ABSTRACT
The late nineteenth century saw a remarkable rise in interest in aspects of preservation, recognised in the flowering of a museum culture throughout Europe and a new focus on both the built environment and the 'natural' landscape. The built environment as it has survived is a cultural construction, its appearance and meanings dependant on a complex process of selection, protection and intervention. The built environment evolves through a sequence of building, renovation, demolition and rebuilding. The discovery and propagation of a national heritage was an essential precondition for the establishment of the nation-state. However the nation-state, once established, needed to legitimate itself through the creation and propagation of a national heritage. In some cases heritage stories have been used to promote a revitalisation based on visitor attractions, in other cases 'heritage' features have been used to retain a sense of identity in otherwise totally refigured locations.
