Cultural Asset Durability Index (CADI): Structural Persistence as an Indexical and Comparative Analytical Framework

Cultural assets are frequently evaluated through frameworks that conflate durability with popularity, valuation, or sustained demand. This paper introduces the Cultural Asset Durability Index (CADI) as an indexical analytical framework for examining long-horizon patterns of cultural persistence without reference to taste, price, or predictive outcomes. CADI does not function as a numerical index, valuation model, or allocation tool. Instead, it provides a structured lens for organizing comparative analysis of the structural conditions under which certain cultural assets remain institutionally legible across changing cultural, legal, and governance regimes. By explicitly rejecting prediction, optimization, and normative judgment, CADI repositions durability as an observed structural condition rather than a cultural verdict or investment signal. Its contribution lies in rendering visible a class of structural constraints that fall outside the design scope of existing economic, cultural, and asset-analytic frameworks.