In order to raise awareness on the importance of cultural heritage as a common wealth, the Foundation Cultural Heritage without Borders (CHwB) in cooperation with the Bosniac Institute – Foundation Adil Zulfikarpasic, the U.S. Alumni Association in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Vakuf Authority organized a workshop for high school professors from across Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Around 20 high school professors participated in the fifth workshop organized on 2nd October, 2014 at Isa-bey Hamam in Sarajevo. This workshop is part of the “Make It Yours!” project funded by the EU, which will be implemented through number of activities during 2014 and 2015. Through the “Make It Yours!” project, CHwB assigns the title of Ambassador of Cultural Heritage to persons in public life who have demonstrated promotion of BiH and its cultural heritage through their work. At this workshop, the title of Ambassador of Cultural Heritage has been assigned to the well-known writer Faruk Šehić.
“It is my pleasure to be a part of this project which aims to promote the importance of preservation of cultural heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina, since those who have no awareness on value of our own heritage can hardly have bright future. The significance of the historical cultural heritage for one writer is enormous, and the question is whether Mak Dizdar would ever write ‘Stone Sleeper’ if there was no preserved necropolis in Radimlja near Stolac,” said Faruk Sehic,the Ambassador of Cultural Heritage.
Workshop participants listened to the lectures of a restorer and conservator Nihad Čengić and mr.sc. Lebiba Džeko, ethnologist and museum advisor, on the importance of preservation and protection of cultural heritage, and the use of traditional materials.
“Ethnology as a science on human beings covering all aspects of life, therefore it encompasses a very broad spectrum of cultural heritage. As it is constructed of material elements and spiritual culture, the protection of ethnological cultural heritage must be approached in different ways. While variety of conservation and preparatory methods are used for all forms of material culture, and for all elements of spiritual or intangible cultural heritage different methods that involve constant practicing and repeating elements are applied. In the protection and conservation of ethnological heritage, the role have museum professionals, media and educational system,“ said Džeko.
After the lectures, participants symbolically participated in the restoration of Isa-bey or Emperor Hamam. This hamam was built by the first founder of Sarajevo Isa-bey and is a location of the oldest public bath in the city. In its history, hamam suffered a lot of damage due to natural causes and finally human negligence. It was one of a few hamams that had space for ritual bathing of Jewish population.
The project “Make it Yours!” will be implemented via series of activities aimed towards different stakeholders, in order to increase a sense of belonging and connection with cultural heritage. This project is funded by the European Union under the framework of the ‘Sarajevo 2014’ programme, which incorporates a series of projects implemented in and around the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War, in order for Sarajevo to send messages of peace, reconciliation and solidarity to the world.