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ICH Elements 30
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Kazakh Kuresi – Traditional wrestling
Kazakh Kuresi represents ancient form and style of Kazakh traditional wrestling, essential element of all festive events, celebrations and integral part of modern Kazakhstani national identity. Since ancient times, the beauty of this sports and strength of the hero-wrestlers “Baluans” have been reflected in folk epics, fairy legends, Kazakh literature like the poem of Iliyas Zhansugurov “Kulager” and Gabit Musrepov’s novel “Ulpan”, and archaeological findings. Wrestling of two opponents is performed on 12m.x 12m. sized mat. The opponents are matched according to their weight category ranging from 60 kg and above 90 kg. All techniques are performed above the waist – wrestlers must fight on foot, making it more difficult. Wrestling on the ground is prohibited. The purpose is to lay the opponent on shoulders. Duration of the match is 5 minutes with extra time of 3 minutes which is offered in case of even number of points. Evaluation of matches is counted by: a) “Buk” – if the opponent touches the mat with abdomen, knee or both knees; b) “Zhambas” is given for three “Buks” or when the opponent touches the mat with one side of pelvis or both; b) “Zhartylay zhenis” is awarded for the technique when the opponent touches the mat with both shoulders.
Kazakhstan 2016 -
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 -
Traditional knowledge related to the technique of metalworking and jewelry
Art metal processing works made by masters found in museum funds of Kyrgyzstan and those that are passed from generation to generation shows that the Kyrgyz possessed metal processing techniques from the ancient times. The Kyrgyz metalwork masters are named as ‘usta’ or ‘zergher’. Distinct features of different techniques of metalworking can be observed in the works of the Kyrgyz masters, such as forging, molding, appliqueing, notching metal with silver, engraving, minting, pattern plating, pelleting, fretwork and black finishing. Silver is the most common metal used by the Kyrgyz. Masterpieces distinct to the Kyrgyz jewelry making have been created with a help of simple tools used in metalworking. The kit of jeweler’s main instruments included an anvil, hammers for different purposes, dies, stamps, chisels, puncheons, mandrels, cutters, poin-tools, etc. Motives of the ornaments used in jewelry and metal works are very diverse. Of a particular interest are the Kyrgyz traditions of metalworking expressed in details of the horse equipment. They are richly decorated with metal braces covering joints of belts made by embossing technique and notching. Kyrgyz jewelers broadly used the technique of denting, that is coating notched iron plates with silver. Such coated plates of different size and forms were then used to embellish harness elements, man’s belts, knives, fire stones, trunks, cases for dishes, etc. Quite often jewelry articles were framed with granules. This technique was primarily used in woman’s adornments, such as ear-rings, rings, seal-rings, bracelets, and etc. Like formerly, granulation was combined with filigreeing and incrustation. Community of craftspeople metalworking was a purely masculine craft, but women zergers are also known.
Kyrgyzstan -
Kazakh traditional yurt (nomadic dwelling)
Yurt (kaz. 'kigiz uy', 'kiiz uy') - portable housing with dismountable wooden circular frame with felt covering. Its origins date back to the era of ancient Turkic nomads. For modern population of Kazakhstan yurt is not only housing, and the model of the universe; it is also a symbol of their national identity. A yurt is a round folding wooden frame covered with felt and rope weaving. The frame of the yurt consisting of four parts: •\tkerege - ready-sliding base •\t'uyk' ('uyq') - dome poles, roof (modern) •\tshanyrak ('shanyrak') - circular top, a chimney and a window (modern) •\tyessyk ('esik') - double doors (modern) Tent can be easily assembled and disassembled in a short period of time. Yurt is mainly characterized as easily transportable, compact, ecological and practical home. The yurt used as livestock housing in their daily life and urban residents as a gazebo, which reinforces the sense of the continuity of the traditions of their ancestors.
