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{{short description|Part of the language of romantic nationalism}}{{other meanings}}{{Nationalism sidebar|Development}}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 that 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.A 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 that are recognised by South Korea as having exceptional cultural value.

Notable examples

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:

• Certain countries officially designate individuals or groups as Living National Treasures. See, for example, National Living Treasures of the Philippines and Living National Treasures of Japan
• Comedian, actor, author and director Stephen Fry, broadcaster and naturalist Sir David Attenborough, activist and Royal Catherine Princess of Wales, Monarch and head of Commonwealth Queen Elizabeth II and racing driver Stirling Moss have in several high-brow non-industry-specific publications been referred to as national treasures of the United Kingdom.NEWS,weblink Stirling Moss at 80: the interview, The Daily Telegraph, 21 April 2013, WEB, Fordham, Mike,weblink Sir Stirling Moss: The Knight of the Road, Influx Magazine, 21 October 2009, 21 April 2013, WEB,weblinkweblink 18 June 2022, subscription, live, Sir Stirling Moss: Still Stirling stuff, The Independent, 27 November 2007, 21 April 2013, Stephen Fry gives some Quite Interesting answers The Daily Telegraph (London), 29 February 2008WEB, Waldemayer, Winston,weblink Short Sharp Science: Eye-burrowing worms, national treasures... and creationism, Newscientist.com, 28 January 2009, 21 April 2013, NEWS,weblink The Daily Telegraph, Paul, Kendall, Sir David Attenborough: 'Man was given permission to exploit the natural world by the Bible', 31 January 2009, NEWS,weblink The Daily Telegraph, Margaret Thatcher, Richard Branson and Judi Dench picked as National Treasures, 18 September 2008,
• Tāme Iti, a TÅ«hoe activist, artist and rangatira who formed Ngā Tamatoa, and Kim Hill, broadcaster, are considered national treasures of New Zealand.WEB, I Will Not Speak Māori Exhibition,weblink 2022-09-14, www.wellingtonnz.com, en-NZ, WEB, The Post,weblink 2023-11-20, www.thepost.co.nz,
• Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh, the voice of Gaelic games, has been described both as a "national treasure" and "Ireland's greatest national treasure", often with reference to the tendency in the neighbouring United Kingdom to declare such people as this.NEWS,weblink Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh - A National Treasure, Off the Ball (media company), Off the Ball, 29 August 2018, NEWS,weblink The Definitive Ranking Of Micheal Ó Muircheartaigh's Greatest Internet Moments, Balls.ie, 22 October 2020, NEWS,weblink A national treasure speaks about spending his 90th on the Blasket Islands, the death of his brother – and why we need to reach out to elderly people this Christmas, Irish Independent, 4 December 2020,
• After the Brazil national football team won the 1962 FIFA World Cup, wealthy European clubs offered massive fees to sign their young star player, Pelé, but the government of Brazil declared him an official national treasure to prevent him from being transferred out of the country.WEB,weblinkweblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20080228024654weblink">weblink dead, 28 February 2008, Pelé (Edson Arantes do Nascimento) The King of football, FIFA.com, 8 February 2011,
• The late German humorist Vicco von Bülow alias Loriot had the status of a national treasure in Germany.NEWS,weblink Germany mourns king of comedy Loriot, The Guardian, 24 August 2011, 15 February 2014,

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".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.

Cultural artifacts

File:Stonehenge cloudy sunset.jpg|thumb|Stonehenge in the United KingdomUnited Kingdom

• Stonehenge and Magna Carta in the United Kingdom. The National Treasure for Public Life is called The Magna Carta Award.NEWS, National Treasure for Public Life: The Magna Carta Award,weblink Telegraph,

Geographic features

• The Constitution of Greece of 2001 declared that the Greek coastline is a national treasure (see Patras)

Music

• In 1997, the United States Library of Congress recognized the song "Truckin'" by the rock band Grateful Dead as a national treasure of the United States.Grateful Dead: The Illustrated Trip. Jake Woodward, et al. Dorling Kindersley Limited, 2003, pg. 112.
• Andy Williams's voice was described as a national treasure by U.S. President Ronald Reagan."'National treasure' Andy Williams dies of bladder cancer at age 84", Fox News, 26 September 2012

See also

• Monument
• List of Chinese cultural relics forbidden to be exhibited abroad
• National Treasures of Japan
• National Treasures of North Korea
• National Treasures of South Korea
• National Treasures of Vietnam
• World Heritage Site

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References

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External links

{{Nationalism}}