Syrian glassblowing is a traditional craft that dates back over 2000 years, with its origins attributed to the Phoenicians and evolving in Damascus.

The craft of glassblowing is considered a plastic art form, with skilled craftsmen in Urem Al-Kubra and Aleppo being famous for their glassblowing skills.

Traditional Syrian glassblowing involves manually blowing and shaping glass into desired forms, using materials like recycled glass, oxides, and thermal colors.

The craft has been preserved by artisans like Yassin Arab and Hussein Najjar, who has 40 years of glassblowing experience, and is passed down from fathers to children.

UNESCO has listed Syrian glassblowing as intangible cultural heritage, recognizing its importance in Syrian culture and the need for urgent preservation.

The craft was affected by war and terrorism, but artisans have revived it, and efforts are being made to preserve the traditional craft, including training young people and providing financial grants.

The historical significance of glassblowing in Syria dates back to the Roman, Islamic, and Byzantine periods, with ancient glass vessels found in the region showcasing the evolution of the craft over time.

The traditional Syrian glassblowing technique has been influenced by various civilizations, including the Andalusian civilization, which has contributed to the unique characteristics of the craft.

The current status of traditional Syrian glassblowing is declining due to economic conditions, with high production costs and lack of support affecting the number of craftsmen practicing the craft.

However, organizations are providing financial grants and training programs to support artisans and protect Syria's cultural heritage, and UNESCO's recognition of Syrian glassblowing as intangible cultural heritage highlights the importance of preserving this traditional craft.

The cultural significance of traditional Syrian glassblowing is rooted in Syrian culture, with the craft being an essential part of the country's identity and a means of preserving its heritage.

The techniques and materials used in traditional Syrian glassblowing have been recognized by UNESCO, which has listed the craft as part of the intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent safeguarding.

The decline of traditional glassblowing is also due to the high costs of production, with the cost of glass production increasing by 21.4% due to high electricity costs.

Efforts are being made to mitigate the impact of modern technology on traditional glassblowing, including training young people to learn traditional crafts and providing financial grants to professionals to preserve crafts from extinction.

The Damascus Chamber of Tourism is intervening to promise craftsmen's return to their shops after restoration, and specialized projects are needed to preserve traditional professions in Syria, including glassblowing.

The traditional glassblowing craft has a significant impact on the Syrian community, and efforts are needed to protect and preserve it.

Syrian glassblowing is not only an important part of the country's cultural heritage but also contributed significantly to the economy before 2011, with traditional crafts accounting for 40-50% of the economy.

However, the craft has declined due to high costs, taxes, and lack of support, with thousands of craftsmen closing workshops and migrating abroad.

To mitigate the impact of modern technology and economic challenges, it is essential to provide facilities to reduce costs, train young people, and restore traditional markets, such as the copper market in Aleppo.

The Syrian government and trade unions are urged to provide support to craftsmen to protect traditional professions, including glassblowing, from extinction.

Restoration projects in Syria, such as the one in Sulaymaniyah, aim to preserve the archaeological site and may affect the number of artisans practicing traditional crafts, including glassblowing.

The lack of specific information on UNESCO's initiatives for traditional Syrian glassblowing suggests that more research is needed to understand the organization's efforts to preserve this craft.

UNESCO's initiatives for traditional Syrian crafts, such as the oud, include inscription on the intangible cultural heritage list, cooperation to preserve the industry, and a conservation plan.

The registration of the Aleppo cod on the human heritage list protects and preserves Syrian national identity, highlighting the importance of cultural preservation.

Initiatives are being implemented to restore and preserve Syrian antiquities, including traditional glassblowing, to protect the country's cultural heritage.

Syria has over 5,000 archaeological sites, including six UNESCO World Heritage sites, demonstrating the country's rich cultural heritage.

The Syrian Trust, a non-governmental organization, preserves heritage and identity, and has a consultative role in UNESCO, contributing to efforts to safeguard Syrian glassblowing.

The Syrian Trust develops and supports communities, including those involved in traditional glassblowing, to promote cultural preservation and development.

UNESCO considers nominations for the Intangible Heritage List, which includes traditional Syrian glassblowing, to recognize and protect cultural heritage worldwide.

UNESCO preserves traditional skills and culture, including Syrian glassblowing, to celebrate and preserve cultural diversity.

The historical significance of glassblowing in Syria is also evident in the ancient glass vessels found in the region, which showcase the evolution of the craft over time.

The techniques used in traditional Syrian glassblowing have evolved over time, with modern artisans using recycled glass and high-temperature ovens to create their pieces.

The use of oxides and thermal colors in painting on glass, as well as the incorporation of Islamic motifs and designs, are distinctive features of traditional Syrian glassblowing.

The craft of glassblowing has been passed down from fathers to children, with many artisans in Aleppo and Damascus continuing to practice the traditional techniques.

The cultural significance of traditional Syrian glassblowing is rooted in Syrian culture, with the craft being an essential part of the country's identity and a means of preserving its heritage.

The techniques and materials used in traditional Syrian glassblowing have been recognized by UNESCO, which has listed the craft as part of the intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent safeguarding.

Syrian glassblowing is a traditional craft that dates back over 2000 years, with its origins attributed to the Phoenicians and evolving in Damascus.

Title:

Content: Art of glassblowing returns again in Aleppo countryside liberated from terrorism

The town of Urem Al-Kubra in Aleppo province in northern Syria has historically been famous for its skilled glassblowing craftsmen. The war considerably affected this traditional craft inherited from our ancestors, but after the liberation of the city from terrorism, some artisans have brought it back to life. The artisan, Yassin Arab learned the glassblowing craft from his father when he was a child, and after the town was liberated from terrorism, he returned to his small facility, where he worked to restore it and start working again. Arab does not hide his enormous passion for the craft of glassblowing and his belief in the need to preserve this ancient Syrian heritage. Regarding the working mechanism, the artisan explained to SANA that he uses recycled glass, melts it again in the oven at high temperature, and then chooses a specific shape for its manufacture, whether hookah bottles, vases, plates, small jugs, fish houses for decoration, decorated cups and antiques of different sizes. After that, t he piece is blown, rotated and processed by the artisan until it takes its final shape using white and brown colors, and once the manufacturing of the product is finished, it is decorated and colored to give it the required aesthetics. For his part, Hussein Najjar noted that he learned the craft of blowing glass manually since he was young and has been working in this field for 40 years. He added that he is able to make any shape or glass container, using his imagination, and considered that the art of glassblowing is one of the types of plastic arts. Traditional glassblowing is a profession that dates back more than two thousand years (since the time of the Phoenicians) and was included in December 2023 by UNESCO on the list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity that needs urgent preservation. Source: Syrian Arab News Agency

The craft of glassblowing is considered a plastic art form, with skilled craftsmen in Urem Al-Kubra and Aleppo being famous for their glassblowing skills.

Traditional Syrian glassblowing involves manually blowing and shaping glass into desired forms, using materials like recycled glass, oxides, and thermal colors.

The craft has been preserved by artisans like Yassin Arab and Hussein Najjar, who has 40 years of glassblowing experience, and is passed down from fathers to children.

UNESCO has listed Syrian glassblowing as intangible cultural heritage, recognizing its importance in Syrian culture and the need for urgent preservation.

The craft was affected by war and terrorism, but artisans have revived it, and efforts are being made to preserve the traditional craft, including training young people and providing financial grants.

Title:

Content: Exhibition of craft products by Syrian and Russian artists in the public park in Aleppo
Halab-Sana
On the grounds of the public park in the city of Aleppo, the activities of the exhibition of craft products were launched today, with the participation of 20 craftsmen and artists from Syria and the Russian Federation.
The exhibition, organized by the Ministry of Industry in cooperation with the Russian Cultural Center in Damascus, the Federation of Artisans in Aleppo and the Syrian Professional Center Association, includes a collection of heritage and artistic works, paintings of Ajami thread, ornaments and handicrafts of wool, orphans, leather, rugs, carpets, bamboo and silver industry.
According to the President of the Union of Artisans in Aleppo, Mohammed Hossam Hallak, in a statement to SANA correspondent, the exhibition aims to highlight the traditional handicrafts and crafts and folklore professions to revive them by training the younger generations and mastering their industry to preserve them.
Mustafa al-Nu, President of the Syrian Professional Center Association, pointed out that the association worked to attract professionals and handicrafts, and provided them with financial grants to encourage them to continue their work, to preserve these crafts from extinction, in addition to training young people wishing to learn these crafts and develop them to suit the times.
The Russian artist Yuri Lishin, famous for the manufacture of blowing on glass, talked about his professionalism for more than 54 years, and his participation in many exhibitions in the world, indicating that his visit to Syria to learn about the glass industry, and participate in workshops on the manufacture of hand glass in Syria.
A number of participants noted the importance of the exhibition, which allows for the marketing of their products, where Zakaria Sultan, who works in the craft of silver and peat breaking, explained that he participates with silver and copper products and accessories made by hand in various forms for swimming pools, steadfastness, image cadres and chandeliers, in addition to grafting copper on wood, calling for providing the necessary support to maintain this profession.
The craftsman Ayman Saeed presented the results of the drawing on wood, which is called Ajami art, and stated that he learned to make this art and plant motifs and painting in Arabic calligraphy in the association, and became a trainer contributing to the revival of heritage, and that the exhibition is an important opportunity to market his products.
Artist Tala Naravyan participated in watercolor, oil and other paintings painted with pencils and charcoal, talking about the Armenian and Arab heritage and the neighborhoods of Aleppo and its citadel, pointing out that she participates to introduce people to the components of the rich Syrian heritage through painting because it constitutes the language of the world.
Samira Misto, who works in the craft of making the ancient traditional macrame, using colored threads and ropes to decorate the Koran, mirrors, clothes and jewelry, pointed out that she is working to develop this profession by adding beads and tree trunks to revive and preserve it.
Qusay Razzouk
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Aleppo Public Park

The historical significance of glassblowing in Syria dates back to the Roman, Islamic, and Byzantine periods, with ancient glass vessels found in the region showcasing the evolution of the craft over time.

