National treasure

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 which 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.

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 which are recognized by South Korea as having exceptional cultural value.

There are thousands of national treasures around the world. Listed here are samples of the different types of things that can be national treasure:

Examples of people who have been described as national treasures include the following:

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".

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