ABSTRACT
In Chapters 10 and 11, we take the national scale as a frame of reference to discuss the concept of heritage at the supranational continental and global scales. Our focus thus becomes the ownership of heritage and the heritage dissonances which exist between nations as well as those arising from the idea that heritage can be the common property of communities of nations. The national scale of heritage identity remains enshrined in national museums, collections, histories, conservational legislative frameworks and practices. Conversely, international heritage organizations were generally created later, usually modelled on national institutions, financed by them and even subject to their veto. Such organizations tend, therefore, to balance national interests rather than override them in the pursuit of international concepts of heritage identity and meaning. Prior to examining the continental scale through the example of Europe, it is therefore necessary to discuss further the ownership of the past.
