Beyond Fabric Conservation: Assessing Experiential Heritage Values in the Ma Family Courtyard

Abstract

This paper develops an experiential heritage value assessment framework for the Ma Family Courtyard in Pingyao. Conventional
assessment of architectural heritage often privileges age, fabric, structural condition, craftsmanship, and visual integrity, while giving less
systematic attention to movement, sensory atmosphere, cultural legibility, and reflective meaning. Drawing on value-based conservation,
the Historic Urban Landscape approach, setting theory, and research on visitor perception, the study translates the formation of spatial
experience into six assessable dimensions: cultural legibility, spatial integrity, route continuity, perceptual coherence, atmospheric authenticity, and experiential significance. The framework is applied to the Ma Family Courtyard as an interpretive case rather than a quantitative
survey. It identifies the heritage attributes supporting each dimension, the principal risks that may weaken them, and corresponding conservation priorities. The paper proposes an assessment-to-action process comprising attribute identification, value assessment, risk diagnosis,
priority setting, adaptive intervention, and post-intervention monitoring. It argues that experiential value is not a substitute for material
authenticity; it is the process through which authentic fabric, spatial relations, and cultural knowledge become meaningful to visitors and
communities.