Title:

Content: British Museum displays newly restored ancient glass vessels damaged in Beirut explosion

Discoveries made during the reconstruction process shed light on glass production in Lebanon 2,000 years ago

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Eight ancient glass vessels, damaged in the 2020 Beirut port explosion, have just gone on display at the British Museum in London as part of the exhibition Shattered Glass of Beirut.

The vessels, dating back to the Roman, Islamic and Byzantine periods, include bowls, a flask, beaker, jug and cup that were meticulously pieced back together as part of an ongoing collaborative restoration project between the British Museum and the Archaeological Museum of the American University of Beirut, which began last year.

On August 2020, a stockpile of ammonium nitrate exploded at the port of Beirut in Lebanon, killing at least 218 people, injuring 7,000, displacing 300,000 and causing $15 billion worth of damage.

The explosion shattered the AUB museum’s windows, doors and a case containing 74 glass vessels, shattering all but two pieces.

As part of an emergency recovery campaign, 18 vessels have been pieced back together. Conservators at the British Museum and the AUB museum hope that at least half of the remaining 46 objects can also be restored soon.

Over three months, experts from the Archaeological Museum and the British Museum laboriously sorted through fragments of the broken vessels and sensitively reassembled them.

Conservators at both institutions made the decision to reconstruct the vessels to be structurally sound but leave the visible damage caused by the explosion. Lighting will be used in the display to highlight the flaws and cracks in the glass, which have now become part of the history of the ancient objects.

“Reconstructing these fragmented glass vessels one tiny bit at a time, helped to reunite, to recognise their heritage value and to build a sense of community,” said Nadine Panayot, curator of AUB's Archaeological Museum.

“To see these shattered and delicate vessels reassembled not only sparked a healing process, but also inspired me to hope for a better future.”

Playing footage of the reconstruction process alongside recorded interviews with the conservators, Shattered Glass of Beirut will demonstrate the emotional impact of the explosion, and the emergency response to it.

“The footage of the Beirut explosion came as a huge shock, and I replayed the images repeatedly in disbelief,” said Zeina Klink-Hoppe, curator at the British Museum.

“Working with colleagues at the British Museum and at the Archaeological Museum in Beirut to piece together some of the artefacts that were shattered in the explosion has been an emotional journey, but also a meaningful small step in the preservation of Beirut’s heritage and pride and in the recovery of its citizens as they gradually rebuild their lives.”

During the reconstruction process, individual fragments underwent scientific analysis at the British Museum and University College London’s Institute of Archaeology. Non-destructive scanning techniques revealed new information about the provenance of glass production and the nature of the glass materials, along with interesting manufacturing details.

The vessels were made at sites along the eastern Mediterranean coast — six were produced using early glass-blowing technology, revealing experimentation in the function and form of the pieces. Two others date to the early Islamic and late Byzantine periods, and were possibly imported to Lebanon from present-day Syria or Egypt.

Some of the vessels revealed signs of recycling in their production, with craftspeople possibly using older glass to make new objects.

While experts have found it fascinating to identify the similarities between today's glass recycling techniques and those from 2,000 years ago, the discoveries have also shed light on the habits and practices of glass producers and consumers of Lebanon in the first century BC.

The development of glass-blowing technology in the Levant enabled the mass production of glass objects, revolutionising production of the material in the region.

The Shattered Glass of Beirut exhibition will be on show at The Asahi Shimbun Displays, British Museum, until October 23.

British Museum Egyptian hieroglyphs exhibition - in pictures

Updated: August 29, 2022, 3:05 PM
MORE FROM THE NATIONAL

The traditional Syrian glassblowing technique has been influenced by various civilizations, including the Andalusian civilization, which has contributed to the unique characteristics of the craft.

Title:

Content: Samples of the Damascene Literary Heritage Attend an Exhibition and Seminar in the Culture of Infection
Damascus-Sana
In the exhibition “Heritage Crafts are Inherited by the Fragrance of History ” hosted by the Adawi Cultural Center, the artworks varied between glass decoration, Damascene brocade and various handicrafts.
The exhibition was followed by an introductory seminar on these arts for the Sheikhs of Carr and craftsmen specialized in these professions under the supervision of the handicraft trainer Rowaa Yousef.
Youssef Lassana explained that the exhibition was dedicated to traditional professions in general and handicrafts, especially such as brocade, painting on glass, Islamic motifs and handicrafts to maintain their continuity and importance.
Mohammed Bassam Rayhan Sheikh Al-Karar in painting on glass and decoration spoke in his intervention about the history of this craft, its forms, fields of work and materials used in it, pointing out that the glass, which was the first to be invented by the Phoenicians, evolved in Damascus throughout history and was painted on the mishkat and lanterns using oxides and various materials, thermal colors, acrlik and others.
The Damascene brocade craftsman Mohammed Rankous explained in his intervention that this cloth is made of natural silk and golden reed yarns and attributed to Damascus because it took its character, heritage and environment, such as the painting of Omar Khayyam, the Levantine Rose, grape clusters, the lover and the beloved, and the octagonal geometric drawings, pointing out that this craft entered the cultures of different civilizations.
Nasruddin Mohammed is a graduate of applied arts and a drawing teacher who participated in paintings for his students from children and boys. In his intervention, he explained the history of the Damascene plant decoration, its methods, types and schools such as Andalusian, Persian and Damascene, and its differences in decoration, diggings, mirrors and miniatures, indicating that its history dates back to the Andalusian civilization, which was its main creativity in palaces and buildings.
Mohammed Sabha is a bridal craftsman who participated in a group of decorative glass works for brides and explained that he has completed a model of a waterfall flowing from an electric mountain that is operated by hand from cardboard, wood and cork inspired by his ideas.
Rana Ayoub participated in a group of works of three-dimensional models and miniatures of the Levant environment. She explained that she chose this environment because she grew up and lived in it and adored it. It is necessary to inform future generations of their heritage and history, pointing out that she works with cork, wood, natural materials, gypsum, ceramic paste and others.
Bilal Ahmed

The current status of traditional Syrian glassblowing is declining due to economic conditions, with high production costs and lack of support affecting the number of craftsmen practicing the craft.

Title:

