The symbolic politics of cultural heritage: a view from Portugal

This paper highlights the centrality of the social representation of cultural heritage for the symbolic legitimization of a regime and the foundation of its social and cultural policies. The relevance attributed to history, its codification into heritage and the formation of a collective memory are indeed arenas of social practice, power and hegemony. The Portuguese example is a good one, because one can compare contrasting visions of the authoritarian regime of Salazar and those of the new and current democratic order. We examine how the Portuguese democracy has reconstructed a national consensus regarding the interpretation of national history and identity; we consider the role of the new interpretation in the redefining of the Portuguese placement in the world system; and some conclusions will be tentatively drawn from this case study.