools used by the Vikings, their armoury and combats. The use of signage, banners as well as signage proved very appropriate especially for the self-guided tourists. Individuals are able to read and interpret information on their own. The signage only had the most vital information concerning the cultural tool or display. However, relying on the signage and banners alone has limitations. There are no rooms for one to ask questions or interact. These limit the amount of information that one can access. A visit in a heritage sites will be more effective with the use of signs, picturesque, posters and banners Ruiz-Castel, Lourenco, Soubiran and Talas ( 2015, p. 124). Re-enactment Of all the methods used, this seemed to be more effective and appropriate in heritage interpretation. At the St. Peters Church, there was short re-enactment of the battles that led to the fall of the northern wall within the monastery. There was also re-enactment of the activities done by the people who lived within the monastic settlement and within the church yard. There were also soldiers fully armed for combat at different entries. These were real humans in the attires. At the Jorvik Viking Festival, everything had been brought back to be as it were during the reigning of the Vikings at York. During the walk in the market and the streets, there were people dressed and talking like the Vikings. They did activities that were done by the Vikings, there sold the same products and also talked with the same accent. The streets of Jorvik were fully re-enacted with even the smells and sounds. During the grand finale of the festival, there was re-enactment of the battles fought by the Vikings. There were horses, fire and the battle looked so real. The use of re-enactment is probably one of the most effective methods of heritage interpretation. It is like watching a movie but the difference is that you are able to see events happening in real time. The presence at the scene helps an individual have a more clear interpretation of the situation and these helps the individual understand more. Re-enactment is also entertaining because the activities happening have a touch of fun in them. The use of re-enactment is more appropriate because it takes individuals back in time and putting them at the centre of the cultural activities and practices. At the walk in the Jorvik market and streets, talking to the people acting as Vikings becomes so real that one might loss contact with the current or present world. According to Mascaro (2012, p. 45) re-enactment has much advantage over all other tools as audience get a chance to resonate with a set up and the activities taking place. Cinema, Film and video presentation The use of cinemas and videos helped in creating a sense of understanding of all the activities in the past but at the present time. At the Sunderland Museum, there were short clips showing some of the re-enacted activities of the past centuries. There were also short films illustrating the history of Sunderland. The films had timelines and helped take the tourists back in time. At the St. Peters church, there was a virtual touring feature that allowed an individual take a walk through the site without necessarily doing it practically. The virtual tour facilitated by Google technology, allowed an individual use a computer and a mouse to navigate through the site and observe the different parts of the site. At the Jorvik Festival, there were short films at the Museum which showed activates of the Vikings. There were also clips of the present York. The films would illustrate how much the city has transformed since the coming of the Vikings to the present. Apart from that, there were also Hollywood films and movies that were shown. These were mainly contemporary films that were based on the history of the Vikings. How to Train your Dragon was used to illustrate the courage and fearlessness of the Vikings as well as a display of their culture in real time. The use of films, cinemas and movies is equally and important aspect of heritage interpretation. This method is able to educate as well as entertain at the same time. The use of cinemas at the Museum in Sunderland was effective as some of the activities that would otherwise be hard to get access to be brought into the films. The advantage of using films and cinemas is that it is able to incorporate allot of historical features at the same time and within a short time. Just like re-enactment, films are very entertaining and they take an individual back in time to see what happened. According to Mascaro (2012, p. 45) re-enactment has much advantage over all other tools as audience get a chance to resonate with a set up and the activities taking place. Songs and Music The use of music and songs proved as well to be very effective. During the visit to St. Peters Church, there were choirs that sung the same songs with the same tune as done during the Anglo-Saxon period. At the church, the songs were used to give information concerning how Christianity played a key role in that period. The songs were not only entertaining but the lyrics had words that would explain the lifestyle of the people at that time of history. At the Sunderland Museum, there was a musical history with songs of the most famous musicians from Sunderland. This included both historic as well as the present musicians. The songs were by themselves a journey explaining different times, different reign of Kings and monarchy in England. At the Jorvik Festival, songs were at the centre of everything. There was a combination of both present music and the Vikings music. Together, the songs were part of the re-enactments. During the battles, there were background music as well as soundtracks and effects. These features made the re-enactment come to life. The tunes in the music were so unique and these captured the attention of the audience. At the festival, the music was also combining with dances. The use of Music plays a key role in heritage interpretation. Listening to the tunes used by the Vikings as well as the lyrics and words in the songs, helped understand more about their heritage, their practices and their way of life. Music proved to be entertaining as well and this made sure that the audience would follow up with what is happening. Listening to the music also helped individuals make a comparison with the recent type of music. Individuals will be able to evaluate whether there is a fall or rise in quality if music. According to Hoffman (2006, p. 172) music is a very crucial aspect of history. It helps the listeners learn about the past in an entertaining way. Summary The visit to the three sites proved that heritage interpretation is a form of tourism. The importance of tourism to the world heritage is very vital. Tourism has helped different people learn more about peoples culture and heritage Bushell and Eagles (2006, p. 117). Heritage interpretation has so much to offer in respect to how one is able to enjoy their tourism experiences. Heritage interpretation involves allot of activities which are both entertaining as well as educating. This uniqueness makes it very appropriate in most heritage and cultural sites. The methods and approaches that can be deployed in heritage interpretation vary from site to site depending on the resources available, the historic feature in place among others. Use of tools like re-enactment, music, films. Walks among others are effective but they have their own limitations. Despite that, it is unfair to neglect the importance of using each one of them. Reference list Top of Form Bottom of Form Top of Form Bottom of Form Top of Form Top of Form Top of Form Agnew, N. (2010). Conservation of ancient sites on the Silk Road: proceedings of the second international conference on the conservation of grotto sites, Mogao Grottoes, Dunhuang, Peoples Republic of China, June 28-July 3, 2004. Los Angeles, Getty Conservation Institute. Bushell, R., & Eagles, P. F. J. (2006) Tourism and protected areas: benefits beyond boundaries. Wallingford, CABI Pub. Else, D. (2007) Walking in Britain Footscray, Lonely Planet Hoffman, B. T. (2006). Art and cultural heritage: law, policy, and practice Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. International Association for Engineering Geology and the Environment, & Lollino, G. (2014) Engineering geology for society and territory Volume 8, Volume 8 Monk, C. (2011). Heritage film audiences: period films and contemporary audiences in the UK. Edinburgh, Edinburgh University Press. Bottom of Form Ruiz-Castell, P., Lourenço, M. C., Soubiran, S., & Talas, S. (2015). Beyond public engagement: new ways of studying, managing and using university collections. Waterton, E., & Watson, S. (2010). Culture, heritage and representation: perspectives on visuality and the past. Farnham, Surrey, England, Ashgate Bottom of Form Read More