Public Interpretation of Archaeological Heritage and Archaeotourism

Archaeological heritage has been one of the main resources exploited for tourism since the early days. The communication of this heritage to different types of public through interpretive media has become a vital element in constructing its myriad values. Although, there is a considerable amount of research in public interpretation in relation to archaeological heritage, the literature is general and sketchy in nature and integrated with other types of heritage resources. Also, there is a limited number of studies link between interpretation and archaeotourism, especially in developing countries. Mainly, this study pointed out three main interdependent factors that affect the development public interpretation at archaeological sites;i.e.: the physical context; the stakeholders and stewardship context; the socio- cultural context. A new integrative approach is proposed to activate the role of public interpretation for archaeological heritage. By far, this pioneer work should help those who are involved in heritage interpretation and tourism, especially in the Middle Eastern countries.