This year the Blue Shield is 25!
We’re inviting you to join us in raising awareness of the importance of blue shields by nominating your favourite blue shield!
The blue shield is the symbol placed on cultural property “of great importance” (under article 1 of the 1954 Hague Convention) to show that it should be protected times of armed conflict, equivalent to the Red Cross for humanitarian protection.
This symbol is also at the heart of the Blue Shield’s logo, representing our mission to protect cultural property in crisis.
Each week we’re posting a new example in our website gallery and on social media. We want to showcase some of the most important cultural and heritage sites around the world, and to raise awareness of the importance of protecting them during armed conflict or disasters.
Week 1: our Secretariat starts us off with a blue shield on the Austrian Defence Academy, Vienna for #BlueShield25.
- 1954 Hague Convention article 16.2 – The distinctive emblem may be used alone as a means of identification of (a) cultural property not under special protection (defined under article 1 as movable or immovable property of great importance to the cultural heritage of every people.
Week 2: Alexander Gatzsche of Blue Shield Germany said “My favourite Blue Shield is the UK British Army Cultural Property Protection shield, because it gives hope that we will be able to implement awareness of the protection of cultural property in armed conflicts in even more armies around the world in the future”. The shield can be found in the National Army Museum (https://collection.nam.ac.uk/detail.php?acc=2019-04-3-1-1) and on the unit, seen here on the Unit Commander, Lt Col Tim Purbrick (with thanks to him for the use of the pictures). #BlueShield25
- The 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict declares that, under article 7.2: The High Contracting Parties undertake to plan or establish in peace-time, within their armed forces, services or specialist personnel whose purpose will be to secure respect for cultural property and to co-operate with the civilian authorities responsible for safeguarding it. Under Article 17.2: The distinctive emblem may be used alone only as a means of identification of: (c) the personnel engaged in the protection of cultural property.
Week 3: Cast of Motivados por la historia taking a picture with Blue Shield Argentina in front of a Blue Shield emblem with the Andes chain on the background. This shield is placed as part of the crossing of the Andes, which historically took place from January to February 1817. It marked a turning point in the Argentine and Chilean wars for independence. Thanks to the strategy advised by General Jose de San Martin, an army composed of Argentine soldiers and Chilean exiles entered Santiago of Chile and attacked Spanish forces, taking them by surprise. For this initiative, which led to the end of Spanish rule in Chile’s liberation from the Spanish rule, José de San Martín is now considered a national hero of Argentina and one of the Liberators of Spanish South America. #BlueShield25
- The blue shield is placed by states to identify cultural property of great importance under the Convention.
Week 4: Our #BlueShield25 photo this week is from Georgia! Placing the blue shield distinctive emblem of Enhanced Protection (note the red band around the shield) on historic sites in Mtshketa with the National Agency for Cultural Heritage Preservation during cultural property protection training organised by UNESCO and the Georgian Ministry of Defence, supported by us and Blue Shield Georgia in 2018.
- Under the 1999 Second Protocol, sites of the greatest importance for humanity may be placed under Enhanced Protection, granting them immunity from conflict. Breaching that immunity is considered a war crime.
Week 5: #BlueShield25 is in Holland with Blue Shield Netherlands for the Culture Under War Exhibition! Dutch treasures were stored in Slot Loevestein during WWII and today the site is protected by a Blue Shield. This exhibition explains why, and about cultural property protection and the 1954 Hague Convention. Visitors can share thoughts their thoughts on cards.
- Slot Loevestein is now identified as cultural property of great importance.
Week 6: Taken January 2004, this blue shield was painted on the roof of the Baghdad National Museum prior to the 2003 invasion to identify it on satellite imagery and prevent attacks (from land or air). © Dr John Russell, with thanks.
- To protect the museum, staff tried to identify it as CP of great importance.
Week 7: Blue Shield France have worked with the emergency services to develop a system of blue shield stickers, making it easy to mark special collections for evacuation in a crisis. Different size stickers are available. More information (in French) on their website.
- Second Protocol article 5 recommends the planning of emergency measures for protection.
Week 8: This Church in Urleta, Romania, has been marked with a blue shield © Alesorina, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- The blue shield is placed by states to identify cultural property of great importance under the Convention.
Week 9: Monumento a la Memoria y la Verdad [Monument to the Memory and Truth] memorial wall located in Cuscatlan Park in downtown San Salvador.
Panels with the names of the fallen during the period of the war in the country. It is estimated over 75,000 Salvadoran civilians were killed between 1980-1992.12/06/2013 © Maxu rm, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- The blue shield is placed by states to identify cultural property of great importance under the Convention.
