Competitive grass mowing in the Balkans among range of eclectic customs recognised by Unesco

The grass mowing contest is held in the town of Kupres in Bosnia each summer

Credit: Reuters

The little-known art of competitive grass mowing has won special recognition from Unesco, one of a range of eclectic traditions to have been added to its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The tradition involves men in the town of Kupres in Bosnia-Herzegovina competing against each other by mowing summer meadows with long scythes.

The annual competition takes place in July in the same meadow and “is judged by the time, effort and amount mown, as cutting grass at that altitude requires strength and a special technique,” according to Unesco’s listing.

“The top three mowers are recognised, with the chief mower treated as a leader who ensures the successful mowing of all the fields.”

Participants with their scythes in the grass mowing competition held in Bosnia 

Credit: Dado Ruvic/Reuters

The contest, in which men wear traditional dress, also involves local customs such as the forging of scythes and the decoration of cattle for competitions.

Unesco’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list recognises sometimes obscure and eccentric customs, ceremonies and traditions from around the world, from hand puppetry in Egypt to bobbin lace-making in Slovenia.

Among the 32 traditions that the Paris-based organisation recognised this time around were camel racing in Oman and the United Arab Emirates, the celebration of pomegranates in Azerbaijan, and the making of couscous in Tunisia, Morocco, Mauritania and Algeria.

Countries often club together to put forward an aspect of cultural heritage that they share.

France and Italy were successful this year in asking for recognition for the art of glass bead making. In Venice, the delicate beads are produced on the island of Murano, which has been famous for centuries for its glass-blowing traditions.

Glass bead making in Venice was also recognised

Credit: Glenn van der Knijff

“It is a great honour that shortly before the celebrations to mark the 1,600th anniversary of the founding of Venice, in March 2021, one of the oldest handicraft traditions in our city is receiving international recognition,” said Venice’s mayor, Luigi Brugnaro.

Artisans in Venice are suffering from the dramatic decline in tourism caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

"The activities of glass furnaces and artisans have been hard hit by the effects of the health crisis, many are on the brink due to the collapse of tourism but also due to the closure of international markets and fairs," said Luca Zaia, the governor of the Veneto region. "We hope that this recognition will become a driving force for recovery."

Unesco also awarded recognition to Finnish sauna culture – Finland boasts more than 3 million saunas and around 90 per cent of Finns have a sauna once a week.

Japan’s traditional architectural techniques, showcased in the centuries-old craftsmanship of temples, shrines and wooden homes, were also added to the list.

The move will give a welcome boost to Japan’s dwindling community of elderly craftsmen, whose knowledge of specialist techniques is at risk of dying out due to a lack of interest from younger generations.

Camel racing in Oman and the UAE was added to the Unesco list

Credit: Andrew Kasuku/AFP

Since the list of intangible heritage was first conceived, 584 customs from 131 countries have been inscribed.

Among the traditions added last year were Byzantine chanting from Greece and Cyprus, traditional Thai massage and carpet weaving from Turkmenistan.