We read in the ARA One of those news stories that fascinates us Catalans. A study, published by the journal of the US National Academy of Sciences, concludes that "the first examples of writing appeared 40,000 years ago, engraved by our ancestors on stone objects," and not, as we thought, around 3000 BC. A German research team has analyzed several objects found at an archaeological site and has determined that they have the same "level of complexity and information density as the earliest examples of cuneiform writing from the ancient Mesopotamian civilization of some 5,000 years ago." In the photograph, we see a clay mammoth with a series of X's and dots engraved on it that don't seem decorative, but rather a record of a commercial transaction, as if the mammoth were the ledger or contract where we noted how many things were consumed. It's intriguing to see these crosses; exactly the same ones we would put on a chalkboard to remember things we've sold or bought.

The main square is packed to the rafters. Grallas and timpani announce the start of the festivities. And the anticipation is palpable: a new giant, a dwarf, or a fire-breathing dragon will dance for the first time before the townspeople. Among the eyes watching the scene, some are especially excited. They already know which figure will appear: they know its size, its relief, its colors, and the fabric of its costume. Eyes that could belong to Ramon Aumedes, Sessa Casserras, or Pau Reig, three of the twenty or so creators of festive imagery in Catalonia. ARA has visited their workshops to discover who they are and how the creators of the more than 5,000 giants, 20,000 big-headed figures, and 10,000 bestiary figures found throughout the country work. A job that straddles the line between craft and art.

In a cozy workshop in Raval, Catuxa Fernández and Ignacio Aldanondo They spend hours handcrafting shoes that, in addition to being beautiful and comfortable, will last for decades if the owner takes care of them. They began their journey as master shoemakers almost 12 years ago, although their relationship goes back much further, when they shared an architectural office that they eventually closed to dedicate themselves to working with their hands. In 2019, they received the National Crafts Award for Innovation.

It seems to us that not a shred of the life our grandparents lived remains. But this isn't true, at least not at La Gloria, an artisan cheese factory in Gran Canaria. It doesn't matter that they've won international awards like the Super Gold at the World Cheese Awards and that their cheeses sell out as soon as they're finished. Here, there's a system that goes way back and is still in operation: they're sharecroppers.

Traditional and handmade products such as Catalan espadrilles, Murano glass, Limoges porcelain and Llorca ceramics should be protected at European level for their intellectual value and authenticity. This is the view of the European Commission, which this Wednesday proposed a regulatory framework that recognises their special and specific value throughout the European Union, through a system similar to that of designations of origin that protect agri-food products such as wine, oil and cheese.