Social Values and Rock Art Tourism: An Ethnographic Study of the Huashan Rock Art Area (China)

Rock art tourism, while reinforcing social values tied to heritage sites, can also diminish local communities' emotional attachment due to undesired consequences of World Heritage designation efforts. A study focusing on the Zuojiang Huashan Rock Art Cultural Landscape in China—China's first rock art site inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2016—reveals that tourism promotion initiatives, driven by authorities, have paradoxically both strengthened and weakened local social values. The research, employing ethnographic methods, highlights the need for a critical reassessment of global and Chinese rock art heritage management strategies to balance preservation, cultural significance, and community impact.

Gao, Q. (2017). Social Values and Rock Art Tourism: An Ethnographic Study of the Huashan Rock Art Area (China). Conservation and Management of Archaeological Sites, 19(1), 82–95. https://doi.org/10.1080/13505033.2016.1290477