The blue-blue Quanzhou Bay is like a fire-thorny Tung Blossom, the East-West Pagoda, the magnificent Luoyang Bridge
Quanzhou World Heritage: Living Inheritance of China's Marine Civilization
On the afternoon of July 25, "Quanzhou: Song Yuan China's World Ocean Trade Center" was formally approved at the 44th World Heritage Conference.
So far, China's World Heritage List has added another shining pearl, reaching 56 places.
The project fully embodies the highly integrated overseas trade system of Quanzhou during the Song and Yuan Dynasties, as well as the diverse social system formed by the institutions, communities, and cultural factors that support its operation.
The meeting decided that the 22 heritage sites included in transportation, production, and commerce together contributed to Quanzhou becoming a maritime hub for East and Southeast Asia trade networks.
On July 16, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out in his letter of congratulation to the 44th World Heritage Conference that world cultural and natural heritage is an important result of the development and natural evolution of human civilization, and it is also an important carrier for promoting exchanges and mutual learning among different civilizations.
It is our common responsibility to protect, inherit, and make good use of these precious wealth, and it is an inevitable requirement for the continuation of human civilization and the sustainable development of the world.
The blue Quanzhou Bay, like fire thorn blossoms, tough east-west towers, and magnificent Luoyang Bridge.
In Quanzhou, cultural heritage has been passed down for thousands of years, and has long been integrated with people's lives.
The reporter visited some heritage sites, interviewed the participants and witnesses of the local heritage application, and listened to them share the stories and insights behind them.
ICOMOS recommends that the Quanzhou project be "listed"
Quanzhou is a famous historical and cultural city, a maritime trading port during the Tang, Five Dynasties, Song and Yuan periods, and became a world-famous trading center during the Song and Yuan Dynasties.
The archaeologist Zhuang Weiji once pointed out that in the mid-Tang Dynasty, the Silk Road on the land was blocked by the "An-Shi Rebellion", and the Maritime Silk Road gradually became the main channel of traffic between China and foreign countries, and Quanzhou emerged as a port for maritime traffic.
At this World Heritage Conference, the "Quanzhou: Song and Yuan China's World Ocean Trade Center" project submitted by my country for deliberation received much attention.
The International Council of Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) is a professional advisory body of the World Heritage Committee, which plays an important role in the review of the list of world cultural heritage nominations from various countries.
At the beginning of June of this year, ICOMOS recommended that the Quanzhou project be "listed", and the victory is beginning to dawn on.
It is understood that the process of applying for world cultural heritage is roughly as follows: first, it is included in the tentative list of my country’s world cultural heritage with the approval of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage; then, the Chinese National Commission for UNESCO submits the application materials, and organizes experts to complete the on-site inspection at ICOMOS. After the technical review, the supplementary materials are submitted; finally, after ICOMOS submits the evaluation report, the World Heritage Committee will discuss and decide whether the project is selected at the World Heritage Conference.
This process is not easy.
Ding Yuling, curator of the Quanzhou Overseas Transportation History Museum, said: “If it is a relatively single theme such as a bridge, a tower, or a tusi site, it is easy to be understood in terms of cultural value. But a new combined theme like Quanzhou, I want Convincing international experts to agree is not easy."
"The theme is more distinct, the value description is more clear and complete, the heritage sites have been increased from the original 16 to 22, the heritage content has been further enriched, and the overall quality of the declared project has been significantly improved." Mentioned the Quanzhou Heritage Application Project, the State Administration of Cultural Heritage World According to Zhang Lei, head of the Department of Cultural Heritage, the State Administration of Cultural Heritage has guided the local government to further strengthen heritage protection and management, strengthen archaeological research and the interpretation and display of heritage values, and establish cooperation with international professional institutions to make major adjustments to the application project from the technical level. Therefore, he is "cautiously optimistic" about the results of the application.
Project name, heritage site, narrative logic, etc. have all been adjusted
Let ICOMOS give evaluation suggestions for "listing", what are the highlights of Quanzhou's way of telling stories?
How to study and improve the value of heritage, the logic of the elements of a series of heritage and the overall relationship, as well as sustainable protection and management methods, are closely related to it.
The most obvious change is the name of the project.
From "Ancient Quanzhou (Erythrina) Historical Relics" to "Quanzhou: The World Ocean Trade Center of China in Song and Yuan Dynasties", Li Guohong, curator of Shishi City Museum, believes that "through the limitation of time and value meaning, the theme is more focused and specific. Quanzhou is not only a window for China to understand the world, but also a perspective for the world to understand China."
In addition to the name, this application also added 6 heritage sites: Anping Bridge, Shunji Bridge Site, Shibosi Site, Nanwaizongzhengsi Site, Anxi Qingyang Xiacaopu Ironmaking Site, and Qudou Palace Dehua Kiln Site. .