Week 10: The hiking trail to Burgstallkogel hill – the blue shield on the hiking trail signpost marks an early Iron Age settlement with grave mounds in the Südsteirisches Weinland Nature Park, protected under the Hague Convention © Herzi Pinki, 30 June 2014, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
- The blue shield is placed by states to identify cultural property of great importance under the Convention: the placement of the sign is at the discretion of states.
Week 11: The Ministry of Culture of Argentina, in conjunction with the Ministry of Defence, carried out the act of placing the distinctive emblem of the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, at the National Historical Museum, 8 May 2014. © Mauro Rico/Ministerio de Cultura de la Nación, Ministerio de Cultura de la Nación Argentina, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
- The blue shield indicates protected moveable and immovable CP, and buildings designed to store and exhibit it.
Week 12: Since the devastating Beirut blast on 4 August 2020, work continues to restore the city, including efforts to save cultural property & historic buildings by Blue Shield, ICCROM, ICOMOS, UNESCO and others, including Blue Shield Lebanon and their amazing volunteers. The Blue Shield organisation logo is on this historic building.
Week 13: This pack of playing cards was designed by UNESCO, and has heritage protection pictures and key messages on each card including the blue shield emblem. The cards were designed by to raise awareness about cultural property, CCP and the 1954HagueConvention during training with military forces.
Week 14: Oberrieder Stollen Central Refuge, also known as Barbara Stollen, a former silver mine situated in Southern Germany. Today, it houses millions of images of ‘very great importance’ from different German national libraries and archives. The refuge was granted ‘special protection’ status under the 1954 Hague Convention in 1978, hence the special protection plaque with three blue shields. © Preuss BBK.
- 1954 Hague Convention article 17.1 – The distinctive emblem repeated three times may be used only as a means of identification of: (a) immovable cultural property under special protection.
Week 15: Tikal in Petén province, northern Guatemala, a major ceremonial centre of the Mayan civilisation from the 6th Century BC until the 10th Century AD. Tikal contains extraordinary temples, palaces and public squares set amidst lush jungle, and was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979. Tikal is also a national monument and park, famous for its biodiversity and archaeological importance. © David Mitchell.
Week 16: Ungurmuiza is the oldest wooden Baroque manor house in Latvia, built in 1731 in the historical region of Vidzema to visit, It has elegant rooms and wall paintings by Georg Hinsch. There’s a lovely park, too, with ancient trees. Photo credits: David Mitchell.
Week 17: Playmobile museum, used to teach cultural heritage protection and blue shields © Valérie Luquet Blue Shield France
Week 18: Blue shield at 18thC Melk Abbey, Austria, where Benedictine monks still live & work. There’s a magnificent library, medieval manuscripts, frescos, a church, & views over the Wachau Valley, a World Heritage Site © T Purbrick 2018
Week 19: ‘Under Three Linden Trees’ is a house in Krakow, Poland. Built in the 14thC and altered many times, it was registered as a historical monument and given a plaque in 1968. © David Mitchell.
Week 20: Special Protection plaque at Teotihuacán, a Centre Containing Monuments, 18 February 2017, © HighVibrationStation, via Wikimedia Commons, CC 4.0
- Articles 8 and 17 (1): The distinctive emblem repeated three times may be used only as a means of identification of immovable cultural property under special protection and centres containing monuments.
Week 21: Did you know there are over 50 Blue Shield emblem plaques on historic monuments and other CP in Argentina, including lighthouses and mountain trails? Amazing work from the Argentine BS National Committee, supported by the MoD. This image shows their awareness raising work of their plaques.
Week 22: Design for the new blue shields to be placed on 45 sites in Lebanon by Blue Shield Lebanon and the Lebanese Directorate General of Antiquities, supported by Blue Shield International, ©BSL 2021
Week 23: Dom Jana Matejki / House of celebrated Polish painter Jan Matejko’s in Krakow. Now a museum, its full of his possessions, furniture and famous paintings. Photos Andrew Ruppenstein, 19.6.2018. Courtesy: http://hmdb.org
Week 24: Plaque with a silhouette of the Bavarian city of Coburg and its 13th century castle where Martin Luther stayed in 1530. The castle, which has a frescoed chapel and many other historic features, offers a panoramic view over the old city and the Danube. Not only is this a rather unusual Blue Shield Emblem plaque, it has also been fixed for many years to a Coburg traffic sign! © Klaus Weschenfelder, Blue Shield Germany.
