Pingnan protects traditional culture

( chinadaily.com.cn )

Updated: 2015-06-24

"In spite of damaged cultural relics in Jitou village, Pingnan county, no funds were spent on protection. However, the county now has a special fund for historical relics," Party branch secretary of Jitou village Zhang Shuxun told reporters near an ancient folk house under restoration on June 18.

Pingnan county, founded in 1735, has deep cultural heritage.

The county has 258 villages, with Shuangxi, Jitou and Jixia listed among "China's famous historical and cultural towns and villages" by the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development and the State Administration of Cultural Heritage.

The villages' techniques to build timber arch lounge bridges are on UNESCO's List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding; five timber arch lounge bridges entered the China UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List in 2012; and there are four national cultural relic protection sites.

Since 2014, Pingnan has placed great importance on protection and development of cultural heritage and historical villages.

This year, the county will set up a cultural development fund with 10 million yuan ($1.61 million) and working teams to protect traditional culture.