ALL
traditional craftsmanship
ICH Elements 45
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Kushtdepdi rite of singing and dancing
Kushtdepdi rite of singing and dancing is a performing art combining the genres of creative poetizing focused on good feelings and wishes, its singing with vocal improvisation and dancing with movements of hands, gestures and footsteps in accordance with the tune of the song. The element serves as a tool and a medium for conveying good wishes for happiness, mutual respect, solidarity, social cohesion to the wide public and youth. The element is considered as an inseparable part of child birth ceremonies, wedding ceremonies and national celebrations. Its introductory part starts with singing poetic words of best wishes for well-being, happiness and sermon for the youth to keep close ties with elders that is performed by a seated group of respected women dressed in traditional costumes. Its next stage continues with inviting performers to start the rite and then the performance is led by singing of a couple of poetry singers (traditionally a woman and a man) with dances to the accompaniment of songs in a semi-closed or closed circles. Dancing movements start with three steps on right foot and then simultaneously tramping and clapping which are intended to drive maleficence and misfortune away from the future life. The element is performed at the end of events concluding in a positive note as a prayer to the nature for fertility, procreation, solidarity and peace.
Turkmenistan 2017 -
Qālišuyān rituals of Mašhad-e Ardehāl in Kāšān
Denoting ""carpet-washing ceremony"" (qāli""carpet""-šuyān""washing ceremony""), Qālišuyān manifests as a huge gathering in Ardehāl, at a 800m-long site, between Emāmzāde Soltān Ali ebn Mohammad Bāqer Mausoleum (abbreviated as Soltān Ali) and the holy stream beside Šāhzāde Hoseyn Mausoleum yard, where a holy carpet is washed as part of a live ritualistic procedure. Unlike the majority of Iranian rituals that follow a rotating lunar calendar, Qālišuyān is attended according to a fixed solar-agricultural calendar, requiring it around the nearest Friday to the 17th day of the month of Mehr (October 8th), called Jom'e-ye Qāli (""carpet Friday""). Thousands of people of Fin and Xāve constitute the practitioners; a greater crowd attends as witnesses. On Jom'e-ye Qāli morning, the people of Xāve gather at Soltān Ali to sprinkle rose-flower on a donated carpet they select. Having done the wrapping rituals, they, then, deliver it to the people of Fin outside. Holding neatly cut and beautifully decorated wooden sticks, the people of Fin run to take the lead in getting a grasp of the carpet, and carrying it to the running water, cleaned of pollutions and mixed with rose-water. A corner of the carpet is rinsed; the rest is covered with drops sprinkled with the sticks. The carpet is, then, returned to the mausoleum and delivered to the servants inside. The rituals are to express love and loyalty toward Soltān Ali, who is claimed to have been martyred in the same place and carried to his resting place on a carpet, instead of a shroud. Asserted, mainly, through oral history, Soltān Ali enjoyed a holy stance among the people of Kāšān and Fin of 1,300 years ago, who depended on his spiritual guidance. He was, finally, murdered by jealous governors. The story continues that the corpse was found, three days later, by the people of Fin who carried it in a carpet to the stream of Šāhzāde Hoseyn Mausoleum, Ardehāl, where the people of Xāve joined in washing and burying him. The present-day carpet-washing rituals are to commemorate the sad burial. A number of peripheral activities have emerged alongside Qālišuyān, too: - J ār: Oral proclamation of the ""carpet-Friday"" date by an elder; - Donated food: Distributed by witnessing people - Ta'ziye and other ritualistic performing arts: Performed peripheral to the main rituals; - Gatherings of people on the site, which last for several days.
Iran 2012 -
Gilamchilik (Carpet-weaving)
One of the most labor-intensive artistic crafts in Uzbekistan is carpet-making, the traditions of which go back to the ancient times. Cattle breeder has been rich for wool products and wool of sheep and camel used for carpet-making since olden time. Handmade carpet making is laborious work and it demands from the weaver great effort, taste and skill. In pre-mongolian period carpet items produced by Turkic tribes of Oghuz origin were especially popular. Later, during the epoch of Temurids, it is possible to observe active interaction of Iranian and Turkic carpet-making traditions. However, starting from the XVI century carpet items produced by Uzbeks from Dashti-qipchaq became widespread in Mawarannahr. Carpet items of Uzbekistan, in terms of execution technique, can be divided into long-piled, short-piled and pileless types. Women carpet-makers made various types of carpets. Among them it is possible to mention the following: piled carpets, which were laid under one's feet; panels called "bugdjoma", used for covering beds while moving from one house to another; carpet tapes called "kur" and "baskur", used for fixing framework of a jurt; pileless woolen rugs called "gadjari", "qokhma", "terme", "taqir gilam"; kit bags called "napramach"; saddlebags called "hurdjun", etc. Ornamental design of Uzbek carpet items reflected rich and diverse world of nomadic lifestyle. Their prevailing motifs were of cosmogonic and zoomorphic nature, and were expressed through orderly geometric lines and images.