Week 25: This still-working planetarium from 1781, built by Dutch amateur astronomer Eisa Eisinga into his livingroom ceiling, is a tentative World Heritage site today in the Netherlands. © Udo Ockema, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Week 26: In 1859, Sosnowiec Glowny rail station was an important stop on the Warsaw-Vienna line connecting the Polish Kingdom & Silesia. © Scotch Mist CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Week 27: This Polish 16th Century Royal Arsenal was a cannon foundry and part of Krakow’s fortifications. The building was altered and added to over time, sometimes being used as a storage by the military. Today it is part of the prestigious Jagiellonian University, housing the Geography department. © David Mitchell
Week 28: Built in 1580, and once a colonial era town hall, this historic building in Argentina is now the National Museum of Cabildo & May Revolution. ©L Micha.
Week 29: Blue Shield Georgia carrying out training with the Georgian National Guard and Emergency Services July 2021 © M Tevzade
- Article 25 of the Convention calls on High Contracting Parties, in time of peace as in time of armed conflict, to disseminate the Convention as widely as possible in their respective countries. They undertake, in particular, to include the study thereof in their programmes of military and, if possible, civilian training, so that its principles are made known to the whole population, especially the armed forces and personnel engaged in the protection of cultural property
Week 30: 13th Century Latvian Cesis Castle, whose turbulent history includes wars, neglect, a siege, and a mass suicide. tinyurl.com/2ar9hrks © David Mitchell.
Week 31: Swiss Emergency Bunker, still in use today. This room in the medical service is a temporary repository for cultural assets in case of emergency. The bunker is also used by the civil defense and the samaritans. Berneck, Switzerland, Nov 19, 2014. (22/43). © Kecko from Switzerland (Rheintal SG), CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
- The bunker is part of a Swiss system of “refuges intended to shelter, in the event of armed conflict, the movable cultural property”, article 1(b) of the Hague Convention.
Week 32: Tiny wayside shrine owned by the Elixhausen community in Ursprung, Austria, 2011. Called Three Brothers Chapel, it has pictures of saints & a shingle-clad roof. © Luckyprof at de.wikipedia via Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain
Week 33: Special Protection plaque at Mexico’s fabulous 7th century fortified city of Xochicalco (listed as a Centre Containing Monuments) with its public & religious structures showing cultural styles from different parts of Mesoamerica. © Jbaldo23, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Articles 8 and 17 (1): The distinctive emblem repeated three times may be used only as a means of identification of immovable cultural property under special protection and centres containing monuments
Week 34: Maria Saal in the Carinthia region of southern Austria has a 15thC pilgrim church, castle, open air museum and ancient trees. © Johann Jaritz CC BY-SA4.0.
Week 35: Aphrodite’s Sanctuary at Paphos, Western Cyprus, dates from Neolithic times, with amazing ruins & mosaics. It is one of the few World Heritage sites to also bear a blue shield. © Tim Schnarr Limes.Media.
Week 36: BSI’s first cards for cultural heritage, designed & implemented by Biladi with BSI. They were distributed to UNIFIL to enhance their interest in heritage protection. Project funded by Norwegian Embassy Lebanon © J. Barry/BSI 2021
Week 37: Nominated by Blue Shield Austria, the historic town of Rust on the Austrian/Hungarian border has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2001. The 16th-19th Century houses have many decorative features including lovely arched portals and inner courtyards © Leylya Strobl
Week 38: The hospital-church of the Poor Clares is the 3rd oldest church in Bydgoszcz, Poland, and #BlueShield25 made a night time visit recently. Built in the 16thC outside the city walls it is now in the heart of Bydgoszcz! © E Cunliffe 2021
Week 39: This workshop is where Johann Puch trained in 1877. His company in Graz, Austria, made vehicles. He had 35 patents by 1914! © Pepito Tey CC BYSA 4.0 & Funke CC BYSA 4.0 both via Wikimedia Commons.
Week 40: This 1830s grain store is now a lovely restaurant – the KarczmaMlynska, or Mill Tavern, on Historic Mill Island, Bydgoszcz, Poland. It’s been on the Monuments Heritage list since 1992. © E Cunliffe 2021.
