Ceramics from the town of Awajún nominated for World Heritage Site list

Our country will nominate the values, skills, knowledge and practices of the Awajún people, associated with ceramics, to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

The nomination, which was delivered to UNESCO's headquarters in Paris, provides information about the great value of pottery production for the women of this village, since it can help give continuity to values and practices that are part of their memory and identity.

Furthermore, one of the activities that have facilitated economic growth for the Awajún families is indeed the production of ceramics, which is an example of responsible and sustainable management of the resources offered by the Amazon forest.

The representative of the Permanent Delegation of Peru to UNESCO, the Minister Raúl Hidalgo, presented the report to the Secretary of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, Timothy Curtis.

Representatives from Awajún people organizations, together with leaders of craftswomen associations, in coordination with the Intangible Heritage Department and the Decentralized Amazon Culture Department, prepared this nomination over two years.

It should be noted that a copy of the nomination was delivered in the Awajún language to commemorate the International Year of Indigenous Languages.

This nomination is an effort by the Awajún people and the Ministry of Culture to safeguarding their intangible cultural heritage, thus adding to the different initiatives that have been implemented since 2007 in the promotion of ceramics, with the exhibition of traditional popular Ruraq maki handmade art, and with the declaration of this expression as Cultural Heritage of the Nation in 2017.

Source: Andina