This introductory chapter establishes the framework and objectives that guide the entire volume’s exploration of redefining monuments. This book examines how monuments emerge from social practices of construction or conservation of material artefacts which serve as vehicles for the ideology of their creators. Tracing the evolution of monuments from their modern origins in the fifteenth century to recent diversification in their conception as components of cultural heritage and contemporary monumentality, this work situates itself within the materialist tradition. It seeks to contribute to a materialist theory of memory and heritage. Additionally, the chapter provides an overview of the contributions included in the volume, highlighting that the critical issues surrounding monuments are not the objects themselves but the effects on the communities that participate in their construction, conservation, or destruction, as well as the forms of social interaction they produce.