HERITAGE MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND CHALLENGES AT WUKRO ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM AND CHERKOS ROCK-HEWN CHURCH, TIGRAY, ETHIOPIA

Abstract

This thesis documents the current heritage management practices at Wukro archaeological museum and Cherkos Rock-Hewn Church in Tigray. It also attempts to identify the prevailed management challenges that negatively affects the heritage management practices. It is generally understood that by managing their heritage, people ensure the preservation of cultural identity, facilitate education, generate economic benefits, and promote community and social cohesion. Museums and churches play a crucial role in the preservation and management of heritage collections. They serve as custodians of cultural artifacts, providing a controlled environment for the storage, display, and interpretation of heritage items. At the same time, however, they face several challenges in managing the collections they housed. In order to document the management practices and identify the challenges, the researcher employed both qualitative and quantitative method in order to gather the data as well as analyze the data. The result of the study shows that human factor such as low level of awareness, lack of trained personnel and the absence of the required infrastructure including finance are the primary challenge to the museum and church collection. Additionally, the study reveals that environmental factors such as water leakage, cracking, flacking and the ever-changing climatic conditions are the secondary challenge. Finally, it is concluded that the active participation of the local community as well as collaborative planning and action of the stakeholders are important steps towards the enhancement of management practices as well as making sustainable use of heritage resources within these priceless heritage custody in Wukro, Tigray