This is Beirut - Heritage

Tunisian Brutalist Landmark Faces Wrecking Ball, Sparking Outcry

This is Beirut, 02/09 15:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Architecture Tunisia Libya Culture Heritage

Tunisia's brutalist landmarks the Hotel du Lac, a 1970s postcard icon said to have inspired a desert-roving vehicle in Star Wars, is being demolished, sparking calls from architects, historians and activists to save it. Built by Italian architect Raffaele Contigiani in central Tunis, the concrete-and-steel inverted pyramid opened in 1973 during a ...

Van Gogh Museum Faces Closure Without Urgent State Funding to Preserve Cultural Legacy

This is Beirut, 28/08 11:50 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Van Gogh Museum Netherlands Heritage Art Culture

The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam warned Wednesday that it faced closure without more state funding, saying a 104-million-euro ($120 million) renovation was vital to protect its masterpieces. The museum, which holds the world's biggest collection of the artist's work, said the project could not go ahead unless the Dutch state honored a 1962 ...

Smiling Viking Figurine Discovered After Centuries in Denmark

This is Beirut, 27/08 16:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Museum Danemark Culture Art Archeology Heritage

Denmark's National Museum unveiled Wednesday what it described as the first "portrait" of a Viking: a miniature 10th-century figurine depicting a man with an imperial moustache, braided beard and neatly groomed hairstyle. Carved out of ivory walrus tusk, the partially damaged representation of a head and torso measures just three centimeters (1.2 ...

Cracker Barrel Logo Change Sparks Cultural Backlash Across U.S.

This is Beirut, 23/08 13:00 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Culture Heritage U.S. Food Art

Cracker Barrel has a special place in the hearts of many Americans, offering homestyle American cuisine in a folksy "Old Country Store" setting complete with rocking chairs and occasional country music performances. But an attempt to rebrand the storied US chain has sparked a firestorm of opposition online and opened a new front in the culture ...

From Raves to Roots: Saudi Arabia Spotlights its Heritage

This is Beirut, 18/08 17:00 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

Saudi Arabia Culture Heritage Music Concert Art

First, deeply religious Saudi Arabia opened its doors to Western raves and music festivals. Now it's turning to long-neglected Saudi traditions as it seeks to draw tourists and reshape its national identity. In Terhal, a lavish stage show in Riyadh, an actor in a red-and-white headdress gallops on a white horse, exploring the kingdom's heritage ...

Terence Stamp, Screen Legend and 'Superman'’s Zod, Died at 87

This is Beirut, 18/08 08:00 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Terence Stamp Cinema Culture Art Actor Heritage

The London actor from a working-class background, born on July 22, 1938, had his first breakthrough in Peter Ustinov's Billy Budd. His performance as a dashing young sailor hanged for killing one of his crewmates earned him an Oscar nomination and a Golden Globe for Best New Actor. Carving out a niche for his alluring depictions of brooding ...

Danielle Spencer, the 'What’s Happening!!' Star, Dies After Battle with Breast Cancer

This is Beirut, 13/08 13:10 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Actress Heritage Culture Art Death Danielle Spencer

Danielle Spencer, best known for her role as the sassy pre-teen Dee Thomas on the groundbreaking sitcom What’s Happening!!, has died at the age of 60. Spencer passed away on August 11, 2025, at a hospital in Richmond, Virginia, her former co-star Haywood Nelson confirmed. Nelson shared the news on Instagram, remembering her as “brilliant” ...

Heritage and Cool Comfort: Paris’ Underground Catacombs Treasure

This is Beirut, 13/08 10:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

Paris Catacombs Heritage History Heat Wave Culture

The moment visitors step inside the Paris Catacombs, the hundred or so people who had been waiting outside in the shade of the trees put away their caps, sunglasses, and hand fans, swapping them for sweaters and jackets in hopes of escaping the oppressive summer heat. Those dressed too lightly wrap their arms around themselves for warmth. Beatriz ...

Kabyle Region: Where the Ground Shines White with Salt

Rayan Chami, 12/08 16:10 - Reading : less than a minute

Algeria Kabyle salt harvesting heritage

In Algeria’s Kabyle mountains, villagers keep a centuries-old salt harvesting tradition alive, passing their craft from one generation to the next.

Poetry and Song Keep Oman’s Ancient Language Alive

This is Beirut, 11/08 10:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

Oman Culture Heritage Art

Against the backdrop of southern Oman’s lush mountains, men in traditional attire chant ancient poems in an ancient language, fighting to keep alive a spoken tradition used by just two percent of the population. Sitting under a tent, poet Khalid Ahmed al-Kathiri recites the verses, while men clad in robes and headdresses echo back his words in ...

Adidas Accused of Cultural Appropriation Over Oaxaca-Inspired Sandals

This is Beirut, 10/08 10:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

Adidas Fashion Heritage Culture Art Mexico

US fashion designer Willy Chavarria said Saturday he regrets that sandals he created together with Adidas “appropriated” a traditional design from the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca. Local authorities had complained that the Oaxaca Slip-On sandals were a “reinterpreted” model of huarache sandals, particularly one found uniquely in the ...

Fire Swiftly Contained at Cordoba’s Historic Mosque-Cathedral

This is Beirut, 09/08 12:30 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

UNESCO Architecture Culture Art History Heritage

A fire broke out in the historic mosque-turned-cathedral in Cordoba on Friday, but the monument was saved as firefighters quickly contained and then extinguished it, the Spanish city's mayor said. Widely shared videos had shown flames and smoke billowing from inside the major tourist attraction, visited by two million people per year. "The ...

Heritage