Valuing cultural heritage through non-monetary scales: a comparison

Abstract

Economic valuation studies of cultural goods have a long history and have gained renewed interest in recent years. This paper poses a methodological challenge as the use of alternative scales to monetary ranges for the valuation of cultural heritage. A renowned archaeological site is taken as a case study, and its use value is estimated through the travel cost method (monetary value) and time spent visiting the site (non-monetary scale). According to consumption theory, we find an inverse relationship between the two scales and the intensity of demand. While the monetary approach mainly reflects the cost of accessing the good—ceteris paribus the preferences—the time spent approach shows that those who invest more time in the visit are fanatics, enthusiasts, dazzled youth, and educated adults. These results provide more efficient policy implications in the field of cultural management and price-marking for museums and cultural heritage institutions.