November 25, 2005 - The Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, today proclaimed 43 new Masterpieces
of the Oral and Intangible Heritages of Humanity.
Traditional Indian performances of the Ramayana, the
Ramlila, Japan’s Kabuki theatre, the Zambian Makishi
Masquarade and the Samba of Roda (Brazil), Taquile
and its textile art (Peru), are among the
masterpieces proclaimed. This is UNESCO’s third
proclamation of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible
Heritage, an international distinction destined to raise
public awareness of the value of this heritage, which
includes popular and traditional oral forms of
expression, music and dance, rituals and mythologies,
knowledge and practices concerning the universe,
know-how linked to traditional crafts, as well as
cultural spaces. Often vulnerable, this heritage, a
repository of cultural diversity, is essential to the
identity of communities and peoples.
The 43 new masterpieces were proposed to the
Director-General by an 18-member jury chaired by
Princess Basma Bint Talal of Jordan. The jury met from
20 to 24 November to examine 64 national and
multinational candidatures. A total of 47 masterpieces
were proclaimed in 2001 and 2003. Twenty-seven of them
have already benefited from UNESCO’s support,
particularly from safeguarding operations which received
financial assistance from Japan.
This third proclamation will probably be the last. In
2003, UNESCO’s General Conference adopted the Convention
for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural
Heritage. It stipulates that a Representative List of
the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity be created,
alongside a List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need
of Urgent Safeguarding. The Convention will enter into
force shortly, once 30 States have deposited their
instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or
accession, which has already been done 26 States. The
masterpieces from States Parties to the Convention that
were proclaimed by UNESCO since 2001 will feature in the
Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage
of Humanity so as to ensure their continued safeguard.
At the opening of the jury meeting, on 21 November, the
Director-General of UNESCO declared: “We must not
consider this phase as a last step, but rather as a
moment of birth. In fact, the considerable experience
accumulated over the last six years in terms of the
methodology of identification and selection of
masterpieces, and also in terms of concrete lessons
drawn from ongoing safeguarding plans constitutes the
irreplaceable matrix that will be of precious utility in
implementing the Convention.” Recalling that the number
of candidatures received rose from 32 in 2001 to 56 in
2003, and 64 in 2005, Mr Matsuura added: “These figures
bear witness to the interest and the growing involvement
of States in the safeguarding of their intangible
cultural heritage.”
The island of Taquile is located on the Peruvian High
Andean Plateau, in the
Lake Titicaca, in the department
of Puno. The candidature concerns the cultural space of Taquile island and its textile art, which is produced as
an everyday activity by both men and women, regardless
of their age, and worn by all community members. The
island is characterized by its mountains and terraced
plots and a variety of wild and cultivated vegetation as
well as by its stone paths and archways, some dating
from pre-Hispanic times.
The Taquile population was relatively isolated from the
mainland until the 1950s and the notion of community and
family is still very strong among them. This is also
reflected in the strong organization of community life
and collective decision-making. The weaving tradition on
Taquile island goes back to the
ancient Inca, Pukara and
Colla civilizations; it thus keeps elements from
pre-Hispanic Andean cultures alive in the present.
Besides Aymara and Spanish, the Taquile people speak
Quechua, an indigenous language of Peru.
All weaving is done on pre-Hispanic fixed and pedal
looms. The most characteristic garments are the
so-called chullo, a knitted hat with an earflap, and the
calendar waistband, depicting the annual cycles
connected to ritual and agricultural activities. The
calendar waistband has attracted the interest of many
researchers as it depicts elements of the oral tradition
of the community and its history. Although the design of
Taquile textile art has introduced new, contemporary
symbols and images, the traditional style and techniques
are still maintained.
Taquile island has two schools: an elementary school,
where classes are held both in Quechua and Spanish, and
a specialized school for learning Taquile handicrafts,
contributing to the viability and continuity of the
Taquile tradition.
Tourism has contributed to the development of communal
economy, which mainly consists of the textile trade and
the provision of tourist services. While tourism is
regarded as an effective way of ensuring the continuity
of the textile tradition, rising demand also leads to
significant changes in material, production and meaning.
The Taquile population has grown considerably over
recent decades, leading to resource shortages and the
need to import more and more goods from the mainland.
Source:
UNESCO
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