Source: Global Times
The zinc roof of Paris presents a unique landscape of "high-grade gray".
According to the "Parisian" and other French media recently reported, France is preparing to submit an application to UNESCO for the 2022 World Intangible Cultural Heritage Project, and there are currently 3 projects with the highest demand: Paris zinc roof, French stick bread and the Albert wine festival with regional characteristics. Since France can only apply for intangible cultural heritage once every two years and can only submit one project at a time, in the face of these unique French cultural "representatives", the French Ministry of Culture is also hesitant and undecided.
Zinc roof, the landscape of Paris
Dark grey zinc roofs are an important feature of Paris. Whether on the Eiffel Tower or at the top of montmartre overlooking Paris, you can see the dark gray, light gray and greenish gray of the undulating zinc leather roofs that flash in the sun. Such a roof came with the great alteration of Paris by Napoleon III in the mid-19th century. At the initiative of Baron Haussmann, the Governor of Paris, a large number of dilapidated old houses in Paris were demolished, and luxury apartment buildings built of underground limestone were erected. In order to reduce the pressure on the building as a whole due to the increase in floors, Baron Ottoman decided to adopt zinc, a new material of the time, as the basic material for building roofs. This material has the characteristics of lightness, sturdiness, waterproof, sun protection, easy cutting, and easy packaging of stone. With the zinc-skinned roof, the parisian luxury apartment building is also more beautiful. Under the brushes of artists such as Monet, Van Gogh and Cézanne, in the poems of writers such as Plévier and Madame de Steyer, and in the songs of singers such as Yves Montão and Piaf, there are descriptions of the roofs of Paris. Not only are 80% of the roofs in Paris zinc-skinned roofs, but many cities throughout France and Europe, such as Geneva, Switzerland, have set off a boom in zinc roofs under the influence of Paris.
However, it is not the Paris zinc roof itself that is expected to apply for the heritage, but the production and maintenance technology of the zinc roof. In principle, the zinc roof should be replaced every 50 years, and it also needs to be repaired and insulated according to the new environmental protection and ecological standards in France, so the relevant professionalism and technical difficulty are further improved. However, at present, there are not many relevant employees in France, a total of about 45,000 people are engaged in roof construction work in various places, and there are only more than 500 zinc roof professionals and technicians in Paris. Industry groups say there is a growing lack of interest in this traditional craft among young people in France. If included in the World Intangible Cultural Heritage List, the industry is expected to gain new impetus for development and usher in a series of technological updates. The French government was ready to submit an application to UNESCO in 2014, but was squeezed out by another project, which has been delayed to this day. Unexpectedly, this time Zinc Roof faced a competitor with a more advantageous advantage: the world-famous baguette.
Traditional baguettes can only be made with four ingredients.
The baguette was supported by the President
As early as 2018, French President Emmanuel Macron proposed that he hope that baguettes will be included in the world intangible cultural heritage. Macron calls baguettes part of "French everyday life", "whether in the morning, noon or evening, believe it or not, everyone eats this bread". French media commented that even Italian Neapolitan pizza and Turkish coffee can become "intangible cultural heritage", and baguettes should be included. With a daily consumption of 3 million sticks in French bakeries, baguettes are an iconic food of the French and a symbol of the French way of life.
Baguettes are associated with many legends. It is said that Napoleon led the army to fight, requiring chefs to make bread that was more convenient to carry than daily bread, so long baguettes were introduced, which could be inserted into backpacks and eaten. Some experts believe that a more reliable origin is that in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, workers who built the subway in Paris often fought and beat each other, and in order to prohibit them from carrying knives with them, the authorities introduced hand-broken, easy-to-eat stick bread. Whichever legend is true, the 1920 French law prohibiting bakeries from opening fires before 4 a.m. is certain. With no time to bake traditional bread that takes longer, bakeries began mass-producing baguettes that could be baked in a short time.
The traditional "baguette" has a size standard: about 5 cm wide, about 4 cm high, about 65 cm long, weighing about 250 grams. The quality is more standard: the outer skin is crisp, the inside is soft, the color of the roast is honey yellow, soft and delicious. France passed a law in 1993 stipulating that traditional baguettes can only be made from wheat flour, water, yeast and salt, and cannot be cryopreserved or contain preservatives. The Federation of French Bakers has asked the Elysee Palace many years ago to support them in "applying for heritage" for baguettes to protect the quality of traditional baguettes and wants to reduce the proportion of frozen baguettes sold in large supermarkets and convenience stores because they are not made according to traditional craftsmanship. With the support of the president, the baguette claim was in full swing.
The Eastern Wine Festival has a local character
Another highly popular candidate is the Traditional Wine Festival in the Jura mountains of eastern France. The festival originated in the Middle Ages and formed a characteristic rural custom in the 17th century. In the wine-producing area of Arbois, a carnival is held on the first Sunday of September every year, where people not only hold parades and performances with songs and dances, but also make 80-100 kg of giant grape bunches in a special way, which is very spectacular. Such festivals combine rural customs, festive customs and people's life scenes, with local characteristics and ethnographic meanings.
All three items meet UNESCO's criteria for intangible cultural heritage, and the French Ministry of Culture may make a choice in mid-to-late March and submit it to the President for decision. For these three projects, the French have their own preferences, but more people believe that no matter which one can be selected as a world intangible cultural heritage, it is the pride of France and the precious existence of human culture.