ABSTRACT
This chapter explores an emerging role for the heritage expert or professional, one that may require a fundamental decentering of authority. The approach and conclusions, limited to the immediate British context because other nations must negotiate with additional pertinent issues, such as the rights of Indigenous communities. The chapter outlines the process by which the range of accepted forms of heritage in the UK has expanded and then problematizes the notion of expertise. It examines how the aforementioned issues have emerged in management of the Blaenavon Industrial Landscape, a World Heritage Site in South Wales. The chapter illustrates the contested nature of the heritage management at Blaenavon by focusing on only a few issues that have arisen since the Blaenavon Partnership has been in existence: the management of Big Pit: National Coal Museum; a town centre regeneration project; and a recent community-focused scheme. Successful community involvement or collaboration in archaeological heritage management demands the repositioning of expertise and authority.
