Mapping Cultural Assets of Historic Mountain Roads: An Exploration in the Indo-Tibetan Borderland

Historic mountain roads, such as those in the Indo-Tibetan borderlands, hold cultural significance, facilitating centuries of human movement, trade, and spiritual exchange. Despite their importance, these roads remain underrepresented in global heritage frameworks due to the absence of monumental markers and limited documentation. This study addresses this research gap by exploring the cultural assets of the historic mountain roads in the Indo-Tibetan borderland. Employing an interpretivist methodology, the study integrates ethnographic and phenomenological approaches, utilising memory mapping, phenomenological walks, quasi-participant observation, photo elicitation, interviews, and conversations with community members as co-researchers. Key findings highlight the significance of choice points – strategic pause locations – as cultural nodes where tangible and intangible heritage assets converge or emerge. By identifying five types of choice points, the study decodes the characteristics of tangible heritage and the robustness of intangible heritage linked to these roads. Deeply connected to the Rung Shauka community, these roads exemplify a unique interplay of transhumance, trade, and pilgrimage, underscoring their spiritual, and cultural significance. This research not only highlights the importance of these roads as facilitators of cultural continuity but also introduces a framework for decoding their associated heritage, advocating for their inclusion in broader conservation narratives and development initiatives.