Content: What is the reality of traditional and traditional professions in Syria?
DAMASCUS – The traditional professions and crafts in Syria were not immune to the repercussions of the war. In light of the difficult economic and security conditions that the country has been witnessing for more than a decade, these professions are suffering from an unprecedented decline related to production and market conditions, which makes them today threatened with extinction.
The head of the Union of Craftsmen in the province of Latakia Jihad Pro, in a recent statement to the local newspaper Al-Watan, the decline of the production of handicrafts and handicrafts of various kinds by 50% within the province, considering the high costs of production inputs and increased income taxes as direct reasons for this decline.
Bassam Qalaji, head of the artisanal association for confectionery in Damascus, told the local newspaper Global last month that more than half of the confectionery craftsmen had stopped producing and switched to other professions due to low demand and insufficient profits.
Successive statements reveal the reality of Syrian traditional and traditional crafts, which are suffering under the weight of the economic decline that the country is suffering from.
This situation has prompted thousands of craftsmen to close their workshops and shops and switch to other jobs, or migrate and move their work abroad, amid the real threat of the disappearance of many traditional traditional traditional professions and handicrafts, which constitute vital sectors of the economic sector in the country and an integral part of its cultural identity.
What are the main reasons for this decline?
How does it affect the economic life of the country?
Lack of support and unequal competition
Anton, a 42-year-old Damascene craftsman and former owner of a mosaic workshop in rural Damascus, says his struggle for years to keep his workshop open, producing and selling enough to pay its workers has been futile.
He adds in an interview with Al Jazeera Net: "I tried hard to maintain the workshop and its workers for as long as possible, but the constant high prices of wood (local and imported) in an inappropriate manner, the long interruption of electricity (16-18 hours a day), and the low demand for mosaic in the domestic and foreign market, all factors forced me to lay off workers, and later to close the workshop after months, during which I received only two orders."
In addition to these factors, Anton attributed the low demand for "original" mosaics and other handicrafts and heritage artifacts (copperware, damask, antika, textiles) to:
The reality of the market at the moment in the absence of tourists.
• The decline of external demand for the commodity as a result of the interruption of trade relations with foreign markets.
• Migration of brokers and traders and thus reduced export.
• Unequal competition.
With heritage products becoming “more than luxury ” for Syrians suffering from poor purchasing power (average monthly salaries of about $20), and the lack of support for craftsmen and awareness of the importance and authenticity of these products by trade unions and government agencies, Syria ’ s craftsmen face major challenges to continue their craft.
Although there are no accurate figures on the number of craftsmen who have been driven by working conditions to emigrate outside the country, the head of the Damascus Craftsmen ’ s Union, Ali Qarmashti, revealed in an interview with the local news website Click News last year that the percentage of Damascene craftsmen migrating has become very high, especially among young people.
Repellent economic and social policies
In addition to the direct economic factors that led to the decline of traditional crafts during the past few years, represented by the high prices of raw materials, the poor reality of services, and the decline of the sale and purchase movement, there were indirect factors that affected these crafts.
Syrian economist Younis Karim believes that the artisan crisis began in 2008 after being subjected to great pressures due to the change of the general economic orientation in the country.
He said in an interview with Al Jazeera Net: "Since 2008, the authorities have put their hands on the spread of these industries due to the importance of their geographical location, and work to change their features in favor of wealthy investors, or provide them as donations to countries that Damascus seeks to establish bilateral relations with."
According to the expert, the reality of the work of traditional crafts after 2011 became more complex and difficult with "the continued adoption of economic and social policies by the regime that restrict the owners of these crafts, exclude them from support, take their places of deployment, in addition to the cessation of exhibitions and the difficulty of participating in external events because of the political positions of the regime.
Karim explains that the family and social disintegration suffered by Syrians as a result of large-scale migration during the last decade was an added reason for the decline of these crafts, which “relied on inheritance between generations of the same family as a tradition followed by Syrian craftsmen long ago. ”
Kilo to Piece and Pieces
It seems that some traditional crafts and crafts are in the same trench with traditional crafts in their war against extinction, where the owners of many traditional crafts are no less original than those of heritage, especially the confectioners from the high costs of raw materials in production, high costs of energy stands, and successive losses due to the reluctance of citizens to buy expensive Arabic sweets.
Suhaib, 55, owner of a sweets shop in the Jazmatiya area of Damascus, told Al Jazeera Net: "Days pass without selling a total of a kilo of various items, and two years ago the stagnation of goods in the shop became a familiar phenomenon to us, and had it not been for the holiday seasons, and some occasions and weddings held here and there, we would have closed long ago."
Al-Halwani Al-Damascene adds in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net: "Our profits, and the profits of most of the shops of Halwanis in Damascus, have decreased by a large percentage since the beginning of the economic crisis in the country."
Al-Halwani pointed out that the price of a kilo of some varieties of Arabic sweets has exceeded 400 thousand pounds recently, adding: "Which is not able for Syrians to buy, so we have become selling methods in which we rely on small quantities, so we sell baklava, crystal, shaped, asian, brominated and other items in ounces, grain (piece) and two grains to keep the sales movement, and do not stop customers from our shop."
As for the reasons why sweets in Damascus stopped working and many of them emigrated outside the country, Al-Halwani said: “Many reasons start from the large annual taxes that are inconsistent with high operating costs and low profits, in addition to the high prices of commercial electricity and fuel needed to operate shops and laboratories, the huge increase in the prices of raw materials, the high wages of workers, and the reluctance of customers to buy these sweets except on occasions. ”
High prices
Prices of food, nuts and other components of Arabic sweets have risen by varying rates recently, as the price of a kilo of animal margarine reached 150 thousand pounds ($equivalent to about 2511 pounds), while the price of a kilo of pistachio love rose to 300 thousand, and the price of a kilo of walnuts to 120 thousand.
The prices of popular sweets such as Al-Barazek and Al-Ma ’ amoul in Damascus markets, by the holy month of Ramadan, were between 100 and 130 thousand pounds per kilo, while the prices of medium and luxury sweets such as “Al-Belouria ”,“ Al-Mashkeel ”, “Kool and Shakour ”,“ Aish Al-Bulbul ” and “Baklava ” ranged between 250 and 500 thousand per kilo, which is equivalent to the salary of a Syrian employee in the public sector.
The head of the artisanal association for confectionery industry, Bassam Qalaji, attributed this rise in confectionery prices to the government lifting subsidies on oil derivatives, which led to a direct increase in costs by 150%, pointing out that raising the price of electricity by 5 times will lead to an increase in the price of about 650 products.
Qalaji said in a statement to the local newspaper Al-Watan last month that the largest number of confectionery craftsmen emigrated, and their first destination was Algeria followed by Germany.
In March last year, the head of the artisanal association for the confectionery industry revealed that 70% of the workshops of the confectionery industry were closed due to the economic crisis and the low demand for sweets and refreshments.
A severe blow to the economy
This gradual disappearance of traditional crafts is a painful blow to the Syrian economy, says economist Younis Karim, “For decades these crafts have been the largest incubator of Syrian labor, and their contribution to the economy before 2011 ranged from 40 to 50%. ”
This is what Matanios Habib, a researcher and former Syrian oil minister, said in a research paper entitled “The private sector in Syria ” (2005), when he pointed out that the private industrial sector in Syria tended to invest in crafts for fear of nationalization policies, whether during the era of Syrian-Egyptian unity (1958-1961) or after the revolution of March 8 (1967).
Karim stresses that the crisis of workers in traditional crafts, such as confectioners and others, dates back to before 2011, specifically to the period between 2007 and 2009, when there was “an attempt by the regime to pressure the owners of traditional crafts and crafts by forcing them to pay taxes, and to keep them away from city centers in favor of large investors. ”
Younis Karim believes that the gradual demise of these crafts will have negative effects on the Syrian economy because of their role in "providing job opportunities beyond those provided by large laboratories and their excellence in ease of operation and achievement, and the ability to spread.
Source: The Island

However, organizations are providing financial grants and training programs to support artisans and protect Syria's cultural heritage, and UNESCO's recognition of Syrian glassblowing as intangible cultural heritage highlights the importance of preserving this traditional craft.

The cultural significance of traditional Syrian glassblowing is rooted in Syrian culture, with the craft being an essential part of the country's identity and a means of preserving its heritage.

Title:

Content: Or Elias...
Embraced the traditional crafts in its small museum Baharat Hanania Damascene
Damascus-Sana
You cannot pass through the Damascene neighborhood of Hanania in Bab Sharqi without being stopped by the time at the gallery of Mrs. Sophia Al-Ashqar “Um Elias ”. The smell of the place leads you voluntarily to stand at the heritage of nearly a hundred years old, looking at the cloth, moving your eyes to the copper and mosaic, and drowning in the place to come the laugh of Umm Elias and take you back to its small museum.
As her sons and residents of Haret Hananiya describe it as a “fortress ”, it is a fortress that stands as the steadfastness of Syrian women through time. Umm Elias does not only tell visitors to her heritage museum about the concept and value of the work, but she sees it embodied in her spirit and in every piece she weaved with her management of the gallery for nearly 70 years, including during the war on Syria. The development of the Syrian kaftan.
The love of the homeland and the authenticity of Umm Elias overshadowed her work many times, and she acted as a guide to the foreign tourist about the history of Syria and the age of each piece she acquired, reminding them that Damascus is the oldest inhabited city in history, and stressing that she did not tire and did not tire of that task, especially when visiting tourist delegations to Haret Hanania and their acquisition of the heritage craft in the gallery.
Mrs. Al-Ashqar talked about how she developed the Damascene kaftan from a traditional folk costume to a modern one that has been mixed for centuries until the present day. Umm Elias, 83, manipulated velvet, silk, agbani and brocade fabrics with her fingers as if she were manipulating her grandchildren, to come up with a piece of kaftan that mimics the fashion of our times and the new taste.
The icon of Haret Hanania moves around the gallery, continuing to talk, and with her warm voice narrates her beginning with the needle and thread since she was ten years old, and like any girl, the first dress she knitted was for her little doll, and developed her passion for cloth and sewing, considering that her father and grandfather have been professionals for a long time. Qar received the third prize in the mosaic industry at the Damascus Exhibition in 1936.
Umm Elias did not spare us time, and despite her fatigue, which seemed clear on the features of her face, love and determination had a stronger presence appeared in the explanation and give the most accurate information. She talked about the visit of senior guests to the gallery of artists, intellectuals and prominent personalities. However, she did not think to move to another area outside Bab Sharqi. Glass, as well as icons, begins to live from 45 years to almost 100 years.
Umm Elias goes back to an ancient time whose effects were evident on a copper table occupied by Damascene hands, through the technique of downloading silver on copper, and is more than eighty years old, in addition to the types of wood such as mosaic, which is famous for her father 's craftsman Haneen Ashqar. With her hands she opens a wooden piece of art created by her father, a mosaic table that includes several levels of toys. Sometimes chess, sometimes Elias's mother turns it into a dice game.
It then moves on to Damascene ornaments, icons and small brides made of cloth to stained glass, which gives the place the spirit of life and confirms that each piece and masterpiece has a cultural significance rooted in the culture of Syria.
So that Umm Elias remains one of the many Syrian women who went through the war, and their heads are nostalgic like the ears of wheat, but they did not break them, and they remain tender and shameless, raising their muses to them whenever their names are mentioned.
Najwa Aida Mariam Hajir
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Umm Elias Museum of Traditional Crafts in the Damascus neighborhood of Hanania

The techniques and materials used in traditional Syrian glassblowing have been recognized by UNESCO, which has listed the craft as part of the intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent safeguarding.