Week 41: Seilertor tower in Steyregg, Upper Austria. This historic gate-tower is part of the city wall, built to protect the town in the 15th century, and entered through three gated towers. This one, called Seilertor, is the only one that still exists. The tower got its name, apparently, from the rope makers who used to mend fishing nets nearby. © OHSieLi, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
Week 42: Museum in Bydgoszcz, Poland, which #BlueShield25 visited, which has had a turbulent & fascinating past protecting & preserving its collections during peace & war. ©E Cunliffe Sept 2021
Week 43: Blue shield marking the 12thC Alternburg Abbey, a Benedictine monastery in Lower Austria. Austria monument number 84421. Photos: Elke Pfeifer – CC BY-SA 3.0 AT via Wikimedia Commons.
Week 44: Training in CPP emergency response to flooding. So important to be prepared, and very timely with #COP26 & climate change making headline news. ©BouclierBleu
Week 45: ‘sgraffito’ decoration on the 16thC District Court in Horn, Austria, depicting Fortitude, Justice, Fortune and much more besides! Monument number 54276. © Duke of W4 CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Week 46: Poland’s heritage hotels are located in listed historical buildings, where hospitality and culture are combined, and help to ‘bring heritage back to life’ through innovative CPP! This blue shield can be found on Hotel Polski, in Krakow, Poland, spotted by the Blue Shield Secretariat on a visit in October 2021 © E Cunliffe, 2021
Week 47: Blue Shield plaque on Nowodworski College, named after Polish nobleman & soldier Bartłomiej Nowodworski who bequeathed the building to Jagiellonian University as a boys school in 1586. It’s now the University’s Medical Faculty. Krakow, Poland © BSI 2021
Week 48: The house of Austrian Nobel Prize in Literature nominee, Anton Wildgans. Famous for his plays & poems, he also translated French & Italian poetry, & directed the Vienna Burgtheater. Photos: Niki.L, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons and Wikimedia Commons
Week 49: Blue Shield plaque on Pitigliano (Grosseto, Toscana) late medieval town’s walls and gate. Proposed by Arturo Marcheggiano, the founder of the SIPBC-Italian Society for the Protection of Cultural Property (1996), this blue shield plaque has been the very first and for many years the only one in Italy. © Max Carcione, June 2018
Week 50: The Rosignano Monterrato Civic Library in Alessandria, Italy, which hosts the Maniscalco Center’s Blue Shield historical archive, a wonderful resource for scholars, researchers, students and others interested in CPP. The Center aims to make material on the protection and safeguarding of cultural heritage by UNESCO, BSI, its four founding NGOs, and other specialised heritage organisations available online. You can read about the history of the Maniscalco Center (in Italian) here: https://tinyurl.com/yf7697vf. For its part, the Civic Library collaborates with the Ecomuseum and the UNESCO World Heritage site of Piedmont’s Langhe-Roero and Monferrato vineyards, which covers five distinct wine-growing areas. https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1390/ What could be a more beautiful location in which to study! © Max Carcione
Week 51: Lima’s historic Plaza Francia after a two-year renovation of the church & convent of La Recoleta, and view over the Hospico Manrique with its Municipal Archive © Ricardo Daniel Rivera Velásquez, Blue Shield Peru.
Week 52: Our very last #BlueShield25 photo is an enigma! Some UK Red Telephone boxes have a Grade II listing. This one outside the Department for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport had a BS emblem plaque just for a short time in 2016. But it’s a mystery who put it there! Does anyone know? © BSI / UK Blue Shield.
Contact us to nominate your favourite blue shield from around the world! Email a photo of it (and say in up to 100 words why you like it) to: blueshield.communications@theblueshield.org.
Conditions: If possible, photos should be high resolution and not less than 500 KB. Photos should be free of copyright. The final decision whether or not to post a contribution rests with the Blue Shield.
About Blue Shield Emblems
The Blue Shield emblem takes three forms. These emblems are protective symbols used during armed conflicts. Their use is restricted by international law.
- A single blue and white shield: indicates movable or immovable cultural property designated under the 1954 Hague Convention as being of great importance to the cultural heritage of every people;
- A triple blue and white shield: If the emblem is “repeated three times in a triangular formation (one shield below),” this indicates cultural property of very great importance designated for special protection under the 1954 Hague Convention, cultural property being transported, and refuges storing movable cultural property ;
- A blue and white shield with a red border: The 1999 Second Protocol to the 1954 Hague Convention creates a system of Enhanced Protection, which aims to strengthen the protection of a limited number of cultural sites in times of armed conflict. Cultural property may be placed under enhanced protection provided that it is cultural heritage of the greatest importance for humanity.
Learn more about the emblems or download them and guidance for their use in our document library, or visit the website of UNESCO
Learn more about the history of the Blue Shield organisation
Learn more about the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict and its two Protocols (1954/1999) in our Law Library
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