At the same time, the area of the heritage area and the buffer zone have doubled.
It is understood that the original 16 heritage sites include docks, navigation marks, bridges, and sea temples that embody the local maritime trade traditions, and temples and cemeteries that embody the culture and life of foreign ethnic groups. The new heritage sites make Quanzhou a Song During the Yuan Dynasty, the universal value of China's world ocean trade center became more prominent, and the heritage support system became more complete.
Lin Han, deputy curator of Quanzhou Overseas Transportation History Museum, explained: “For example, two new bridges are added as representatives of the transportation network. Iron smelting and Dehua kiln sites are supplemented by export commodities. The ruins, one is the customs of the year, and the other is the yamen that housed the royal family's kinsmen. They are all part of the system guarantee."
There is also an "episode" in this.
Lin Han introduced that world cultural heritage experts pointed out that apart from porcelain, iron is also one of the most important bulk export commodities in history. Taking into account Quanzhou’s smelting foundation, “If an iron smelting site can be found, the subject of the application It will be a good supplement and perfection."
After receiving the task, the Quanzhou Municipal Heritage Application Office found some records about smelting from local chronicles and Fujian geological data. At the same time, it mobilized cultural and historical workers in various districts and counties to search for related words such as "metallurgy" and "iron" within the city. There are hundreds of place names.
After analysis and judgment, the key areas were selected and then on-site investigations were conducted.
Only at the Xiacaopu iron smelting site in Qingyang, it took eight runs before the site confirmed the archaeological excavation.
"The results are surprising. This is the first site that has been proven by archaeology to co-exist two technical systems of block iron smelting and pig iron smelting," Lin Han said.
"This is a natural smelting plant, and I have to admire the ingenuity of the ancients." According to Yi Shufeng, director of Anxi County Museum, Qingyang is rich in iron ore resources; the dense forests of the Wulang Mountains provide inexhaustible fuel; Pu is high in the north and low in the south. The east and west mountains intersect to form a natural "wind box"; near the mountain road is a ferry, and iron ships can go down the river to reach Quanzhou Port.
In addition, in the latest edition of the Nomination Text, the narrative logic of heritage sites has been re-adjusted, and 22 heritage sites have been reclassified in accordance with the six key elements of institutional protection, diverse communities, urban structure, production bases, transportation networks, and regional layout.
ICOMOS believes that Quanzhou has made considerable efforts to revise the application plan, expand the number of heritage sites, and provide an overall historical and geographic narrative, which greatly improves the clarity of the entire heritage system.
ICOMOS believes that this series of heritage should be considered for inclusion in the list, which has laid a good foundation for the success of the application.
The protection and restoration of historical features is not only a matter for the cultural preservation unit
Quanzhou Tianhou Temple is the oldest, largest, and highest-level temple dedicated to Mazu, the god of the sea.
In front of the door of the sleeping hall, a pair of Hindu stone pillars (used here during the maintenance of the Ming Dynasty) were connected to wooden pillars, and a pair of couplets were engraved on the front: "The gods protect the sea and the water and virtue match the universe".
What is less known is that the pair of wooden pillars were repaired more than 20 years ago, and now they are integrated with the whole building.
"In the past, we emphasized'repair the old as the old', but now we require'minimal intervention'." Liu Dashan, the chief of the protection and repair projects such as Fuwen Temple and Tianhou Palace, explained that under the premise of ensuring the safety of the structure, it is not possible to move. If you can make minor repairs, make minor repairs, so as to maintain the authenticity and historical features of cultural relics and ancient buildings as much as possible.
Take this pair of wooden pillars as an example. There are more termites in southern Fujian, and due to its age, the core of the pillars was once decayed.
When repairing, they did not simply replace it with a new one. Instead, it took more than ten days to carefully remove the skin of the original column, replace it with a new column and stick the skin back a little bit, so that the world can see the original appearance of the couplet.
The protection and restoration of historical features is not just a matter for the cultural preservation unit.
The Fu Confucian Temple is the largest Confucian temple complex in southeastern my country, but it almost missed the 2016 CCTV Spring Festival Gala branch due to two dangerous buildings.
The two buildings are adjacent to the Fuwen Temple, no matter how the camera is placed, the background wall is pressed in the picture, destroying the visual effect.
Taking into account the cultural connotation and architectural characteristics of the Fuwen Temple, CCTV used virtual imaging technology to "erased" the two buildings in post-production.
Such an expedient measure will of course not work in the face of the application.
Li Qingjun, deputy chief of the Cultural Protection Section of the Quanzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, said: “A cultural heritage must have a heritage area, a buffer zone, and a landscape control area. With the opportunity of applying for heritage, we demolished these two buildings in 2017 and restored the government. The historical skyline of the Temple of Literature."
The inscription is a huge project, and the supporting force behind it from top to bottom is hard to count.