Title:

Content: Culture of Al-Baath Newspaper
Intangible heritage contributions to the protection of national identity
Amina Abbas
Heritage researchers and scholars agree that the Levant region is the most important heritage repository for humanity, as it has the oldest and richest heritage, and this heritage, both material and intangible, was coveted by the colonists since ancient times to destroy culture and identity, there is no identity without heritage based on it, and no heritage without identity, so Syria is keen through its institutions and bodies to emphasize the importance of preserving it.
Hence, the Quneitra branch of the Arab Writers Union, in celebration of World Heritage Day, decided to hold a seminar in the Levant Hall of the National Museum entitled “Contributions of Intangible Heritage to the Protection of National Identity ” with the participation of Dr. Amal Daccak, Professor Ruba Al-Diab, Qas Ghassan Houranieh and Dr. Rima Diab, Head of the Quneitra branch of the Arab Writers Union. It represents not only traditions and the past, but society in all its layers, and links the past to the present and the future, and it is a means for each people to prove its existence in the world and its authenticity, while stressing that the intangible heritage contributes to the preservation of identity and personality. Our identity and our heritage in the era of globalization, which is trying to eliminate our heritage and culture to be part of this lost world.
This was also confirmed by Dr. Dakak in her participation: “The Syrian tangible and intangible heritage is rich in its authenticity and civilization that dates back thousands of years, so it was and still is coveted by the colonists who stole many treasures to be in their world museums, and their war on Syria recently was aimed at destroying culture and identity and stealing antiquities. ” It is an integrated cultural unit formed by man throughout his long history with his creative thinking, observations, reflections and experiences accumulated generation after generation, and it is the social environment occupied by man and the components and pillars produced by previous generations until it reached subsequent generations and has the function of supervising the behavior of the individual and his sociocultural upbringing because it is a reflection of the social, intellectual and cultural life of peoples. As Daccak pointed out, the identity is the set of psychological, social and civilizational features of our nation throughout its long history, and the folklore constitutes the identity of a homeland rich in culture and civilization, calling in the era of globalization to seek to preserve our cultural identity and heritage, which represents this identity to face the challenges of globalization that invade us and want to eliminate our identity and culture. And our originality by drawing different borders in which national identity is absent and killing people in their country.
Because the Levantine rose and its associated practices and traditional crafts are important Syrian heritage elements inherited from generation after generation, and was included by UNESCO in 2019 in the list of intangible human heritage was talked about by Professor Al-Diab, who was crowned queen of roses and became Syrian ambassador to the world: “The Levantine rose was found painted on the wall of a palace on the island of Crete and was introduced to France during wars. As the poet Nizar Qabbani wrote about her,“ I am your Damascene rose, O people of the Levant, and whoever finds me should put me in the first vase, ” referring to the areas of its cultivation in Damascus countryside and Ghubartha. The project was launched by the Syrian Secretariat for Development in 2020 with the support of First Lady Asma al-Assad, affirming that Syrians consider the Levantine Rose an important part of their culture. The Ministry of Tourism has taken it as its slogan, in addition to many medical and cosmetic companies and building a path that is architecturally designed in the form of a Levantine Rose, explaining that the elements of the Syrian intangible cultural heritage include: Traditions and expressions “qaṣīda, mawwāl, ataba, dalaouna, zaghārīd, folk proverbs ” and the arts:“ Aleppo qadūd, coastal dabka, Circassian dance, Syriac church music ” Social practices “preparing and serving bitter coffee ” Knowledge and practices related to nature and the universe:“ cupping, traditional architecture ” Skills related to traditional crafts “wooden mosaic, brocade ” The crafts associated with the Levantine Rose ”, and that the elements of the intangible Syrian heritage included in the lists of human heritage are: falcon hunting, shadow fiction theater, Levantine Rose, Aleppo cod, glass blowing and making sticks and playing on them.
It is noteworthy that the seminar included the presentation of a film prepared by dr.
Amal Daccak spoke about heritage in our contemporary lives and its role in preserving our national identity, and the participation of the storyteller Ghassan Houranieh through a short story titled “The Levantine Rose ”.

The decline of traditional glassblowing is also due to the high costs of production, with the cost of glass production increasing by 21.4% due to high electricity costs.

Title:

Content: Economy of the Baath Newspaper
An “industrial ” session.
Supporting the sector is just as important as bread, but alternative energy is a reality!
Damascus – Reem Rabie
The statement of “Electricity ”, which responded to the demands of the industrialists to return from the decision, explained the high costs and that the support is continuing, did not satisfy or convince the continuous industrial sector of its demands, where the industrialists of Damascus and its countryside met today“ Ahlia in Locality ” within their room, to review the additional cost that appeared with each of them. Prepare a memorandum to be sent to the government side and the Ministry of Electricity so that it may reverse the decision, or at least wait to address the demands related to solar panels.
The interventions of industrialists in various sectors showed that the bill rose 100-120% from one month to another, while the percentage of the impact of this value on the final product differed between sectors, ceramics increased by 19%, glass by 21.4%, and plastic by 8-18%. In turn, the cost of production of sanitary napkins increased by 5% plus production inputs of 7%, which is a large figure for electricity alone and will negatively affect exports.
Industrialists wondered how to compensate for these large costs, even if the consumer is charged 30% of them, what about the rest!
Industrialists in the textile sector pointed out that even the public sector factories that sell thread last raised the price by 10% because of electricity, and the pharmaceutical industries increased the cost by 10-12%, which is enough to stop the export completely, while industrial electrical appliances showed that the sale of almost stopped, whether inside or outside.
Industrialists said that if the government focused its support on the export sector only, it would benefit everyone, explaining that the industry does not work on the principle of "fire extinguisher", whenever it stabilized for a period appeared another problem hindered, and some questioned the possibility of dealing with them as agriculture according to segments, increases the price by increasing consumption, while some called for reducing and supporting the benefits of loans allocated to renewable energies. Pray from its duties and tell the industrial energy security on your own, the industrial is not an expert in the quality of the panels, which may be poor, so the ministry must be a partner in the solution.
The head of the Federation of Chambers of Industry Ghazwan Al-Masri explained that the industry has become completely out of support, and this is illogical, as the suspension of production and export will affect all sectors, and there must be support for the industry in any way – even at the expense of something else.
The electricity minister ’ s response was that subsidies were still in place, and fuel import costs had risen, affecting prices.
The government supports bread and considers it a red line, but what if production stops and thousands of workers are laid off?
Industrialists demand a fair distribution of subsidies, and deal with them as part of the solution, not the problem, as they will work on two parallel lines, first with regard to subsidies and return to the sector, and second to spread dependence on alternative energy as soon as possible, pointing out that the cost of producing 1 MW of solar energy locally is about $200,000 at the global price.
Al-Masri said that alternative energy has become a necessary reality, and it is a continuous path in any case, even if electricity retreats from its decision today, it will not be long before the price rises again, noting that the union requested and will request in the memorandum to allow the import of solar panels with export revenues, reduce the financing period, facilitate loans and interest support and transfer the loan to the platform directly.
Al-Masri did not deny that there was a failure by the industrialists as well, as the ministry said four months ago that it would raise the price and “what we believed, ” but this is what actually happened.
Al-Masri revealed a project to invest land belonging to the Chamber in Adra Industrial Area with an area of 130 dunums to convert it to solar farms to produce energy.
Industrialists stressed during their meeting that competitiveness, which was suffering, especially abroad, has declined more today, while many sectors may be closed, and any factory closed today can not be restored because it is basically “works ”, pointing out that raising prices raises inflation rates and affects exports. We need money and a private bank to pay our debts.

Efforts are being made to mitigate the impact of modern technology on traditional glassblowing, including training young people to learn traditional crafts and providing financial grants to professionals to preserve crafts from extinction.

The Damascus Chamber of Tourism is intervening to promise craftsmen's return to their shops after restoration, and specialized projects are needed to preserve traditional professions in Syria, including glassblowing.

Title:

