On the Ethics of Reconstructing Destroyed Cultural Heritage Monuments

Journal of the American Philosophical Association 6 (4):483-501 (2020)
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Abstract

Philosophers, archeologists, and other heritage professionals often take a rather negative view of heritage reconstruction, holding that it is inappropriate or even impermissible. In this essay, we argue that taking such hardline attitudes toward the reconstruction of heritage is unjustified. To the contrary, we believe that the reconstruction of heritage can be both permissible and beneficial, all things considered. In other words, sometimes we have good reasons, on balance, to pursue reconstructions, and doing so can be morally acceptable. In defending this claim, we discern a number of arguments made against heritage reconstruction and demonstrate that these arguments are either exaggerated or lack support.

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Author Profiles

William Bülow O'Nils
Uppsala University
Joshua Lewis Thomas
Open University (UK)

Citations of this work

Objectionable Commemorations, Historical Value, and Repudiatory Honouring.Ten-Herng Lai - 2024 - Australasian Journal of Philosophy 102 (1):37-47.

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References found in this work

Authenticity in art.Denis Dutton - 2003 - In Jerrold Levinson (ed.), The Oxford handbook of aesthetics. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 258--274.
On restoring and reproducing art.Mark Sagoff - 1978 - Journal of Philosophy 75 (9):453-470.
Why Old Things Matter.Simon P. James - 2015 - Journal of Moral Philosophy 12 (3):313-329.
Touch and the Experience of the Genuine.C. Korsmeyer - 2012 - British Journal of Aesthetics 52 (4):365-377.
Why Old Things Matter.Simon James - 2013 - Journal of Moral Philosophy 10 (4):313-329.

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