Democracy in Conservation – Wall Painting Conservation and Church Communities

Wall painting conservation in Denmark has been functioning within a democratically organised church infrastructure for more than 100 years, which permits an overview of community involvement in conservation over a longer period. The case stories presented here show widely varying attitudes held by church communities, and how inconstant some value attributions are, particularly when compared to present day attitudes. The present situation is characterized predominantly by a one-way flow of information about conservation goals from the professionals to the community. Lack of knowledge pertaining to the general public's values make formulation of strategies that acknowledge this aspect difficult.