When immovable heritage goes ambulatory
The Sheep Dyke of North Ronaldsay (Orkney) as an 'organically evolving monument
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 5701022 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Margaréta H Pintér (0009-0003-4735-3823, University of Copenhagen, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 31 |
| Issue | 8 |
| Pages | 1138-1156 |
| Publication date | 2025-08-03 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Journal of Heritage Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1352-7258 • E-ISSN: 1470-3610 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/13527258.2025.2535323 |
| OpenAlex | W4412531643 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 44 |
The Sheep Dyke of North Ronaldsay (Orkney) is a drystone wall classified as a Listed Building by Historic Environment Scotland (HES), which wavers between being understood as a living structure that shifts its location regularly, and its categorical identity as a listed building that forwards its immovable qualities. This article highlights how different ontological framings of drystone play a role in how the Sheep Dyke’s authenticity, function and value is experienced, defined, and subsequently managed. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork conducted on North Ronaldsay, I observe how the Sheep Dyke’s dialogical relationship with a changing landscape shapes its perception as an ‘organically evolving monument’. Turning attention to how the structure is approached by regional heritage management in Orkney, I consider how the topic of change is negotiated in a regulatory setting beyond the local. I end with a deliberation on the ethical stakes implicated in the management of ontologically ambiguous heritage and apply the lens of ecology to consider the disruptive potential of thinking with disturbance, rather than continuity as a baseline. This article advocates for more flexibility in determining the value of heritage via its mutable characteristics rather than the championing of its supposedly intrinsic and static worth
Archaeology · Geography · Conservation Techniques and Studies · Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation · Geographies of human-animal interactions · History
A Geography of Heritage
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The use of isotope ratios to test for seaweed eating in sheep
The Invention of Tradition
The measurement of place attachment
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Beyond “Natural” and “Cultural” Heritage
What is an Assemblage
Curated decay
Expertise and the making of World Heritage policy
Continuity
The construction of intangible cultural heritage
Landscape and heritage
The Deleuze-Guattarian assemblage
What’s wrong with heritage experts? An interdisciplinary discussion of experts and expertise in heritage studies
Clarifying the critical in critical heritage studies
Weak Theory in an Unfinished World
A thousand plateaus
Some Reflections on Heritage and Archaeology in the Anthropocene
The Quarry
Endangerment, Biodiversity and Culture
Anticipated futures? Knowing the heritage of drift matter
Anticipating loss
Heritage and scale
International Cultural Heritage Regimes, International Law, and the Politics of Expertise
Japan's Monument Problem
Urban Incomers and Rural Change
Tradition
The Mushroom at the End of the World
Theorizing Heritage
States of Conservation
The Heritage of Heritage
Crafting authenticity
Negotiating Authentic Objects and Authentic Selves
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |