Red brick building originated in the 12th century and is a distinct architectural style in Xiamen, southern Fujian province. [Photo by Liu Donghua / xmnn.cn]

Government officials and cultural experts attended a cultural heritage protection meeting on Jan 13 in Xiamen, Fujian province.

The meeting decided to start an application for Xiamen’s red brick buildings for world heritage status.

More than 2,200 cultural and historical relics have been registered in Xiamen, after the third national cultural heritage survey between April, 2007 and December, 2011, 800 of which are red brick buildings.

Xiamen’s history dates back to the Tang dynasty (AD618-907), and red brick buildings first appeared in the southern Song dynasty (AD 1127-1279) according to the latest archeological discoveries. Xiamen’s red brick building, as a cultural icon for southern Fujian, has a unique identification in the layout and material, and continued its thriving construction until the early period of the Republic of China (1912-1949).

The application, which hopes to achieve world heritage status, is an important measure to help preserve local history and culture, according to Jin Weibo, deputy curator of Xiamen Museum.

Many historical buildings did not get adequate protection in the modern construction of surrounding areas, and we should give a thorough plan for the protection and repair work for historical buildings, said Chen Geng, president of Southern Fujian Culture Research Society,

Cultural identity comes prior to the protection work, because people will put their efforts to protect their cultural heritage only after they cherish and respect the culture, Chen added.