Content: 00: 00
Expo 2020 Dubai Today
Ancient Crafts Blown by Technology
T + T - normal size
Thuriyeh is the Syrian capital, Damascus, with its aesthetics, ancient walks and attractive colors.
It is filled with the cultural and societal vocabulary of distinct traditional industries, manifested in one of its prominent images by ancient professions, which have been associated with and named, since ancient times, by specific families who have practiced them.
However, these names, which are full of cultural and historical content, have become threatened by the threat of modern technology, which, with its various fields, has been “stolen ” by the descendants of the“ industrialists ” of the ancient Damascene professions.
The names of the majority of Damascene families are attributed to many of the names of traditional professions, where we find the names of families who worked in the textile professions and derivatives, including Bait al-Hayek, ropes, kattan, nouilati, maslati, Sabbagh, wool, and many more.
We also find that there are families that practiced the manufacture of shoes called Bait al-Jazmati, al-Sakafi, al-Kandarji, al-Bawabiji, Kabaqibi, while the families that practiced the profession of al-Samana, for example, Bait al-Khodari, al-Fakhani, al-Kuzbari, al-Khallati, al-Arqsoussi, al-Jabban, al-Labban, al-Zayat, and Sharabati.
The families working in the field of clothing and fabrics were named Bait al-Khayat, al-Kawa, and al-Hariri.
It is clear that these names have an important historical and social value, as they are linked to a cultural and historical component that tells the stories of the place and reflects its heritage and features of attractiveness, but it is remarkable that these nicknames, which were associated with important unique professions and were a strong indication of an influential presence. As they melt and disappear, the grandchildren abandon the origins of the craft or abandon it altogether, and they see it as useless and profitable.
This will lead in the future to the loss of a rich heritage, as Mohammed Samer al-Mahayri confirms to Al-Bayan, whose family is famous for the craft of making hodges and then boxes, hence the name, where he shows that hundreds of families in Damascus were associated with the names of professions as the city was an important commercial and economic center, pointing out that “there are many families with the same surname, but they are not related. It is not a city or a province, and one of these families is the Mahayri family, for example. ”
He pointed out that modern technology has become a real threat to an important traditional heritage component, namely the traditional crafts group, which has been abandoned by grandchildren.
Reflection
Al-Mahayri points out that the naming of families by the names of professions that were prevalent in Damascus reflected the values, culture and socio-economic level of those families.
He also explains that these crafts, together with the families, have left a great impact on the life of the Damascene community, a beautiful impact that should not be absent, and there must be specialized projects that protect and care for it by preserving the component of these traditional professions.
He continues: You find that it has developed professions and ended some professions turned owners to other professions, the barber family some of them moved to work in the soap industry and trade in the market of Bzouria, and the Arqsousi turned to carpentry also, and they originally were selling liquor, and many others.
Continuation.
In turn, Mahmoud Hamami, who insisted on challenging the waves of technological temptation and preserving the profession of his grandparents, where his family works in the profession of Damascene baths as a law graduate, but he continues to manage family-owned baths for decades, pointing out that « his brothers went to work in other professions, and this is the case of most families whose name was associated with the names of professions ».
Diversification
It is worth mentioning that the names of the Damascene families referred to are related to the variety of professions. At the level of confectionery industry, we find many family names associated with these professions, such as: Bait Ka ’ ikati, Halwani, Sukari, Knivati, Baggati.
While we find the house of Kahwaji, Hakawati, Rawi, Tetunji Tanbokji, and Arkeli.
As for the professions related to education, we find: the families of the house of the professor, the teacher, the teacher, the haja, and the osta, while the families famous for science, culture and medicine are called the house of the poet, the writer, the writer, the writer, the Arab writer, the wise, the surgeon and the case.
There are also many families that bore the name of the profession of blacksmithing, such as: Sankari, Bawabiri, Mujlakh, and Sheikh blacksmiths, while the families that made musical instruments were called the house of string, and Awad, while the families were named after the house of castles, stones and flint for those who practiced the profession of stone quarries.
There are family names associated with military professions such as: the house of the soldier, the lieutenant colonel, the soldier, and the brigadier.
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The traditional glassblowing craft has a significant impact on the Syrian community, and efforts are needed to protect and preserve it.

Syrian glassblowing is not only an important part of the country's cultural heritage but also contributed significantly to the economy before 2011, with traditional crafts accounting for 40-50% of the economy.

However, the craft has declined due to high costs, taxes, and lack of support, with thousands of craftsmen closing workshops and migrating abroad.

To mitigate the impact of modern technology and economic challenges, it is essential to provide facilities to reduce costs, train young people, and restore traditional markets, such as the copper market in Aleppo.

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The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
Follow us via
EXCLUSIVE
“Copper is the brother of gold, its value is preserved, increases and does not decrease, no matter how high its price is. ”
With these words, the Septuagint craftsman, Mahmoud Haj Mustafa, demonstrates the status of his heritage and his passion for his copper works, which, according to him, “are jewelled whenever they are emancipated as ‘ the daughter of assets ’. ”
Hajj Mustafa, one of the few Karar sheikhs left in the “copper market ” heritage city of Aleppo, after the migration of the majority of his craftsmen during the war years, and the subsequent American siege, the heritage professions were the first victims, in addition to the death of a number of the most skilled craftsmen by age, leaving only a few trying by all means to preserve this heritage craft and prevent it from disappearing.
The craftsman Haj Mustafa speaks to Sputnik with a lot of love and passion about his profession, which he did not inherit from his grandfather and father, but learned as a hobby to become day after day, part of his life and the only source of his blue.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
Sheikh Al-Karar said:
I began to learn the craft of copper since I was ten years old, possessed by its arts and engravings, and when I gained sufficient experience opened my own shop in the copper market, which is more than 400 years old, I spent 54 years, lived with it the most beautiful days, and I transferred my love for this craft to my children.
Restoration operations in the copper market in Aleppo have been delayed until now, so that its craftsmen describe it as the “forgotten market ”, in fact, although it has received a large share of the effects of the Syrian crisis, but it remains less destructive compared to the markets around it, which forced the sheikhs of hate to do their work in their old shops for fear that“ their hands will rust ”. And you can't live without him.
The kids are coming back.
The craftsman Haj Mustafa is one of the professionals who worked with copper by hand engraving, but he confirms that the introduction of modern machines has been a great advantage in the development of this craft and save time and effort.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
Haj Mustafa recalls the years before the start of the crisis that hit Aleppo ’ s heritage markets in particular: “The market was full of customers since the early morning, to the extent that the visitor may become“ deaf ” from the frequent methods of craftsmen on copper tools and the noise of negotiating prices between customers and sellers, which is a sign of good health. ”
Despite the stagnant copper market, the Aleppo craftsman is optimistic about the improvement of his conditions in the coming days, stressing "the need to preserve the copper market and return to its previous era, Aleppo was and will remain the mother of heritage industry and oriental, and this is achieved by teaching this craft to future generations to protect this heritage profession.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
Due to the harsh conditions imposed by the American siege on the Syrian people, and the disruption of livelihoods inside the country, the children rushed to seek a livelihood to support them and their parents, and scattered in the neighboring countries near and far.
"My son had to travel to Lebanon and work there, but he will return to Aleppo," said the craftsman, "and with a mixture of confident hope, Haj Mustafa confirms that his son:" He will work with this craft in the copper market, completing my career, especially when teaching his children the arts of this authentic heritage. "
The brass don't rust.
The ancient craftsman said that the coppers do not rust, like the copper they work, and therefore they persevere in their work in all circumstances.
“If the coppers don ’ t rust, what about the customers, ” Sputnik asks, and the craftsman responds by stressing that those who say that the copper pieces turned into decorative pieces after being too expensive, because in his opinion, the market still requires this type of work, which is used for daily use, especially in the countryside, restaurants, confectionery shops, hotels, religious centers and other places that prefer to use copper over aluminum.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
There are other opinions that sense the great decline in the acquisition of copper, as Ahmed Haj Omar, a 40-year-old craftsman who inherited his profession from a grandfather, asserts that the state of stagnation and the difficult economic reality made copper pieces of decoration and heritage exhibits only.
He called on the Syrian government to provide electricity regularly to the workshops and shops of the copper market in Aleppo, to reduce costs and increase production and lighting at night for fear of theft.
An overwhelming nostalgia before the war.
The craftsman Yahya al-Nahhas, who took his family name from the copper profession and most of his family work in it, longs for the old days, when dozens of customers waiting in front of his shop since the early morning to secure their orders of copper tools needed for their daily lives and seasons.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The copper craftsman works with three of his brothers and his son in this craft, and he believes that it will return to the glory it was before the war, unlike these days, when the demands have subsided due to war conditions, purchasing power and the cutting of roads between the countryside and the city.
To compensate for the decline in sales, the copper craftsman often has to go to the countryside himself after agreeing with families who want to repair and restore the copper tools they have, to preserve his blueness and protect the endangered copper profession.
Al-Nahhas believes that the responsibility of maintaining this craft is also the responsibility of the Syrian government, as it is supposed to provide facilities that reduce costs on craftsmen, and contribute to increasing production, which decreased with the large rise in copper prices, stressing that a small copper pile is costing millions of pounds, he said.
Coming back soon for the craftsmen.
The return of the copper market to its former condition depends on the return of its people, according to the opinion of the craftsman Abdul Rahman al-Nahas, confirming to "Sputnik" that this is around the corner.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The copper craftsman proves his point by revealing that a number of craftsmen residing in Turkey have contacted him to help them renovate their shops and reopen them, especially after the establishment of the last province of Kayseri, and this will have a direct positive impact on the state of this historic market, he asserts.
Fathers and Sons
The copper market, located between the iron gates and the victory, includes more than 100 shops, some of which have not been restored, the effects of the disastrous years are still strongly present, but the remaining craftsmen took the initiative to rehabilitate and open their shops despite the destruction of the heritage market, while other shops remained closed until now, after the migration of the largest number of craftsmen, leaving only 10 craftsmen trying each way to revive the copper market.
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The craftsman Abdul Wahab Habash, who inherited the copper trade from his father, who is known as one of the sheikhs of Hirha, speaks of Sputnik teaching his 14-year-old son to keep his “son and career together, ” he says, and to form a beautiful painting that confirms that this craft survives despite all obstacles and difficult circumstances.
The craftsman Habash said:
“This profession must be learned from a young age, not waiting until the age of youth. I participated in training a number of young people in cooperation with local and international organizations, but unfortunately, none of them completed it, especially since there is no desire and love for this craft, so it is preferable to learn it from a young age by organizing training courses and incorporating it with other traditional crafts in the school curriculum. ”
Export to Europe
Habash draws attention to the changing skills of the craft between the past and the present: “Previously, it was based on decoration and manual formation, and the craftsmen performed their work carefully and accurately, resulting in high quality, but in the 1990s the introduction of the machine transformed this profession, which contributed to the acceleration of production and quantities at the expense of quality, depending on the purchasing power of citizens, especially during difficult years. ”
© Sputnik.
Suhaib amrayaAleppo copper hands do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
The hands of the Aleppo coppers do not rust..
And their heritage is jeweled like gold.
“Today, very few can afford to buy copper tools, so the craftsman has to make them of varying quality, so that the customer can replace them every once in a while depending on his financial ability. ”
Despite this, Habash stresses that there is a good buying movement for copper artifacts made in Aleppo, both in the domestic and foreign market, specifically to European countries after the increase in the number of Syrian and Arab communities.
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The Syrian government and trade unions are urged to provide support to craftsmen to protect traditional professions, including glassblowing, from extinction.

