Newly Inscribed World Intangible Heritages Encourage China to Better Preserve its Cultural Tradition

Chinese cultural workers have stepped up efforts to preserve the country's cultural heritage.

Their promotion efforts began after the UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization recently inscribed another 22 Chinese cultural entities on the intangible heritage list. Wang Lei takes a closer look.

Reporter: The Dragon Boat festival, paper-cutting, Nanjing Yunjin Brocade… Do these names mean something to you? If the answer is no, you should take a closer look at these traditional aspects of Chinese culture, as they have just been included on the list of the world's intangible cultural heritage.

Chinese cultural workers are also taking steps to help people gain an understanding about intangible Chinese heritage.

In the eastern Chinese city of Nanjing, a museum collected a magnificent piece of brocade, dating back to the Han Dynasty about 2000 years ago. She Dongling, a museum staffer, describes the acquisition.

"The brocade weighed just 49 grams when it was unearthed in 1972. If you fold it, its size is more or less the same as an egg."

She says the relic may be one of the earliest examples of Chinese brocade craftsmanship. Based on the brocade, Chinese craftsmendeveloped the well-known Nanjing Yunjin Brocade style over several generations.

"Nanjing Yunjin brocade embodies many traditional cultural elements. I feel a sense of history in my house as it decorated with this kind of brocade."

She Dongling says making the Yunjin Brocade is a very complex process. On average, two workers can only make five centimeters of the brocade every day.

A more than 1,000-year-old Chinese folk custom from the Matsu culture were also included on the heritage list.

Cultural officials say the inscription will aid in the protection of the Matsu culture and promote a broader understanding of the custom.

China's Hong Kong special administrative region also plans to step up efforts to better preserve its traditional cultures. The region will soon conduct a cultural census and set up a database for all forms of local intangible heritage.

China has identified more than 2,000 key national heritage sites and over 1,000 state natural cultural heritage items over the past few decades. The country is home to 38 heritage sites listed on the World Heritage List, ranking third in the world.

Wang Lei,CRI news.