'...Sheer, Utter, European Arrogance...' Challenges to the Authenticity of Rock Art Sites in the Grampians-Gariweed Region of Victoria, Australia

The issue of authenticity continues to pervade tourism studies. Hughes (1995) describes the issue as an obligato that runs through tourism research. MacCannell (1976) has suggested that tourism is a quest for the authentic precisely because it has become so scarce. It assumes that the quest for authenticity is focussed not only on people as objects, but also on material objects (Harkin 1995). Getz (1995:315) has defined authenticity as 'genuine, unadulterated or the real thing'. This article addresses authenticity in terms of the management of indigenous rock art sites in Victoria, Australia.