Restoration projects in Syria, such as the one in Sulaymaniyah, aim to preserve the archaeological site and may affect the number of artisans practicing traditional crafts, including glassblowing.

Title:

Content: Sulaymaniyah in Damascus.
Do you want to throw out your guards?
While the Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent saw in his dream that he was in a grove in the center of the capital Damascus, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) appeared to him and instructed him to build a mosque in that land. The Ottoman Sultan awoke from his sleep pleased with what he saw and heard. He immediately ordered to cut off a side of that grove and build a large kiosk in the middle of it. He was in a dream and pointed out.
This is the story conveyed by a number of writers and historians, the latest of which was Sheikh Najmuddin al-Ghazi in his book "The Walking Planets in the Eyes of the Tenth Hundred", about the decision of the legal sultan to build the Tekke Sulaymaniyah (west of Damascus) in the 16th century, one of the most prominent Ottoman tekaya and the most modern style and the most beautiful architecture, according to specialists.
Historically, the Tkiyet Sulaymaniyah was a place to perform religious duties and a resting place for pilgrims and a refuge for the maqtada and poor people of Damascus, Muslims and others, and remained so until the French colonizer entered the country in 1920; where General Guru and his forces took from the Tkiyet as a residence.
With the departure of colonialism and the advent of 1948, the Shari ’ ah school in Tkiyet returned to hold educational seminars and memorization of the Quran, and since the mid-seventies of the last century began to embrace dozens of shops of ancient Damascene handicrafts, and expanded this part to be known later as the market of handicrafts.
Recently, this complex cultural and religious identity of the heritage teacher has become threatened, after the Ministry of Tourism (in the government of the Syrian regime) notified professionals to vacate their shops before the end of the year under the pretext of restoration.
From Al-Ablaq Palace to Al-Tkiyet Sulaymaniyah
The site of Tkiyet Sulaymaniyah, west of Damascus, was known for the construction of a number of royal residences, the last of which was the palace of the owner of the Mamluk Sultan Baqiris (1228-1277 AD), which was named after the colors of the stones of its construction black and yellow brought from Aleppo and Daraa.
However, large parts of the palace were burned during the conquest of Damascus by the Mongol commander Tamerlane in 803 A.D. (1402 A.D.), and it was not until the Ottoman Sultan Selim I entered Damascus in 923 A.D. (1517 A.D.) that the Ablaq palace was restored and rehabilitated.
By 959 A.D. (1502 A.D.), Sultan Selim the Magnificent commissioned the famous Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan to develop a modern architectural plan for a hospice on the site of the Al-Ablaq Palace. In 960 A.D. (1553 A.D.), a large number of workers began building the hospice under the supervision of the Damascene engineer Shahabuddin ibn Al-Attar.
Then rest on the banks of the Barada River "a luxurious architectural group that captivates the hearts of the hearts with its regular domes like knots around a large main dome, surrounded by two minarets, and interspersed with gardens and trees whose beauty blends with the beauty of architecture makes this spot in Damascus one of the most beautiful and beautiful spots", the Tkiyet Sulaymaniyah, as described by Abdul Qader Rihawi in his book "Architecture in Arabic".
Ottoman architecture and Damascene motifs
The building of the Sulaymaniyah Tekke consists of two similar architectural blocks, one large and includes the mosque and the other small and includes the school, and linked between these two blocks was a market dedicated to the caravans of pilgrims, and the Ottoman engineering effects on the planning and construction, while the Damascene artistic touch overshadows the designs of doors and windows and decorations that decorate the walls and rooms of the place.
The two architectural blocks are surrounded by relatively low walls, while the middle of them are two rectangular pools fed by water vertical fountains used for ablution, and the mosque with its narrow minarets tops the southern block, while the school mosque with its smooth dome tops the eastern block, and on the sides of the blocks spread buildings are shops and narrow rooms covered with low domes interspersed with low The chimneys are shaped like minarets and are led by shady arcades with ornate arches.
The Sulaymaniyah Tikkiye market extends from its easternmost to its westernmost, and is lined with dozens of shops that were previously commercial shops, and have since the 1970s turned into handicrafts shops.
In addition to its traditional role as a place for the betters, the poor and the needy, the Sulaymaniyah Tekke was designed to be a stop for pilgrims on the pilgrimage route to Mecca, where the place was equipped with spacious kitchens, bakeries, rest rooms, several prayer rooms, a sea for ablution and other necessary services for pilgrims.
When it became a teachers ’ house in 1923, it stopped hosting guests and sheltering arrivals for the first time since its establishment four centuries ago, but soon regained its identity as a hospitable place when it hosted a number of Palestinian families displaced to Damascus following the 1948 Nakba.
While the Sulaymaniyah school was famous for receiving students of Sharia sciences from all parts of the world, before turning, with the opening of the Syrian University in Damascus in 1934, into a place to teach dentistry, and then into an archaeological landmark that includes a war museum with the continuation of religious activities in the chapels and mosque to this day.
From an incubator to a bounty hunter.
In mid-October, the Ministry of Tourism in the government of the regime warned the Karar sheikhs of craftsmen in the handicrafts market to evacuate their shops before the new year 2023 for the purpose of restoration.
Despite the appeals of the craftsmen to the concerned authorities through the local newspapers and media, and the intervention of the Damascus Chamber of Tourism to promise the craftsmen their return after the completion of the restoration operations, Nidal Mashfej, Assistant Minister of Tourism, stressed that there is no legal provision obliging the ministry to renew the contracts of craftsmen after the end of each year. Shopkeepers have the right to claim any malfunction, damage, injustice or the like, the official told the official Tishreen newspaper.
A member of the Damascus Chamber of Tourism, Arafat Oza Bashi, points out that all the shopkeepers in the Sulaymaniyah Tkiyet hope to return to their shops after the completion of the restoration, to continue their work and preserve the intangible heritage threatened with extinction.
Haj Abu Mohammed, 57 years old, owner of a shop in Tkiyet, told Al Jazeera Net, "Years ago they evacuated the glass market of Tkiyet under the pretext of restoring it, and it is still a wreck and it is not clear if it will return to a glass market, and I do not exclude that our shop has a similar fate."
"As if they were not satisfied with the stagnation of the market in the last 10 years and the absence of tourists and visitors from our shops, which the simple citizen can not buy goods from them because of their high cost, and all the losses we suffered to continue to revive these crafts during the war."
The Sulaymaniyah Tikkiye has been undergoing restoration since 2019, and the first phase aimed to restore part of the Tikkiye and what is known as the glass market, while the second phase is dedicated to the handicrafts market and some parts of the interior of the Tikkiye “to preserve the archaeological site from landings and structural cracks, ” according to Nidal Mashfaj.
Source: The Island

The lack of specific information on UNESCO's initiatives for traditional Syrian glassblowing suggests that more research is needed to understand the organization's efforts to preserve this craft.