Kazakhstan 2014 -
Songket
Songket is a traditional Malaysian handwoven fabric. It is woven on two-pedal floor looms by the Malay women In Malay Peninsula (West Malaysia) and in Sarawak (East Malaysia). The term Songket is derived from the technique employed to make it: inserting gold or silver thread in between the weft and warp threads. Songket is woven using the Malay weaving loom called 'kek'. Songket is woven as the supplementary weft method, a decorative weaving technique in which extra threads "float" across a colourful woven ground to create ornamental effect. The delicate piece of Songket is the result of many months of skilled handloom weaving by expert craftsmen who learn the art from their ancestors. The identity is traced by its design patterns that use geometry and elements of nature such as flowers, birds and insects. The motifs of tampuk manggis (mangosteen calyx), tampuk kesemak (persimmon), bunga pecah lapan (eight-petal flower), bunga bintang (star-patterned flower), pucuk rebung (bamboo shoots) and awan larat (trailing clouds) are among the most frequently used. These traditional patterns continue to be used, especially in aspects of separation and placing the various parts of the cloth such as the centerfield, main panel and end borders. Unlike the old days, Songket is only worn by royalty and their families. But todays, it is mostly worn as traditional Malay ceremonial costumes during royal installations, wedding, birth, Malay festive occasions and formal state functions.
Malaysia 2021 -
Traditional craftsmanship of Çini-making
Glazed tile and ceramic household stuffs or wallboards of several colours and motifs made by firing the pulped clay soil are called “çini”. Çini-making means the craftsmanship shaped around traditional Turkish art of çini since 12th century with its own specific production and adornment techniques like “minai”, “luster”, “polishing”, “underglaze”. Çini craftspeople generally have used “underglaze technique” since 16th century in their production pursuant to the prescriptions they prepare with their traditional production knowledge about nature. In this technique clay is pulped. Having shaped, the clay is lined and dried. Next, it is fired in çini ovens smooth surface called “biscuit” appears. Patterns prepared by drilling on the paper with openwork technique are transformed to the surface with coal dust and the outer contours are drawn by hand with black paint and brush. Later, patterns are dyed with dyes prepared according to the prescription. The surface of çini is covered with glaze and after it is fired at 900-940°C the çini-making is completed. Among çini adornments generally geometric shapes, plants and animal figures symbolizing cosmic thoughts and beliefs are used in different colours. Using red, cobalt blue, turquoise and green on white or navy blue background is the characteristic feature of traditional çinis. The basic element that characterizes the art of çini is traditional craftsmanship manifested in the applications and the knowledge transmitted from generations to generations about the supply of the raw material, preparation of dyes, production and usage of the tools, firing process, adornment techniques and aesthetics.
Turkey 2016 -
Mongol Biyelgee, Mongolian traditional folk dance
Mongolian traditional folk dance “Bii Biyelgee” is an outstanding form among traditional performing arts of Mongolia, and unique and distinguished art expression which has embodied and originated from the nomadic living style of Mongols. Bii Biyelgee expresses the customs, traditions and spiritual practices through dancing elements, and its movements are typically confided to small space inside the Nomad’s dwelling-ger. Biyelgee is performed while half sitting or cross-legged sitting, coupled with fist and hand opening and waving, stiff and swift movements of chest and shoulders, shrugging and shaking them, crossing legs, steps and walks, as well as flexible body movements involved in prevalence. In doing so, biyelgee performers imitate the expressions of their lifestyle, household activities, courage, love, prides and livestock to the accompaniment of morin khuur, ikel khuur, tovshuur, tsuur, coupled with ethnic costumes.
Mongolia 2009 -
Knowledge and skills in making yurta-marquee
O'TOV (yurta-marquee) - mobile home, residence; the main residence of nomadic, semi-nomadic peoples. It is made of light raw materials (mainly wood) in a conical shape: a circular grill consists of a wall and a top part, covered with felt; therefore it is called "house", "felt house". A hearth is placed in the middle of the fire, and the interior is divided into parts (women's part, men's part, etc.) in a unique way. O'tov, which is the same in terms of structure, differs in appearance (decoration), height, and size. The word "Otov" was used to refer to houses built for brides, often covered with new white felt; white cloth is covered over new felt, decorated with white ropes. More luxurious O'tov is called "white house". Ordinary Otovs, often restored Otovs for household needs, are called "black houses". In historical written sources, it is noted that O'tov existed in the peoples living in Central Asia and South Siberia since ancient times, and even in the Middle Ages, O'tov was used to sew large four-wheeled carts. Until the beginning of the 20th century, Otov was present in several peoples of Central Asia and Central Asia, South Siberia, as well as Mongols and others. As a result of the settlement of peoples, O'tov partially lost its importance; mainly shepherds use it as a comfortable shelter.
