Can be a person, place or object. My National Treasure would be:

Paella

Manuel, Spain

The Dead Sea in Israel - lowest place on earth.

Tom the moderator.



Or Pol Pot. I can't decide.



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[Edited 12/30/04 4:15am]

for Austria a pretty obvious choice would be Mozart

The Spike :



The Spike, popularly known as The Stiletto in the Ghetto and officially known as “The Millennium Spire / The Monument of Light” was part of Ireland's Millennium celebrations, and in true Irish tradition, it was erected in January 2003.

It is 120 metres high, stands in the middle of Dublin's O'Connell Street, and is visible from most parts of the city. Not to be outdone by our neighbours with their dangerous bridge and hugely expensive dome, it was decided that Dublin should mark the new millennium (late, of course) with something completely pointless. The spike very nearly achieves this, in that it has no practical function, and, due to the aircraft warning light on the top, no point. It does however achieve a certain lurkiness, and so I suppose it’s function is to be very big and (very nearly) pointy.

It also has to commend it that, unlike practically all of Ireland’s other celebratory constructions, it still stands, having thus far failed to collapse, sink, dissolve, get hit by a bus, be stolen, or get blown up.

So, for sheer staying power, and pointlessness, I choose the Spike as my national treasure.

Having said that, I could’ve chosen Bono, or Bob Geldof, or the cliffs of Moher, or the Burren, or the rock of Cashel, or the Boyne suspension bridge, or Newgrange, or the Hill of Tara, or countless other wondrous treasures. I think I’ll stick with the spike though.

AsylumUtopia said:

Excellent.