Uzbekistan -
Embroidery art
Embroidery is a type of needlework. Beauty of Uzbek embroidery, ancient origins of its patterns and diversity of techniques applied indicate to the fact that this craft has passed a lengthy process of historical development, and has rich traditions. Large-sized decorative embroidery can be divided into several types: suzani (wall-mounted panels; literally - "needle"), nimsuzani (literally - "half of suzani"), ruyidjo, joypush yakkandoz and choyshab (bedspreads and bedsheets), takyanpush (pillow coverlet), oy-palak and gulkorpa (Tashkent versions of suzani), sandalipush (coverlet for sandal), zardevor, dorpech or kirpech (embroidery used for decorating upper parts of walls), joynamoz (prayer rug), bugdjoma (coverlet for blanket), beshikpush (coverlet for cradle), etc. Embroidered items of small size are represented by oyna-khalta and shona-khalta (sacks for keeping mirror and comb), qiyiqcha, miyonband, chorsu and belbogh (versions of men's waist kerchiefs), doppi (skullcap), sarpokkun, qoziqlungi and tanpokkun (long towels with embroidered ends), bugjoma (linen used for wrapping dress), sarandoz and romoli-peshonaband (types of head shawls and headdresses for women), dast romol (handkerchiefs), jiyak (embroidered edges used for decorating certain elements of a dress), etc. Ornamental pattern and composition of embroidery depended on its practical purpose (i.e. for what purposes it was used). Main embroidery motifs are symbols of cosmogonic origin (i.e. sun, moon, stars in the form of large and small rosettes), vegetative and geometric patterns, stylized images of animals and birds. For embroidery of Uzbekistan peculiar is application of distinct technique of sewing, i.e. complete sewing of large surfaces of the pattern, and leaving (relatively) small area for the background. Also, different types of one-sided satin-stitch and chain-stitch are used, which fill motifs of an ornament completely. Satin-stich can be of two types, i.e. "bosma" and "kanda-hayol". There are different types, patterns and traditions of embroidery, depending on their belonging to their respective regions: Bukhara, Fergana, Shakhrisabz, Nurata, Tashkent, Fergana, etc.
Uzbekistan
ICH Stakeholders 4
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CHINA NATIONAL SILK MUSEUM
The China National Silk Museum (CNSM) first opened in February 1992 and reopened in September 2016. Now it has become one of the first state-level museums in China, where audiences will find 9,000 square meters of displays in a typical southern Chinese garden of 42,286 square meters near West Lake, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.\nThe museum is divided into several galleries. The first is the Silk Road Gallery, in which the permanent exhibition The Way of Chinese Silk: Silk History and the Silk Road introduces Chinese silk historically and the Silk Road geometrically. Both the earliest preserved silk from the Qianshanyang site, Huzhou, (c.2200 BCE) and the earliest pattern loom model from Laoguanshan, Chengdu, (c.100 BCE) are on display. In the underground of the Silk Road Gallery, the Textile Training Center offers professional courses related to weaving, dyeing, embroidering, and braiding to satisfy the demand of the people who love traditional textile culture and those who wish to inherit traditional skills.\nOn 28 September 2009, Sericulture and Silk Craftsmanship of China was added to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. To help the audience better understand the intangible cultural heritage, the Sericulture and Weaving Galleries provides more information on how the silk is made. There are five sections of the exhibition, which are The Story of the Silkworm, Folk Customs in the Birthplace of Sericulture, Silk-making Techniques, Textile Printing, Dyeing and Embroidery and Weaving Techniques, displaying more than 270 objects covering the whole process from planting mulberry trees, raising silkworms, releasing silk from cocoons, dyeing, weaving, and embroidery. The techniques in the exhibition combine static displays with live demonstration.
