Burra Charter Archival Documents

The Burra Charter 1999

Please note: Following the adoption of the 2013 Burra Charter and the associated series of Practice Notes, the 1999 version of the Burra Charter and the 1988 Guidelines to The Burra Charter, and the video below, are now to be considered archival documents.

For details of the review that lead to these changes, click here.

Caring for heritage places: introducing the Burra Charter (video)

The video below is from 2000 and introduced the 1999 version of the Burra Charter, as part of the archival record about the earlier versions of the Charter.  The video demonstrates the Burra Charter (1999 version) in practice, showing how its ideas can be used to appropriately conserve heritage places.

This video was prepared for Australia ICOMOS with support from the Australian Heritage Commission, the Australia Foundation for Culture and the Humanities, and the National Trust.  Executive producer – Bill Nethery, Film maker – Dale Baker, Narrators – Jack Mundey and Peter Forrest.

The Burra Charter and its accompanying guidelines are considered the best practice standard for cultural heritage management in Australia.

The document has been endorsed by the following heritage councils:

  • Australian Heritage Council (December 2004) endorsed the 2004 version of The Illustrated Burra Charter in accordance with section 5(e) and (h) of the Australian Heritage Council Act. Council endorsed the Charter in order to encourage best practice.
  • New South Wales Heritage Council (December 2004) resolved to recognise and endorse The Burra Charter: The Australia ICOMOS Charter for Places of Cultural Significance (1999) as a key policy document that underpins the policies for the conservation of heritage items in NSW.
  • Queensland Heritage Council (January 2005) adopted The Burra Charter: The Australia ICOMOS Charter for Places of Cultural Significance (1999) (and associated Guidelines) as a guiding policy document for making decisions under the Queensland Heritage Act 1992.
  • Heritage Council of Victoria (July 2010) resolved to recognise and endorse The Burra Charter: The Australia ICOMOS Charter for Places of Cultural Significance (1999) as a document for guiding best practice heritage management in Victoria.
  • The Tasmanian Heritage Council (March 2012) endorsed The Burra Charter: The Australia ICOMOS Charter for Places of Cultural Significance (1999) as a guiding policy document for heritage management in Tasmania.

Guidelines to The Burra Charter

Please note: The Guidelines below (which form part of and are contained in The Burra Charter) have yet to be revised to accord with the 1999 Burra Charter, but are included here for completeness.

Australia ICOMOS is currently updating these Guidelines with the aim of completing a consistent suite of documents as part of a review of the Charter itself.

Burra Charter 1999 Translations

The Burra Charter – older versions

The versions of the Burra Charter available for download below are no longer endorsed by Australia ICOMOS as current documents in relation to matters concerning conservation philosophy and practice, and should only be used as archival documents in relation to the development of conservation philosophy in Australia.