Uzbekistan -
Yeondeunghoe, lantern lighting festival in the Republic of Korea
Inscribed in 2020 (15.COM) on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity As the eighth day of the fourth lunar month (Buddha's Birthday) approaches, the entire country, from otherwise tranquil Buddhist temples to bustling city centers, lights up with colorful lanterns. A rite to celebrate Shakyamuni's birth is observed nationwide and public processions of people holding lanterns are held. Records associating Buddhism and the lotus lanterns dates back to the 9th-century according to Samguksagi(Histrory of the Three Kingdoms). And there are records showing that the lotus lantern festival was organized around Buddha’s birthday in the Goryeo dynasty(918-1392). Originally a religious ritual to celebrate Shakyamuni's birth, Yeondeunghoe has become a representative national spring festival open to all. Made of a bamboo frame, or a steel wire frame covered by traditional paper, the lanterns decorating Buddhist temples and public spaces are crafted by traditional artisans who share their knowledge and skills with lay participants. Members of the public can participate in the festival carrying lanterns they made to express good wishes not only for themselves and their families, but for their neighborhoods and the entire nation. The lighting lanterns also symbolizes enlightening the minds of the individuals, the communities, and the whole society through Buddha's wisdom. The primary element of the annual festival starts with bathing an image of the baby Buddha as a ritual celebrating Shakyamuni's birth. This sacred ritual is followed by a public procession of lantern-bearing participants. After completing the procession, participants gather for recreational events. The spirit of unity culminates in collective game activities as social boundaries are temporarily erased.
South Korea 2020 -
Parzo: The Art of Carving
Parzo is the art of carving on wood, stone and slate. This art is evident throughout the country displayed magnificently on wooden structures of fortresses, palaces, stupas, temples, traditional houses and even on furniture. The following section describes some forms of carving. a. Woodcarving: Wood has been one of the most widely used resources in the country. Some of the masks worn by dancers during the festivals, the altars in the shrine room of any house, containers like bowls and cups, sheaths and handles of knives and swords, xylographic blocks are all carved out of wood. b. Choesham, Decorative Items and Furniture: Every house has a choesham (altar) entirely made of wood. Generally the altars will have carvings like choetsi and other designs such as dragons, flowers, eight lucky signs and mythological animals, on the main structure in accordance with the desires of the owner. On the upper part of the structure called gu-chag the altar will have the designs called pema, norbu, bagam, boh and ngangpa. Cabinets, chogdroms, divans, decorative floral items, religious motifs like dragons, tashi tagye and various legendary animals are carved out of wood. The three sides of chogdrom (traditional portable table) are carved with dragons, flowers or other legendary animals. Dramnyen, the traditional Bhutanese guitar is carved from wood in an intricate dragon design. The fingerboard is usually decorated with colourful traditional symbols. The hollowed sound box is covered with goatskin, and attached with either silk or nylon strings. c. Masks: The Bhutanese make various shapes and sizes of masks from semi-hardwood, usually blue pine to depict the face of gods, animals and mythological figures. These carved wooden masks are used in the sacred and religious dances. Carved wooden masks are also popular as decorations in houses, dzongs, temples and monasteries. d. Xylography: Before the invention of wood carving tradition in Bhutan, all religious texts and official documents were primarily written by hand. With the introduction of woodblock carving and printing technique by Terton Pema Lingpa (1450-1521), religious texts and images have been carved on woodblocks, thereby reproducing numerous copies, by printing on paper and textiles. Each and every temple and monastery in Bhutan hold a copy of the Buddhist cannons (the teachings) and commentaries on the teachings. Many of the texts from the cannon have been carved on wood, and reproduced by printing on paper. Woodblock carving is usually carried out on dried birch wood. To make a wooden block for carving, the woodblock is adequately oiled to make it soft and smooth for carving. The wooden block surface is then planed smooth on which the written