Contributors remind us that for every monument that is erected, others - including one celebrating Sri Lanka's independence and another honouring the Unknown Russian Soldier of World War II - remain on the drawing board. While some sites seem woefully underserved by a lack of public memorials - as does post-Pinochet Chile and post-civil war El Salvador - others run the risk of diluting meaning through overexposure, as may be happening with Israel's Masada. Essayists examine public history as it is conveyed not only in marble and stone but also through cityscapes and performances such as popular songs and parades. From Scotland to China and Nicaragua to Germany, societies are grappling with questions of how to represent history, and for many, these debates are complicated by ethnic and religious differences and divisions. Memory and the Impact of Political Transformation in Public Space broadens understandings of what public history is by looking at how and by whom it is made and contested.