Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) President Deland Leong Wai Man told reporters yesterday that her bureau has decided to add 20 items to Macau’s Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage, which will raise its total number to 90.
Leong said that the additional items cover a range of traditions, including Cantonese music, Patuá songs, and the craft of making Pork Chop Buns.
The Pork Chop Bun has been described by foodies, restaurateurs and culinary experts as a perfect example of Macau cuisine – a tasty fusion of Portuguese and Chinese influences that results in something greater than the sum of its parts. According to tour guides, Pork Chop Buns are a “must-try” for any food-loving tourist – as are Macau’s ubiquitous Egg Tarts, Almond Biscuits and Beef Offal.
Leong did not say when the complete list of the 20 additional items will be gazetted.
Patuá is the highly endangered Portuguese-Asian Creole language of Macau’s community of mixed Portuguese and Asian extraction, and its diaspora.
Leong made the remarks at a press briefing after a regular behind-the-doors meeting of the advisory Cultural Heritage Council at the Macau Cultural Centre (CCM) in Nape.
The inventory currently contains 70 items, and the latest extension will add 20 more, she noted.
The current inventory already includes several other culinary items such as Almond Biscuits, Egg Tarts (officially listed in English as “Custard Tarts”) and Traditional Chinese Wedding Cakes.
Fellow councillor-cum-civil engineer Wu Chou Kit told reporters in a post-meeting press briefing that all the members of the government-appointed council have endorsed the 20 items that will be added to the inventory, as they recognised the new items’ diverse range and their continuity with the core direction established by the first and second batches of intangible heritage items.
Completion of St. Paul’s Ruins statue restoration delayed
Meanwhile, Leong said during the press briefing that completion of the restoration of all the statues of the Ruins of St. Paul’s has been postponed to early next year, but that the restoration, i.e., cleaning and maintenance, of second-row, two right-side statues on the façade of the UNESCO World Heritage-listed landmark have already been completed.
However, she pointed out, when relic restorers inspected the two still unrestored left-side statues, they discovered various kinds of damage, such as cracks.
According to Leong, experts from the Macau Palace Museum Cultural Heritage Preservation and Transmission Centre will conduct further research to determine the cause of these flaws – whether they are casting defects or damage that only occurred later – before formulating a restoration plan.
Leong underlined that the restoration work includes academic research involving technical exchange. She also rejected rumours claiming that the two restored bronze statue had been “displaced” when put back onto the façade, confirming that all restoration processes have strictly adhered to rigorous scientific procedures.
Wu also said that the councillors agreed to reschedule the completion of the restoration work until early next year to allow for further assessment by experts.
In response to reporters’ questions about whether the Cultural Heritage Protection Law would be amended in order to relax certain construction restrictions, Leong replied that the focus of the city’s heritage buffer zones was primarily on building height and size, rather than façade renovations.
Leong insisted that if renovations do not impact the cultural heritage, the bureau does not need to provide additional feedback. She emphasised that this approach does not weaken heritage protection but rather makes it more targeted, balancing business needs with public convenience.
Cultural Heritage Council Acting President and Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) President Deland Leong Wai Man (right) and fellow councillor Wu Chou Kit look on during a press briefing after the committee’s regular closed-door meeting at the Macau Cultural Centre (CCM) in Nape yesterday. – Photo: Armindo Neves
December 2006 file photo of a Pork Chop Bun served in a local restaurant. – Photo: Wikimedia Commons.
