Managing the World Heritage Site of the Acropolis, Greece

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine practices for the presentation of specific sites in Greece, and in particular the way the Acropolis, Greece, a World Heritage Site, is communicated at national, local, and international levels, seeking to identify the policy for the presentation of heritage in the specific venue with its historical and current developments. Design/methodology/approach This study presents data collected from the analysis of archival documents and interviews with curators who offered the researchers ground to explain the purposes and reasons for the implementation of decisions related to the management of heritage following a case study design. Findings The paper argues for the need of a critical approach towards the implementation of communication activities for many sites rather than the world‐renowned ones. Issues that associate with the relationship of heritage with social aspects of the contemporary world receive little attention in the literature, let alone the masked political and economic implications that state governments often do not admit. The projection of the perceived distinct characteristics of a country, nationally and internationally, signifies the role that these properties may have when states present them at national level while retaining their international character. Originality/value The article makes a theoretical and practical contribution to the way the marketing of heritage for the Acropolis can consist of a typical recourse for other sites in other areas and is associated with socio‐economic and political implications.