ABSTRACT
The conception of the Great Barrier Reef as a single entity is critical to the World Heritage status of the region. This chapter outlines how the whole is made possible through the strategic view of maps, charts and satellite imagery and experienced in the fusion of two other simulacra – the tropical islands and coral gardens. As such the cornerstone of the world heritage values as ‘natural’ are misconceived. Instead the Great Barrier Reef is experienced through hyper-reality of sophisticated photographic imagery that lacks a sense of place. This misconception of non-place as place is perpetuated in heritage management of the region that fails to evaluate the aesthetics of the region beyond such visual imagery.