China -
FOLK HERITAGE MUSEUM OF BHUTAN (PHELCHEY TOENKHYIM)
The Phelchey Toenkhyim (Folk Heritage Museum of Bhutan) founded and established under the patronage of Her Majesty the Queen Mother Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck, was opened to visitors in July 2001, symbolizing yet another endeavor to safeguard and strengthen the intangible cultural heritage and skills of this society. It has dedicated itself to connecting people to the Bhutanese rural past. nPhelchey Toenkhyim attempts to preserve traditional artifacts, skills, and culture of Bhutan in efforts to make the daily lives of the Bhutanese people more widely known. These efforts were also made to reinforce the knowledge of their traditional lifestyle and culture before they disappear from everyday life and lose their practical value.\nThe museum also acts as a hub for village artisans to demonstrate their skills in craftsmanship as well as being used as an outlet for their products. Such programs provide opportunities for artisans to use their skills and instill enthusiasm in the minds of younger generations to learn contemporary trades. The museum has a particular appeal for younger generations in that it provides insight into the past while simultaneously demonstrating its relevance to the present for the future.
Bhutan
ICH Materials 231
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Kazakh Jeweler Art
The video shows how jewelry making differs from making other crafts in Kazakhstan, as it has a professional nature and is predetermined by the specifics of production, including the purchase and use of certain metals, of which silver has sacral value. Historical examples of Kazakh jewelers and traditional techniques of minting metal are shown as are jewelry-making processes. Symmetrical ornaments and patterns dominate jewelry designs and they emphasize the historical heritage.
Kazakhstan 2017 -
Hela Weda Mahima: The Glory of Indigenous Medicine in Sri Lanka_Auspicious uprooting of medicine
Indigenous Medicine of Sri Lanka (Hela Wedakama) is an ancient wisdom tradition of healthcare and healing practices inherited by cultural heritage unique to native people. Indigenous medical knowledge and practices dispersed throughout the country are culture-bound repository of ancestral wisdom prevailed through generations. HELA WEDA MAHIMA is a sector-specific ICH production that presents most of ICH elements pertaining to livelihoods and craftsmanship associated with indigenous medical sector. Therefore selection of captions and stories should be very authentic and genuine to represent the heritage of culture and traditional identities of indigenous medicine in Sri Lanka. \n\nAuspicious uprooting of medicine.\nIndigenous medical practitioners respect nature’s healing properties embedded in the plants with the blessings of divine forces dwelling in the trees. They believe that harvesting of such parts from a plant should be done after performing a special ritual. This ritual claims to gain the permission from the deities dwelling in tree.
Sri Lanka 2018-02-19
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ICH Video Production in the Asia-Pacific Region : Central Asia (Living Heritage : Wisdom of Life)
ICH Video Production in the Asia-Pacific Region : Central Asia\n\nRapid urbanization and westernization are changing the environments in which intangible cultural heritage is rooted. The importance of documentation that traces the effect of social changes on intangible cultural heritage is being emphasized as a safeguarding measure. Quality video documentation is an important resource that enables the conservation and transmission of existing intangible cultural heritage and raises its visibility.\n\nVideo documentation is the best medium to record intangible cultural heritage in the most lifelike manner, using the latest technologies. It is also an effective tool for communicating with the public. However, conditions for video production in the Asia-Pacific remain poor, requiring extensive support for quality video documentation.\n\nICHCAP has been working to build the safeguarding capabilities of Member States and raise the visibility of intangible cultural heritage in the Asia-Pacific by supporting the true-to-life documentation of intangible cultural heritage as this heritage is practiced and cooperating with experts, communities, and NGOs in related fields.\n\nSince 2010, ICHCAP has hosted annual Central Asian sub-regional network meetings with Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Mongolia to support the ICH safeguarding activities of Central Asia. Through their collaboration, ICHCAP has supported projects involving collecting ICH information, producing ICH websites, and constructing ICH video archives.\n\nAt the Sixth Central Asia Sub-regional Network Meeting in Jeonju in 2015, ICHCAP, four Central Asian countries, and Mongolia adopted a second three-year cooperation project plan on producing ICH videos to enhance the visibility of ICH in Central Asia.\n\nICHCAP developed guidelines and training programs for the project and invited video and ICH experts from the participating countries, and held a workshop in November 2015. After the workshop, focal points for the project were designated in each country, and each focal point organization formed an expert meeting and a video production team to produce ICH videos.