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Content: (Hakawati) Drama of the beautiful time and nice Ramadan evenings
Damascus-Sana
The image presented to us by the visual space through its channels, which compete strongly for the premiere of its dramas in Ramadan, is only a natural evolution of an art that began more than a hundred years ago, based on the story, using the efforts of one hero, the storyteller, how did the art of storytelling begin?
RAMADAN NIGHTS
A storyteller, storyteller, storyteller or storyteller, by definition, is a person who has been a storyteller in homes, shops and cafes, who used to crowd around people in the past, not only telling the story in constant interaction with his audience, but motivated by enthusiasm to embody the role of the character that he tells about with movement and voice.
Hakawati is a profession that relied on one character, the character of the storyteller, she possessed her own treasure of diversity and difference, and she roams the psychological character in all respects and depends on the extension and prolongation of the story so that it turns into a night series that can cover the days of the month of Ramadan.
Folk cafes are a theater for storytellers
With his voice and image, Hakawati is the alonis of the Ramadan evenings, telling stories of heroism and manhood in front of a group of people in the popular cafes. Mohammed Khair Kilani, who for thirty years embodied the role of Hakawati in the Ramadan evenings of Homs, showed that the popular cafes were the center of Hakawati and his stories were linked to the holy month. She, they follow attentively his movements and his interaction with the storytelling and sometimes embodying the role of her characters.
Al-Hakawati is a character, according to Kilani, was once considered a means of collective entertainment and education for the real and fictional stories of heroism and the promotion of moral values and positive behaviors, pointing to the most famous tales known (Antara, Al-Zir Salem, Al-Himma, and Strange Beni Hilal) and others.
The origin of the folk tale
The East was the source of popular tales, as most studies and researches in the field of the history of the emergence of the folk tale, and the opinions differ between those who consider the Arab East the source of the tale and its origin as the Babylonians, Assyrians and Pharaohs, and between Persia and India is the origin of the tale, and then moved from it to Mesopotamia according to the book of the popular tale between the past and the present by Mustafa Muhammad Ali Mystic.
The popular tale was known in the Arab heritage early on, as the books of Tabari, Isfahani, Masoudi, Ibn Kathir and others gathered many of these tales, which were known in the pre-Islamic era and what followed, mixed with the traditions and news of kings, as well as what was deposited in the collective memory of old news and facts.
It was formed in the beginnings in the public circles did not take care of anyone of the private, except as a kind of nice Asmar, and in the second century AH accounted for the interest of news and poets and writers, especially in the Abbasid era where translated Ibn al-Maqba book (Kalila and Damna) and increased interest in the third and fourth centuries, and mentioned historian Hamza Esfahani that it was in his era of books of the brown hands circulation Of the seventy books, books on the Hadiths of Sinbad and the Snail and the Mouse also appeared during the period when there was a wide discussion about the introduction of the tales of One Thousand and One Nights into the Arab heritage.
It ’ s a job that doesn ’ t die in Damascus.
In 1990, Rasheed al-Hakawati al-Damascene revived the profession of Hakawati at the coffee shop (al-Nawfra) at the request of the owner of the coffee shop Abu Saleh al-Rabat grandfather and the heads of religious rituals, where they decided to serve it after the Maghreb prayer until the Isha ’ an to be served in Ramadan after the Taraweeh prayer.
Hakawati Al-Sham Rashid Al-Hallaq started the art of Hakawati for the intangible cultural heritage since 1990 and continued until 2014 at the Nofra Café and was presenting stories that combine lessons and awareness, where he dealt with the story of the apparent King Bebars, Antra bin Shadad Al-Absi and many others.
On this subject, Shadi Alhallaq, Jr., spoke in a statement to SANA correspondent, saying that the tourist delegations had a permanent stop in the cafe to attend the Hakawati and take commemorative pictures with him, pointing to the works of his father Rashid, which exceeded the Syrian borders, where he participated in the Jerash Festival in Jordan in 1992 and until 1995 on the theater of sound and light. Hump, participated with the UNESCO Committee of the Medleheart Project for the Protection of the Heritage of the Mediterranean Countries in 2010.
Shadi the barber deepened his father ’ s career and began searching for the mythical and historical stories loved by the audience of storytellers from Syrian cafes and collected handwritten books and restored them as the story of One Thousand and One Nights and the sword of the son of Yazan. The French Institute for Middle Eastern Studies printed the story of the apparent king Bebars with the help of his father to explain some words and their meanings.
The son of the barber pointed to the heritage treasure that he found during the search operations, which was written in a coded language, which he discovered that it is a tent of Karkouz and preachers of Syria, where his father explained to him how to present and make them of leather, colors, ways of moving and the names of the pieces and their recipes to present the first presentation of shadow fiction in the presence of a group of shadow fiction.
Shadi Alhallaq practiced this profession with the art of Hakawati until it was classified by UNESCO on the list of urgent conservation in cooperation with the Syrian Secretariat for Development and provided a workshop to teach 22 students to make shadow and animation and teach them the basics of the profession and traditional craft.
Hereditary career:
Shadi went on to turn the Hakawati profession into a continuous work project for him and his children, pointing out that it is his profession that he loves and he continued in it after the death of his father in 2014 and continued the journey of Hakawati Al-Sham with the shadow imagination and currently his children learn this art.
Jawad bin Rashid, the oldest barber, has performed shadow fiction since he was nine years old at Qasr al-Azm Theater in the festival of (grandparents to grandchildren) and now he is 10 years old has more than 40 shadow fiction shows, the youngest of them and helps his father manufacture pieces and make presentations.
Eight-year-old Rashid is also learning the profession of storyteller and shadow fiction, and five-year-old Jad is driven by his passion for shadow fiction, which he drinks from his family, to provide dialogues at home and for the family.
Hakawati is a comprehensive artist:
Hakawati Ammar Jarrah says in a statement to SANA correspondent: The character of Hakawati is a historical figure known from the immaterial heritage inherited from generation to generation, and he has been working in this field since 2000 and every year of the month of Ramadan appears in this character to protect it from extinction, like the shadow imagination (Karkouz and Ewaz), and the world fund to remain in memory.
Al-Jarrah pointed out that he is working on developing it to suit the people ’ s desire through his presence with his audience in traditional restaurants and cafes, choosing local stories that carry humor and interest to the public in addition to the presence of an oriental takht to play music, and the presentation of the Mesharati segment.
Tarek Ali, one of the listeners of the storytellers, said that the choice of the presence of storytellers for the folklore stories and the stories of his heroes revives the beautiful times, where he catches their eyes with the tone of his voice, which rises and falls in harmony with the course of events and the enthusiasm contained in his story.
Lawyer Rana Bakbashi found in the character of Hakawati a return to the revival of the immaterial heritage, and to create an atmosphere of love and harmony, and a little away from the pressures of life in addition to attracting the young generation to listen to the championships of Antra and Abu Zaid al-Hilali and learn the values of chivalry and Arab ethics.
Economic and Heritage Project
Hakawati is not only a profession, but the details of the owner of the profession carry with it a growing economic importance in the Syrian society, starting from the clothes of Hakawati, which includes a dark red cowl on the head and a bra made of hand looms and long Shami pants. The zenar is a roll of Damasco fabric, Damasco brocade, in addition to a shawl on the shoulders of silk and an Arabic jacket called Damer. The silk belly is as black as the trousers are black and the storytellers sit in the public cafes on a chair that represents the work of the hands of the Damascene craftsmen of carved wood and mosaic restaurant with seashells.
These details represent traditional heritage crafts bearing the distinctive Syrian character of Damascene brocade, Aghbani mosaic, engraving and engraving on wood and shells, explained by the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Syrian Development Society Ramal Saleh, indicating that this heritage has become a development project for many Syrian families through the project (Orient House for Heritage) launched by the Society with the support of the Syrian Trust for Development, which includes 13 artisans. Zain, whose workshops were destroyed by the terrorist war on Syria, was collected in an old Arab house with an area of about 750 meters, and provided them with production tools and requirements to preserve the cultural and cultural heritage and their production is present in external and local exhibitions.
Saleh pointed out that the Aghbani industry is also one of the most important projects of the Association, which was established at the end of 2017, which brings together women affected by the war in Douma city in Damascus countryside, where it started with four women to include 450 women within four years.
As for the Damascus brocade, Saleh pointed out that it is one of the finest and most luxurious fabrics in the world, as it is woven from natural silk threads extracted from silkworm cocoons, a luxurious fabric woven on the hand loom and added to it golden and silver threads. Damascus is known as the incubator of this industry, which is one of the oldest Syrian industries.
Saleh added that the Damascene brocade reflects the culture, nature and history of the region through the drawings called princesses or Damascene cloth and its threads woven the most beautiful paintings and prints such as the lover and the mahshooq, Salahuddin, Romeo, Juliet, Damascus rose and Damascus jasmine. The brocade is expensive because of the difficulty of extracting natural silk and the presence of silver and gold threads inside.
Saleh said that Damascus included several factories for the production of Damascus brocade, the most famous of which was the Naasan factory for handicrafts near Bab Sharqi. The importance of Naasan Palace with the factory lies in the fact that its founder is one of the mosaic and brocade artists, the young Georges Naasan, who built the factory in 1720 in Bab Sharqi to pour his leadership in the mosaic school itself.
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UNESCO's initiatives for traditional Syrian crafts, such as the oud, include inscription on the intangible cultural heritage list, cooperation to preserve the industry, and a conservation plan.

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Syrian Oud on UNESCO ’ s List of Cultural Heritage
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has inscribed the Syrian oud on its list of intangible cultural heritage for its unique sound and intricately handcrafted curves.
Although the oud machine is present throughout the region, the Syrian oud is known for its pure tones and unique and harmonious sounds.
Tony Tawil, who is one of the makers of the oud, said: "Many composers whose melodies are made on the oud, they do not use a second instrument because the oud plays more than 200 maqām, which gives the mark, half the mark, a quarter of the mark, and half the mark other than the guitar, which gives you the sound and half the sound."
"When we hit the chord, the chord recoil enters the cavity and then comes back out of the holes, the chord must be accurately occupied and the wood is correct and dry until it gives more resonance and the mark comes out pure and there is purity in the chord sound," he said.
But the oud industry was hit hard by the war and economic crisis in the years that followed, with demand for musical instruments declining.
With the oud inscribed on UNESCO ’ s list of intangible cultural heritage, the Syrian Secretariat for Development will cooperate with the International Organization for the Support of Artisans in promoting and selling their products in order to preserve the industry.
Rasha Barhoum, executive assistant of the Living Heritage Program of the Syrian Secretariat for Development, said:
This year the conservation plan will be launched and in the coming years there will certainly be bigger projects. ”
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The registration of the Aleppo cod on the human heritage list protects and preserves Syrian national identity, highlighting the importance of cultural preservation.

