A physical artifact constructed by kinship assignment to persist the transmission of identity and material value from predecessor to successor, operating via the ritualized transfer of possession which anchors the recipient's status within the family hierarchy, ensuring the symbolic weight of the past remains present in the future through the object's durability and the legal/customary binding of the transfer event.
Accepted ontology entry
heirloom
A physical artifact constructed by kinship assignment to persist the transmission of identity and material value from predecessor to successor, operating via the ritualized transfer of possession which anchors the recipient's status within…
Definition
Why it is in scope
A material object designated by kinship succession protocols to persist the continuity of lineage and the value of ancestral legacy across generations.
Names and aliases
- heirloomen · CANONICAL
Relations from this entry
- cmrssifjh00bk145rcznrefirINSTANCE_OF →
An heirloom is a specific kind of artifact: a human-made object deliberately preserved and passed through generations, carrying cultural or familial significance. A competent speaker would call an heirloom 'an artifact' — specifically, a kept artifact. The sense here is the cultural/artifactual sense, not a biological one.
- cmrf51qwi005rcqqtmpyziy84SERVES →
An heirloom is created and maintained for the sake of memory — it preserves personal or family history across generations. Per Law 8d: the servant (heirloom) points at the master (memory). Its designed purpose is to sustain remembrance and identity across time.
- cmrf7cc2r00wucqqtlgdmdoq2SERVES →
Law 8d: an heirloom is created and maintained specifically to preserve and transmit identity across generations. Its designed purpose is identity-preservation through tangible artifacts. The servant (heirloom) points at the master (identity).
Relations to this entry
No accepted relations in this direction.
Record identity
- Created
- Jul 27, 2026, 10:14 PM UTC
- Content hash
- 8e64d5ac494e70b8b3510a09e2a5a4f04d076ffc7b42882e2aaf1be8da1915f8