National treasure

For the Disney film series, see National Treasure (franchise), which includes National Treasure (film). For the Manic Street Preachers album, see National Treasures – The Complete Singles.

The idea of national treasure, like national epics and national anthems, is part of the language of Romantic nationalism, which arose in the late 18th century and 19th centuries. Nationalism is an ideology which supports the nation as the fundamental unit of human social life, which includes shared language, values and culture. Thus national treasure, part of the ideology of nationalism, is shared culture.

National treasure can be a shared cultural asset, which may or may not have monetary value; for example, a skilled banjo player would be a Living National Treasure. Or it may refer to a rare cultural object, such as the medieval manuscript Plan of St. Gall in Switzerland. The government of Japan designates the most famous of the nation's cultural properties as National Treasures of Japan. The National Treasures of Korea are a set of artifacts, sites, and buildings which are recognized by South Korea as having exceptional cultural value.

Notable national treasures

There are thousands of national treasures around the world. Listed here are samples of the different types of things that can be national treasure:

People

Examples of people who have been described as national treasures include the following:

In 2013 the British satirical magazine Private Eye began running a column poking fun at an exponential increase in references in the press to "national treasures".[14]

Places

Cultural artifacts

Geographic features

Music

Animal

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to National Treasures.

References

  1. Washington Times 06-05-12
  2. Motor Sport. "Stirling Moss at 80: the interview". Telegraph. Retrieved 2013-04-21.
  3. Fordham, Mike (2009-10-21). "Sir Stirling Moss: The Knight of the Road | Influx Magazine | Influx Magazine". Influx.co.uk. Retrieved 2013-04-21.
  4. "Sir Stirling Moss: Still Stirling stuff - Features - Motoring". The Independent. 2007-11-27. Retrieved 2013-04-21.
  5. Stephen Fry gives some Quite Interesting answers Telegraph.co.uk 29-02-2008
  6. Stephen Fry biography Dave.uktv.co.uk
  7. Stephen Fry night BBC4 website
  8. Waldemayer, Winston (2009-01-28). "Short Sharp Science: Eye-burrowing worms, national treasures... and creationism". Newscientist.com. Retrieved 2013-04-21.
  9. Kendall, Paul (31 January 2009). "Sir David Attenborough: 'Man was given permission to exploit the natural world by the Bible'". The Daily Telegraph.
  10. "Margaret Thatcher, Richard Branson and Judi Dench picked as National Treasures". The Daily Telegraph. 18 September 2008.
  11. "Pelé (Edson Arantes do Nascimento) The King of football". FIFA.com. Retrieved 8 February 2011.
  12. "Germany mourns king of comedy Loriot". The Guardian. 2011-08-24. Retrieved 2014-02-15.
  13. "Obituary: German comedian Loriot, aka Vicco von Bülow, dies aged 87". http://100gf.wordpress.com/. 2011-08-25. Retrieved 2014-02-15.
  14. For example, Private Eye no. 1340 (17–30 May 2013), "National Treasures", p. 13, contains excerpts from newspaper reports which attach the status to Olivia Colman, Clare Balding, Graham Norton and (formerly) Stuart Hall.
  15. Grateful Dead: The Illustrated Trip. Jake Woodward, et al. Dorling Kindersley Limited, 2003, pg. 112.
  16. "'National treasure' Andy Williams dies of bladder cancer at age 84", http://www.foxnews.com, 2012-09-26