Mintimer Shaimiev on the Museum of the Archaeological Tree: “I have not seen anything like it before”
September 06, 2018
On the island of Sviyazhsk, the first museum of the archaeological tree “Tatarskaya Slobodka” has opened in Russia. The State Adviser of the Republic of Tatarstan, Special Envoy of UNESCO for Intercultural Dialogue Mintimer Shaimiev, who was present at the opening ceremony, noted that “nothing of the kind has been seen so far”.
“The program for the revival and restoration of Sviyazhsk is coming to an end. Many fine museums have been created here. Last year almost half a million tourists visited the island. And today we are opening a new museum. I have not seen anything like this until now. And all of this was done by our specialists, our scientists. I do not know about you, but I like it, “the special envoy of UNESCO said.
He stressed that in recent years, thanks to the support of the presidents of Russia and Tatarstan, as well as the population of the republic, it was possible to restore the island-town. “We saw in what condition Sviyazhsk was. Here, there were 198 indigenous inhabitants. There was no electricity like roads. It was an island isolated from the whole world, which preserved the memory of the gloomy pages of our history – the years of repression. The indigenous people worked in psychiatric hospitals and prisons. And they did not see anything good in their life. We have decided that this should not be in our republic, “Mintimer Shaimiev said.
At the opening of the museum was present now the only surviving native inhabitant of Cheplets, with whom the State Advisor of the Republic of Tatarstan communicated. “Here is one of the indigenous people, the grandmother recently lost. We built an apartment for him, he was surprised how to go in there, turn on the lights, “said the first President of Tatarstan.
“It is good that by our common efforts Sviyazhsk has become a world famous island, thanks to human labor and understanding of the issue,” he added.
The opening of the first in Russia Museum of the archaeological tree “Tatarskaya Slobodka” in Sviyazhsk is one of the central events of the UNESCO Forum on Intercultural Dialogue, which takes place in Tatarstan. “We want to achieve mutual understanding through intercultural dialogue. And this is possible, “Shaimiev said.
On the island of Sviyazhsk in 2010, with the assistance of the Renaissance Foundation, a large-scale restoration and restoration works, as well as archaeological research, have started. As a result, a rare complex of medieval wooden housing was opened, preserved in a “moist” cultural layer. In particular, the remains of buildings and streets of the XVI – XVIII centuries, products made of wood, cloth and other organic materials were discovered.
In order to preserve these unique exhibits in 2014, the concept of the Museum of Archeology Tree was adopted, which provided for the construction of a protective structure for the archaeological zone. In this new construction on the banks of the Volga, it was decided to place a museum, the creation of which has been completed this year.
In the museum there are 40 wooden buildings of the XVI – XVII centuries, the oldest of which are associated with the construction of Sviyazhsk in 1551. Here you can see a collection of products made of bast, wood, leather, fabric and other organic materials.
Archaeological collection from the excavation totals 140 thousand items. Outside the exposition there are funds with open storage of 2,4 thousand elements of wooden buildings.
An important part of the exposition is the animation accompaniment – a 21-meter projection panorama “Sviyazhsk XVII century” with the reconstruction of the appearance and life of the city on the basis of historical sources.
Nadezhda Gordeeva
tatar-inform.ru
