The narratives behind heritage trails

The main objective of this research is to explore the issues and politics associated with formal designing of landscape narratives on Statia. To achieve this goal, I will study the proposal for a new heritage trail as one way in which heritage is to be promoted formally within the current context of heritage implementation led by the formal organisations of the island.
The research focuses specifically on a proposal for a new heritage trail (Hellembrand 2010) proposed by Walter Hellembrand, who is director of the Monument Foundation and part of the administrative group of Sint Eustatius. The trail would include an area just outside Oranjestad, the only residential area of the island, rich in important archaeological sites although not all are accessible to the public at this moment. The use of the trail as a case study, together with a general analysis on how heritage is currently implemented on the island, would allow me to investigate the main themes and issues that emerge when designing a heritage trail on Statia. the objective may be divided into two research
questions:

• (RQ1) How does the Golden Rock Heritage Trail stand within the formal process of heritage building in Sint Eustatius, to enhance tourism and promote local identity, through the use of landscape narratives?
• (RQ2) What are the issues of dissonance that emerged during the analysis, upon this heritage trail, arisen with respect to the formal processes of heritage implementation towards meeting the dual purposes of tourism and identity?