Li Qingjun waved his mobile phone and said: "There are at least 200 new phones stored in it, most of which are experts in the fields of cultural heritage, underwater archaeology, urban archaeology, urban protection planning, and ancient building protection and repair."
Huang Mingzhen, curator of Quanzhou Museum and deputy director of Quanzhou Maritime Silk Road Heritage Application Center, told reporters that authenticity and completeness are the focus of the investigation.
"The Song and Yuan dynasties correspond to the 10th to 14th centuries. We need to use cultural relics and historical records to prove that the cultural relics were built and preserved from the Song and Yuan dynasties. This is authenticity."
Take the Shihu Wharf as an example. In that year, in order to prove that the wharf was built in the Song Dynasty, experts from the Fujian Provincial Museum drilled 4 caverns beside the Tongji Trestle Bridge and found tiles from the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties under the bridge. Layers are stacked, and the age gets closer as you go up.
"Porcelain decorations, shapes and colors in different periods are different. This is more convincing evidence than stone." Li Guohong said.
The successful application is a new starting point for protection and utilization
The success of the application is not the end, but a new starting point for Quanzhou's historical archaeology, cultural research, protection and utilization.
By convention, a part of the declaration text specifically discusses protective measures.
"It is not only our solemn commitment to the world, but also the general rules for the protection of 22 heritage sites. In the next step, under the guidance of the general rules, we should formulate the protection rules for 22 heritage sites, paying particular attention to science, accuracy, and operability. ." Li Guohong said.
Why emphasize scientific precision?
Li Guohong said: "The 22 heritage sites have different intrinsic values, different shapes, materials, and environments. It is difficult to solve all specific problems with one set of methods." He further explained, "Longevity Pagoda, Six Victory Pagodas, Shihu Wharf, and Shishi’s three heritage sites are all stone. The most feared is not fire or lightning. How to do lightning protection work without changing the appearance of cultural relics is the key point. But like Kaiyuan Temple and Mansion For the Confucian Temple, a cigarette butt may not work. As for the open-air ruins, it is necessary to pay special attention to the instant rainstorm washout, and the drainage and waterproof measures of the archaeological site must be in place."
For many locals, “there is a legacy in front of my house, which is the source of dignity and self-confidence.” In a sense, the fires of Dehua kilns and Cizao kilns have been unfailing for thousands of years, and they are still burning today. Changed a place; the Wanshou Pagoda and the Liusheng Pagoda have been the constant navigation marks in the hearts of sailors since the day they were erected; the people of the city still went to pray for safety and good weather in the morning and evening bells of the Kaiyuan Temple; Luoyang Bridge and Anping Bridge were long gone. Then there are the old throat arteries, but this does not prevent the citizens from strolling on the bridgehead under the sunset and lingering...
"Live inheritance", many experts in the interview emphasized that this is the characteristic of Quanzhou cultural heritage.
It means that the cultural heritage of Quanzhou is deeply integrated into the production and life of the local people. It is by no means cold and blunt buildings, but full of the smell of human fireworks.
Many heritage sites including Kaiyuan Temple, except for Qingyuan Mountain and Qingjing Temple where Laojunyan is located, do not accept tickets.
"Many of our heritage sites have maintained their original functions for thousands of years. They are not superb, and tourists and people are welcome to visit." Li Qingjun said.
He gave two figures at the same time, "In order to retain the homesickness and maintain the authenticity and integrity of cultural heritage, nearly 200 square kilometers and 2% of the land area have been included in protected areas, buffer zones and landscape control areas."
"If there is a ship carrying pepper to Alexandria, or other Christian countries, proportionally, there will be more than 100 ships carrying pepper to this Erythronium." Marco Bo, visiting Quanzhou in 1291 Luo left an impression of here.
According to the records of "Dao Yi Zhilue", as many as 99 countries and regions had maritime trade with Quanzhou at that time.
The geographical feature of being born toward the sea has nourished the inclusive and broad-minded people of Quanzhou, making Quanzhou a place where diverse cultures meet.
Ancient buildings such as Kaiyuan Temple and Fuwen Temple show the splendid civilization of an era with their magnificent regulations and rich connotations. Religious sites such as Qingjing Temple, Islamic Holy Tombs, Cao'an Stone Carvings, etc. silently speak of cultural diversity; 9th Historical relics of marine trade, such as the mountain praying wind stone carvings, Tianhou Palace, and Dejimen Site, have also witnessed the prosperity of foreign economic, trade and cultural exchanges.
As Huang Jinglue, a famous archaeologist and former deputy director of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, said: "These different contents and forms of culture and relics together constitute Quanzhou’s unique marine culture and become a cultural treasure that has attracted worldwide attention. These are not only Quanzhou. It's also Chinese, and even more important to the world."
Our reporter Guan Xiaopu reports from Quanzhou, Fujian