ARMENIACA: EUROPE TO THE RESCUE OF ARMENIAN HERITAGE

AZG DAILY
10-12-2009

Culture

Armenian cultural heritage is at risk and urgently in need of
protection. Armenian culture has long been a prolific source of
cultural productions, including in such capitals as Tbilisi, Venice,
Istanbul, Paris, Amsterdam and Jerusalem, not to mention the Armenian
historic homeland itself. Today, invaluable documents and artifacts
are scattered throughout Europe and the middle-East, in private
collections, often out of reach of researchers and at risk of damage
of loss. Most Armenian architectural heritage outside of Armenia,
and particularly in Azerbaijan and Turkey, is still imperilled by
intentional destruction, ignorance or neglect.

The European Commission granted its support to the Armeniaca project,
an ambitious endeavour to inventorize and digitalize Armenian
heritage. This two-year project under the Culture 2007-2013 programme
brings together four partners in Milan (CSDCA), Yerevan (RAA) and
Brussels (Inside Europe) and will associate all major Armenian museums
and archives in Europe in the establishment of a common database as
a tool for preservation and cooperation and as a resource for research.

Crucially, the project and its database will also serve as an
instrument to educate the public, including Armenians themselves and
public authorities, of the wealth of heritage that still exists and
of the precarious conditions of its preservation, AGBU Europe official
website reported.