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Maritime cultural heritage in Morocco: context and perspectives

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 August 2023

Athena Trakadas Open the ORCID record for Athena Trakadas [Opens in a new window]  and
Azzedine Karra
Athena Trakadas*
Affiliation:
Saxo Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Azzedine Karra
Affiliation:
Ministry of Culture, Rabat, Morocco
*
Corresponding author: Athena Trakadas, email: [email protected]
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Abstract

Archaeological research conducted in Morocco over the last two decades has revealed a wealth of diachronic maritime cultural heritage resources, under water and in the coastal zone. However, observation and study has revealed that natural and anthropogenic threats are impacting these resources. Given the challenges to managing maritime cultural heritage (MCH) resources in a country with such an extensive coastline and limited human managerial resources, the national heritage agency and external research institutions have developed methodologies that in part aim at mitigating these threats. This development is illustrated through three projects, briefly outlined here: the Oued Loukkos Survey, the CBDAMM Project and the MarEA Project. These projects incorporate approaches that have been tailored to the Moroccan context, considering the type of resources, the extent of the coastline, types of threats, legislation, and people and institutions involved. In conclusion, this article stresses that an interdisciplinary methodological approach to documentation is necessary in order to inform successful mitigation strategies and to plan for future interventions of MCH.

التراث الثقافي البحري في المغرب : السياق ووجهات النظر

أثينا تراكاداس و عزالدين كارا

كشفت الأبحاث الأثرية التي أجريت في المغرب على مدى العقدين الماضيين عن ثروة من موارد التراث الثقافي البحري التاريخية، تحت الماء وفي المنطقة الساحلية . وقد كشفت المراقبة والدراسة أن التهديدات الطبيعية والبشرية تؤثر على هذه الموارد . ونظراً للتحديات التي تواجه إدارة موارد التراث الثقافي البحري في بلد به مثل هذا الشريط الساحلي الطويل والموارد الإدارية البشرية المحدودة فقد طورت وكالة التراث الوطنية ومؤسسات البحث الخارجية منهجيات تهدف جزئياً إلى التخفيف من هذه التهديدات . يتم توضيح هذا التطور من خلال ثلاثة مشاريع تم عرضها هنا بإيجاز وهي : مسح وادي لوكوس، ومشروع بناء القدرات عن طريق الحصول على البيانات بهدف تعزيز ممارسات إدارة التراث الطبيعي والثقافي في المغرب، ومشروع الآثار البحرية المهددة . تتضمن هذه المشاريع مقاربات تم تكييفها مع السياق المغربي، مع الأخذ في الاعتبار نوع الموارد و امتداد الساحل وأنواع التهديدات والتشريعات، والأشخاص والمؤسسات المعنية . في الختام، تؤكد هذه الورقة على ضرورة اتباع أسلوب منهجي متعدد التخصصات للتوثيق من أجل توفير معلومات لغرض وضع استراتيجيات تخفيف الأثر الناجحة والتخطيط للتدخلات المستقبلية على التراث الثقافي البحري .

Keywords

coastal erosioncultural heritage managementNorth Africamaritime archaeology
Type
Articles
Information
Libyan Studies , Volume 54 , November 2023 , pp. 151 - 159
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2023. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the British Institute for Libyan & Northern African Studies

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