\n\nInterim reports were submitted to ICHCAP in February 2016, and the first preview screening was held in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, during the Seventh Central Asia Sub-regional Network Meeting in May 2016. Since then, each country has carried out the project according to the project plan. ICHCAP met with each country between October 2016 to February 2017 to check on the project progress.\n\nAfter the final preview screening during the Eighth Central Asia Sub-regional Network Meeting in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, in 2017, final editing process took place in each country, and fifty ICH videos were completed by October 2017.\n\nAll photos introduced on this page along with fifty ICH videos are from the exhibition 'Living Heritage: Wisdom of Life' held in the Republic of Kyrgyzstan and the Republic of Korea. Designed for introducing various ICH in the five countries, this exhibition shows photos on representative twenty elements in each country collected during the process of on-site survey and documentation for ICH Video Production Project in Central Asia by experts participated in the ICH video production project.\n\nICHCAP will continue its ICH documentation projects in the Asia-Pacific region for the next ten years by expanding the scope from Central Asia and Mongolia to Southeast Asia, Southwest Asia, and the Pacific.\n\n\nPartners\nMongolian National Commission for UNESCO • National Commission of the Kyrgyz Republic for UNESCO • National Commission of the Republic of Kazakhstan for UNESCO and ISESCO • National Commission of the Republic of Uzbekistan for UNESCO • National Commission of the Republic of Tajikistan for UNESCO • Foundation for the Protection of Natural and Cultural Heritage Mongolia • National Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage under the National Commission of the Republic of Kazakhstan for UNESCO and ISESCO • School of Fine Art and Technical Design named after Abylkhan Kasteyev • State Institute of Arts and Culture of Uzbekistan • Tajik film • Tajikistan Research Institute of Culture Information • Korea Educational Broadcasting System • Asia Culture Center\n\nSupporters\nUNESCO Almaty and Tashkent Cluster Offices • Cultural Heritage Administration • Panasonic Korea • Turkish Airlines
Kyrgyzstan,Kazakhstan,Mongolia,Tajikistan,Uzbekistan 2017 -
The Traditional Musical Instruments on Myanmar
The traditional musical instruments of Myanmar were prominent throughout the nation’s history. The instruments were developed as early as the Pyu Era, Bagan Era and many were dominant features of music during the Innwa Era and Konbaung Era.\n\nWhile some of these instruments have been preserved and are used today, others have been lost to history.\nIn an attempt to preserve the traditional musical instruments of Myanmar, the Ministry of Culture displayed traditional instruments and distributed the books about the instruments during an exhibition in 1955. This research shows thirty-three kinds of instruments. Moreover, in a 2003 celebration of traditional instruments, the Ministry of Culture exhibited over two hundred traditional instruments at the national museum.\nWhile the instruments on display were representative of many regions and states, many instruments were not included.\nBecause of this lack of full representativeness, additional research through field studies is required. This project proposal addresses this need.\n\nTo create a preliminary basis towards developing a national ICH inventory of craftsmanship and performing arts of traditional musical instruments in Myanmar. To safeguard ICH related to the craftsmanship and performing arts of traditional musical instruments and to promote cultural diversity among multi- ethnic groups in Myanmar. To raise awareness of the Myanmar public on the importance of ICH. To expand networking and information sharing between Myanmar and Korea.
Myanmar 2014
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Pinagmulan - Enumerations from the Philippine Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage
This publication of the guide book on intangible cultural heritage of the Philippines is the precious result of the enthusiastic efforts made by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) to reconfirm and restore the national treasure of the long protected traditional culture, which have been alienated and marginalized during the colonial period of many centuries. This guide book has been edited to understand holistically the entire aspects of living heritage, the five domains defined by the Convention, and emphasize the importance of the communities practicing and transmitting them.
Philippines 2013 -
ICH Courier Vol. 51 Twinkle Twinkle (Jewelry)
The word “jewelry” brings to mind something shiny or glamourous that makes people more beautiful. Jewelry can take the form of a pretty-looking hairband in a high-street shop, rings that a couple exchange as a symbol of their promise to each other, or an item that helps people stand out in smart clothes. \n\nBeyond aesthetic functions, jewelry can also have shamanistic meanings, such as the seashell masks of ancient times. This section introduces various meanings through ornaments from the Republic of Korea, Kazakhstan, India, and Fiji.
