There are now more than two hundred Dutch customs and traditions on the list of intangible heritage. Indonesian cooking and the Indonesian rice table were added a few weeks ago.
Horse launching
The latest addition is the launching of the Terschelling rowing lifeboat, as can be seen on the website of the Knowledge Center Intangible Heritage Netherlands.
Since 2012, a demonstration with horse people and rowers has been taking place on the Wadden Island. The boat is pulled over the dunes and brought into the sea in the surf on the beach.
In the past, the boat, the ‘Secretaris Schumacher’, dating from 1900, was used to rescue drowning people. It takes at least ten horses, ten oarsmen and a skipper to get the boat out to sea.
The tradition was almost lost, but is now maintained by volunteers.
Horse rescue boat on Ameland
Incidentally, the Wadden Island of Ameland has a similar tradition. There, too, a horse lifeboat is launched a few times a year. However, this is a motorized vehicle, not a rowing boat.
What is intangible heritage
Intangible heritage is ‘the link between the present, the past and the future’, says the Netherlands Immaterial Heritage Knowledge Centre. That organization maintains the list.
“It is culture of today, gives a sense of belonging to previous generations and at the same time is also future-oriented because people want to pass it on to future generations.”
Source: Netherlands Intangible Heritage Knowledge Centre