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Content: “The Aleppo Dowds ” on the UNESCO World Heritage List
Culture and Art
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UNESCO today inscribed the Syrian Aleppo cod on the list of human heritage, which the Syrian Ministry of Culture described as an additional step to protect and preserve the national identity.
The ministry announced in a statement that UNESCO has classified the Aleppo cod on its list, during the meeting of the 16th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage in France, and said that part of the culture and heritage of the ancient Syrian society has been added to the world human heritage.
The Ministry congratulated Syria and all Syrians on the inclusion of the Aleppo cod on the list of human heritage in UNESCO, and thanked “the sons of Syria who love their Aleppo cod for supporting the registration of these cod on the list of the Syrian heritage. ”
She also thanked the Syrian Secretariat for Development for its great efforts in the preparation of the file and follow-up at UNESCO.
She said that the registration of the borders "is an additional step to protect and preserve the national identity," and that "the Aleppo borders are a mirror of the depth and originality of the Syrian artistic identity."
The city of Aleppo has been famous for centuries for this art, and the most prominent pioneer in the great era was the late artist Sabah Fakhri, who died on November 2 last.
Source: RT
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Initiatives are being implemented to restore and preserve Syrian antiquities, including traditional glassblowing, to protect the country's cultural heritage.

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Content: Syria participates in the Ninth Nishan Forum of World Civilizations in China
Syria participates in the Museums Sub-Forum within the Ninth Nishan Forum of World Civilizations, which is entitled “Museums …
A bridge between the past, present and future ”, in Kufu, Shandong Province, China.
During the forum, the curator of the National Museum in Damascus, Dr. Rima Khawam, presented a lecture entitled “The National Museum in Damascus..
The importance of international exhibitions, during which she reviewed the history of Syria and its geographical location, which is located at the crossroads between the African continent and the European continent.
Khawam explained that Syria is one of the countries in the world that includes a large number of archaeological sites, numbering more than 5,000 sites, including 2,865 registered and documented sites, including six sites inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Khawam stressed that the treasures of Syrian civilizations are preserved in more than 40 museums across the country, and are considered valuable and rare, and include many elements of traditional Syrian culture and overlapping accumulations of cultures that have spread throughout the country.
Khawam referred to the terrorist war in Syria that has made the Syrian World Heritage a target of deliberate destruction, while initiatives are being established to restore and preserve Syrian antiquities.
She stressed that the preservation of cultural heritage is not only important to strengthen the Syrian identity, but also helps to consolidate cultural continuity in the development of humanity, in addition to the fact that this cultural heritage belongs to future generations, pointing to the history of the establishment of the National Museum in Damascus, which dates back more than 105 years.
She explained that after 2011, the National Museum in Damascus was closed and turned into a large store of antiquities, where the work in the museum during times of crisis revolved around the rescue, protection, preservation and restoration of Syrian museums.
“In 2018, after security stabilized in the country, the Directorate General of Antiquities and Museums worked to open a single section in the National Museum, the Classical Section, to reconnect with the local community, ” Khawam said.
On the importance of international exhibitions, Khawam explained that the Directorate General of Antiquities and Museums in 2020 worked in cooperation with a number of cultural institutions in the field of international exhibitions to hold international exhibitions, including temporary exhibitions at the National Museum of Oman between 2020-2022, and an exhibition at the National Museum of Prague in 2022. ".
She added that the agreement and cooperation to hold six exhibitions in six museums belonging to different Chinese provinces, the first of which was in the Nashan Museum, entitled “Surprising Syria ” since 2021 and for two years, during which 195 artifacts representing the most important models that bear witness to the achievements of human societies that lived in Syria for thousands of years since prehistoric times that date back to more than one million years until the 19th century.
Khawam pointed out that the number of visitors to the amazing exhibition of Syria in the Chinese provinces has reached nearly one million visitors, and its visit is still available in the Guagdong Museum, which is part of the Guagdong province and will continue until October 20, indicating that the cooperation between Syria and China to display Syrian antiquities was recently extended for two new years.
Khawam pointed out that the cultural project, which came in cooperation with the Chinese Antiquities and Arts Fair and the Directorate General of Antiquities and Museums, is successful for many reasons that go beyond cultural exchange. It enhances the cultural identity of the Syrian archaeological heritage in danger since the beginning of the war. “We are looking forward to strengthening the connection and connection with the past in which cultural exchange was established for a long time between our two countries via the Silk Road. ”
Khawam pointed out that the authenticity of Syrian artifacts participating in international exhibitions is a fundamental value in an era in which artificial intelligence is rapidly developing around the world, which will seem a rare opportunity for visitors in the coming years, stressing that preserving the beauty of our ancestors ’ knowledge and highlighting it as a heritage of humanity and protecting it for future generations is one of the main roles of museums and its extensions through cultural exchange of international exhibitions.
Khawam concluded her speech by stressing the importance of enhancing the image of museums at the international level, and their role in spreading culture with the participation of different communities, to provide diverse experiences in education, enjoyment, reflection, knowledge exchange and interaction with the relics of ancient civilizations as a source of learning and education about historical, scientific and cultural facts that have occurred throughout history.
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Syria has over 5,000 archaeological sites, including six UNESCO World Heritage sites, demonstrating the country's rich cultural heritage.

The Syrian Trust, a non-governmental organization, preserves heritage and identity, and has a consultative role in UNESCO, contributing to efforts to safeguard Syrian glassblowing.

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after their efforts to preserve heritage and identity.
Syrian Trust for Development is a UNESCO accredited organization for another four years
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The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has renewed the accreditation of the Syrian Secretariat for Development as a non-governmental organization to play a consultative role for the next four years, for its efforts in preserving heritage and identity and developing and supporting communities bearing it.
In a statement posted on its Facebook page, the secretariat stressed that this role was "over many years of honest work, real experience and wide awareness of responsibility towards society, its culture and history."
The Secretariat also pointed out that its presence as an accredited consultative body in UNESCO, which contributed to the refinement of its work with Syrian communities to preserve and revive cultural heritage and supervise the preparation of nomination files for intangible cultural heritage elements to be registered on the lists of human heritage in the Organization.
Syrian Trust for Development Wins the Status of International Arbitrator in UNESCO
The Secretariat ’ s accumulated experience in the cultural field contributed to its candidacy for the Arab States Group in the UNESCO Evaluation Body, which consists of six non-governmental organizations and six experts in the field of intangible heritage, to evaluate the files nominated by Member States.
It is noteworthy that the Syrian Secretariat for Development plays its role as an accredited expert in the field of preservation and promotion of intangible cultural heritage, in addition to working on the revival and rehabilitation of archaeological sites and tangible archaeological heritage, where the Secretariat explained in its statement that it plays its role directly in seven governorates: Damascus, Rif Dimashq, Aleppo, Homs, Hama, Tartus, Sweida, and Latakia.: In Hasakah, Daraa, Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor and Idlib.
The Aleppo Cats...
A timeless musical tale and the memory of an ancient city
It is noteworthy that the Syrian Trust for Development, a Syrian non-governmental organization, was first accredited to UNESCO in 2012, and renewed in 2017, and recently in 2021, where it preceded its role in registering the Aleppo cod on the Representative List of Human Heritage at UNESCO.
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The Syrian Trust develops and supports communities, including those involved in traditional glassblowing, to promote cultural preservation and development.

UNESCO considers nominations for the Intangible Heritage List, which includes traditional Syrian glassblowing, to recognize and protect cultural heritage worldwide.

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Content: UNESCO considers Arab and international nominations for inscription on the Intangible Heritage List
UNESCO is considering new nominations from several countries to inscribe intangible cultural arts on the World Heritage List at the 17th meeting of the UNESCO Committee, which opened Monday in Rabat.
The list includes 56 files, four of which require urgent measures to protect them from extinction, such as the porcelain art of the Cham nationality in Vietnam, according to the organization.
It also includes several nominations from Arab countries such as the Algerian Rai music, the Tunisian Harissa hot sauce, the Omani dagger and the heritage sites of the “Journey of the Holy Family ” in Egypt.
Iran and Syria have submitted a joint dossier on “the art of making and playing sticks. ”
The files that are accepted will be announced from Tuesday to Saturday, at UNESCO ’ s Twitter account.
To avoid creating any confusion, the organization emphasizes that the goal is primarily to celebrate and preserve traditions, practices and skills from extinction.
She explained, for example, that the fact that a baguette is an intangible world heritage does not mean that the baguette itself is the object of preservation, “but rather the traditional skills and culture surrounding its manufacture. ”
The same is true of Cuban rum, which will be celebrated for its manufacture and not for the drink itself.
The list includes cultural elements from around the world such as Azerbaijani / Turkish tea traditions and techniques of distilling selvowitz from peach alcohol in Serbia.
UNESCO Deputy Director-General for Culture Ernesto Otton told AFP that “this is a living heritage represented by the communities concerned with its preservation, as opposed to the material heritage, ” and can be found in more than one country.
The organization has already registered cultural arts of this kind, such as the famous couscous dish in the Maghreb, after the joint nomination of Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia in 2020.
Morocco ’ s ambassador to UNESCO, Samir Dahar, who is chairing the session, said in a press statement on Monday that “we would have hoped to present a joint file on the art of Algerian opinion, which is also present in Morocco, ” had it not been for the diplomatic break between the two countries.
“We hope from God that we will present common files when conditions improve one day, ” he said, stressing that the philosophy of the UN Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Heritage is“ to bring people and cultures closer together. ”
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