South Korea 2022
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The Art of Embroidery: Subregional Networking on Multinational NominationThe art of embroidery is one of the ancient traditions of applied and decorative arts in Central Asia. The uniqueness and beauty of Central Asian embroidery, the abundance and diversity of its ornaments and techniques testify to the rich traditions of this art. Embroidery is widespread mainly in trade and handicraft cities and large villages along the Silk Roads in Central Asia. Each existing traditional schools have a unique symbol, style and color balance based on local knowledge and social practices.\n\nEmbroidery is common activity among women in Central Asia. Traditionally, women and girls embroider individually and in groups. Embroidery is passed down from generation to generation, mainly from mother to daughter, in the form of master-apprentice schools. Indigenous population in Central Asia wear embroidered items, it serves as a symbol of their devotion to their homeland and culture. It is especially found at craft fairs, festivals, contests, weddings and social festivities.\n\nNetworking on elaboration of the multinational nomination “The Art of Embroidery” in Central Asia was initiated by the NGO “Living Heritage” of Uzbekistan (“Umrboqiy Meros”) in May 2019. Main objectives of the networking were to strengthen collaboration among scholars and artisans in Central Asia and to promote joint safeguarding activities by inventory of traditional schools on art of embroidery in Central Asia.\n\nAd hoc working group has been created, which consisted of representatives from ICH stakeholders (governmental and non-governmental organizations, artisans and scholars) from Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Offline and online meetings of the working group were organized from May 2019 to March 2020 on the monthly basis. In every meeting experts exchanged views on current status, development perspectives and safeguarding challenges of the art of embroidery in their countries.\n\nIt has been observed that element is practiced and transmitted almost in all the regions of three countries: Uzbekistan (especially in the centers of artistic embroidery such as Djizak, Fergana, Namangan, Nukus, Nurata, Bukhara, Samarkand, Shakhrisabz, Urgut, Tashkent, as well as other rural areas), Tajikistan(mostly in Dushanbe, Khujand, Kulob, Istaravshan, Bokhtar, Panjakent, Hisar, Gharm, Darvaz, Khorogh, as well as other cities and regional centres) and Kazakhstan (Eastern/Altay, South-Eastern/Almaty and Nothern/Mangystau and since last century in Western parts of the country). Annually, traditional textile festivals in Central Asia are being organized in Kazakhstan (“Korpefest”, “Kazakhstan oneri”, “Altyn sapa”), Uzbekistan (“Atlas Bayrami”, “Silk and Spices”, “Altin Kul”, “Raks Sekhri”, “Boysun Bahori”) and Tajikistan (“Diyori husn”, “Taronai Chakan”, “Idi Atlas”), where many masters from these countries and also from various regions of Central Asia participate and display their handmade art products. This kind of cultural events are proper places for exchanging knowledge and establishing dialogue among societies, groups and individual masters.\n\nThe multinational nomination “Traditional embroidery of Central Asia” was successfully completed and submitted to the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris in March 2020 by the National Commission of Uzbekistan for UNESCO. The nomination will be examined by the ICH Intergovernmental Committee in 2022.\n\nAs follow up activity, following institutional members of the working group became coordinators for ICHCAP/IICAS Survey Project on Silk Roads Handicrafts Workshops, which was started in July 2021: Kazakhstan National Committee for the Safeguarding of the ICH, Institute of Culture and Information of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Tajikistan and NGO “Living Heritage” of Uzbekistan.\n\nphoto : © Lutfiya MirzaevaYear2021NationCentral Asia
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Kazakh Jewelry: Continuity of Nomadic TraditionsThe Kasteyev State Museum of Arts in Almaty has gathered a unique collection of Kazakh jewelry made during the eighteenth through twentieth centuries. These examples vary in form, type, and technique. The distinctive features commonly found on Kazakh jewelry make them true masterpieces which reflect a specific philosophical understanding of the world and demonstrate the great artistic abilities of the Kazakh people. Indeed, every element that comprises an individual piece of Kazakh jewelry, including its form, details, the material it was produced from, and patterns, has a specific purpose and meaning.\nKazakhstan’s abundant supply of nonferrous and precious metals, including gold and silver, encouraged the development of its metalwork for millennia. Casting, forging, molding, stamping, and embossing techniques emerged as early as the second millennium BC, during the Bronze Age, as did signatory traditional designs for jewelry worn by the Kazakhs both historically and today. Saka treasures discovered in different areas of Kazakhstan—the Issyk Kurgan and the Besshatyr, Kargaly, Altyn-Emel, Tagisken, Uigarak, and Berel burials—are true masterpieces.\nBy studying jewelry, scholars can discern a great deal of important social, economic, and cultural information about the people who wore them. The style of jewelry changed during the Migration Period when the Huns moved westward from 47 BC until the fourth century AD. Artisans applied fine metalwork to nearly all objects where metal was used, from jewelry and household items to harnesses.Year2022NationKazakhstan