Heritage

Indigo: The Center of ‘Locality’

Similar in many other places in the world, natural dyeing in Taiwan disappeared when the synthetic dye was widely distributed. Taiwan underwent fast modernization during the Japanese colonial period (1895-1945) that was also when Taiwanese indigo dye production and dyeing went down the lane. As a massive amount of Japanese machine-printed textiles entered the Taiwanese market, local dyeing workshops quickly shut down or turned into dealer shops of ready-made textiles. Since then, Taiwan indigo industry, once prevailing, now only existed in the memory of the elders.

 

The Keys of Heaven

The keys are a symbol of Leiden and are found everywhere. As a first time visitor I found them odd. As we talked to different people we were told that these are the keys of Saint Peter. Like the coats of arms in Ghana that talks about the belief of the people and acts as a cultural symbol, the keys of Saint Peter have become a symbol that people identify themselves with.

What Is the Original Color of Rembrandt Bridge in Leiden?

Rembrandt Bridge (Rembrandtbrug) was built in 1983 as a replica of a 17th-century bridge that was in the same place. The bridge was rebuilt in color white. However, according to archive research from Heritage and Environment of Leiden (Erfgoed Leiden en Omstreken), the original bridge design in 1768 was in English red with black. The research did not please some of the local residents. Friends of Rembrandt Bridge (Vrienden van de Rembrandtbrug) made petitions against the change of color and stuck the "Liever wit dan dit (Better white that this)" over the trial color. 

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