text is glued. Once the paper has dried, it is removed from the block leaving the image of the scripts on the woodblock. The mirror image of the texts that need to be printed is left on the surface while those parts not required are removed with gouges or chisels. The texts are then carved with the help of chisels. Images and other patras (intricate designs) are carved only on to one side of the wooden block, whereas religious texts are carved on both sides of the woodblock. The carved woodblock is then coated with ink, and a sheet of paper is placed over the inked blocks. The paper is then rubbed and pressed with a roller to get the text printed. It is then left to dry either in shed or sun. Four different kinds of tools are used for xylography such as zhogthig, yatag, segchung. Round letters are carved using the tip of the mindrug with its sharp crescent shape tip. The tip of the yatag with its more relaxed crescent shape is used to carve the sub-bending yatag script. Similar to the typical Bhutanese knife; the tip of segchung is slightly slanted and carves the rest of the letters of the scripts. Zhogthig, with its wider and large tip is used to carve the lines in the space on the edge of the text that maintain the outer margin. e. Stone Carving: In Bhutan, carving on stones is not as diverse or common as wood carving but it existed in Bhutan. One comes across huge water driven grinding stone mills, hollowed-out stones used for pounding and husking grains, troughs for feeding animals, images of deities, gods and religious figures carved onto large rocks. In Bhutan, stones were also carved to make stone pots and utensils, but today these have become rare because of modern alternatives. f. Slate Carving: Slate carving is another form of art that is being practiced in Bhutan. Slate, called as do nag, is found in abundance in Bhutan, and the artisan is known as donag lopen. Portraits depicting deities and religious figures, inscriptions of mantras and religious scripts are carved onto slates, and adorned onto the exterior walls of temples, monasteries, dzongs and choetens. Apart from carving on wood, stone and slate, the Bhutanese people also carve images of gods and deities on rhino horns and ivory.
Bhutan -
Kulalapheach (Ceramics)
Kulapheach is a daily used item such as pots, clay pots, made of baked clay. Archaeological excavations in Cambodia have uncovered many Kulapheach kilns and Kulapheach at some archeological sites such as Angkor Mean Tani kiln, Anlong Thom kiln, Torb Chey kiln, Sorsey kiln, Bangkong kiln. In Phnom Penh, there is Choeung Ek station. According to the research evidence, the oldest Pheach is found at La Ang Spean (the cave bridge) station dating to 4,000 BC. Today, despite modern technology for the production of consumer goods, traditional Kulapheach production is still available in some provinces, such as Kampong Chhnang (Andong Russey village), Kandal province (Russey Chuk village, Kaom village or Chroy Metre), Kampot province, Takeo, Prey Veng and Kampong Speu province. There are three main stages in the production of traditional Kulapheach: preparation of soil and firing; Clay soil used for Kulapheach production is from silt, or soil from a hill. First, they dry the soil and finely grind and sift only the mines. Then mix the soil with water so that it can be used to make a Pheach. There are five stages in molding Pheach and those are Pen, Reas, Bamporng, Berk, and Veay Bat. ‘Pen’ is the process of kneading the wet soil then piling it up and continuing kneading on a flat board until it has no air left in the soil. Sprinkling dried clay soil to make the kneaded soil not sticky. Next, knead the clay into long rounded pieces and continue to knead each one to form a desired shape. The second step is called ‘Reas’ or to shine which means taking the kneaded soil in Pheach shape to shine and smooth with a tool made of palm branch called ‘Tro Naes’ some called ‘Lakor’ by placing one hand claps around the Pheach and the other hand holds the inside. This method is to make the Pheach melt together, no longer see the link and no air on the surface. After that, the Pheach is ready to make a neck and mouth. The Pheach makers use their two fingers, pushing from the outside and holding the thumb from the inside, pulling it one and a half around round. In order to make the neck and mouth of the pot look more beautiful, they can use "Chea leaf” or some areas called" Chroy leaf "or" Guava leaf ", to drag the neck and mouth around. The third stage is called ‘Bamporng or inflated’ people use a tool called “Tro Naes” and “Khleong” to inflat the Pheach by hitting it gently until it gets bigger and more rounded except the edge of the Pheach mouth, the neck remains the same size. The fourth stage is called "Bourk or Opening", that is, people use “Cher Bet ka eng” if the or called "Cher Dek Khnot") drag on the shape of the Pheach to get it pleated then use a tattoo stick to draw various decoration. The final step is to ‘close the bottom.’ To center the bottom of Pheach, hold it from the inside and use Tro Naes ot hit gently from the outside around the bottom of the Pheach until the bottom stick together. To make Pheach smoother, a damp cloth is used to wipe it, except where there are pleaded spots or decorations. After the Pheach is ready, it is dried (in the shade) so that the pot hardens and it does not explode or crack during cooking. After drying, the Pheach will be baked and there are two ways to bake it: "bake on the field" and " bake in the kiln". The Pheach used to bake in the kiln are usually small Pheach, while the Pheach baked in the open air are usually large pots such as pots, pans, stoves and so on. To bake in the kiln, you need to sort the Pheach in order and it takes only half a day to bake, because the oven is closed, the heat is good, making the Pheach perfectly hard. For baking on the field, first, use firewood to lay the ground. Then arrange the Pheach on top of the firewood, cover the Pheach with straw and sprinkle a little water on the straw to make the fire last longer. In order for the fire to burn around them, small pieces of wood and straw were added between the Pheach. When baking Pheach, keep the fire burning by adding firewood and straw until the Pheach is completely baked. Baking in the open air takes a whole day. However, whether baking in the kiln or on the field, people don’t remove the Pheach immediately after it is done, they let it cool first. Nowadays, the traditional Pheach production in some areas is facing actual loss, as in the village of Kam, there are only a few families who still make Kulapheach, compared to before, when almost all the villagers earn a living through it. Nowadays, the subject of Kulapheach making is also included in the curriculum of the School of Fine Arts.
Cambodia -
Turkmen-style needlework art
In both Submitting States Turkmen-style needlework is an object of decorative applied art, combining the skills of a certain creative work on different types of fabric. In Turkmenistan, it is the national costumes of women, men, young people, boys, girls, elderly women and men. In Iran, it is mostly the costumes of the Iranian Turkmen enthic group living in the northen parts of Iran but nowadays, it is widely welcomed and used by all Iranians. In both Submitting States, Turkmen-Style needlework begins with the preparation of natural thin silk threads which intertwined together in three (3) layers and twisted into one thread, then straightened with a large needle and the excess is removed. After twisting the three layers separately, the thread itself acquires a kind of shine. The left and right sides are used to create the loops, the dimensions can vary as desired. Piercing the fabric with a thin needle with the right hand, a loop is created, which must be preserved until the next loop is created, held by the thumb of the left hand. Depending on the dominant hand of the Needlewomen, the looping process will happen in the reverse direction. This is the most common needlework style. There are also other Needlework styles that vary depending on the local creativity. Totally, there are seven skills called “Ilme”, “Basma”, “Pugtama”, “Jakhek”, “chekmek”, “El gayma”, “Chigme”. The patterns used, also reveal the territorial identity of the Needlewomen mostly in rural areas. The patterns also symbolise love, freindship, nature, strengnth, etc. Almost all of the needleworkers in both countries are women but in the related jobs such as making the needlework tools, men are also involved. There is no age limits for practicing the element. Traditionally, young girls do it when they are small children learning from their mothers and grandmothers through informal method as a necessary life skill. Its social functions and cultural meaning are wedding dress for bride and groom, used in funerals, cultural events e.g. Nowrouz/Nowruz Celebration, decorative parts of ordinary costumes including: scarfs, manteau, pants, shawls; accessories like headbands, wristbands, necklace, cosmetics bags, women’s wallets/bags/backpacks. Nowadays, this Human-Rights-friendly element is also utilised for contemporary home decorations e.g. table cloth, cushion/pillow sheets, bed covers, wall hangings, & etc.
Iran,Turkmenistan 2022