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Situation of museums in Azerbaijan – INVESTIGATION
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16 May 2008 13:56 ]
APA correspondent’s investigation on May 18 – the International Museum Day
Baku. Ulkar Gasimova –APA. International Museum Day has been celebrated on May 18 since 1977 on the initiative of the International Council of Museums (ICOM). APA correspondent has conducted investigation on this historic day. The main goal of this day is attracting of attention of the world community to protection of unique exhibits and historical monuments. The World Federation of Friends of Museums (WFFM) provided special programs in many countries to involve volunteers in museum work to make May 18 more ceremonial. The International Museum Day has been celebrated in Azerbaijan since 1977.
The museums are trusty savings for expensive things, material and spiritual resources, as well as scientific-cultural institution, which embodies historical moments of every people, researches the history of material and spiritual examples and exhibits them. First museums were established in B.C. centuries. The documents and certificates were saved in the courts of 13th-12th centuries B.C. and private collections were established later. There are many famous museums in the world like the National Art Gallery in Washington, Metropolitan Museum in New York, Venice Academy Gallery, Dresden Gallery, Tretyakov’s Gallery in Moscow, Hermitage in St.-Petersburg, which are saving ancient exhibits and private collections, as well as unique things today.
The first museum in Azerbaijan was established in 1920. The first memorial museum was established in Shaki in 1938. Many expensive exhibits existed before the establishing of museums in Azerbaijan, are decorating the world museums and exhibitions at present. The world’s first biggest and most ancient carpet – carpet of Sheikh Safi, weaved in the 16th century, is in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London now. Length of this carpet is 10.51 m and width is 5.34 m with total 56.2 square meters.
There are 193 museums under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Azerbaijan today, Azada Huseynova, Chief of Museum Sector of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism told APA. 78 of them are the museums of history and ethnography, 89 are the house-museums of famous scholars, artists and political and cultural figures, 21 are the art and literature museums and 5 are the military-patriotic and battle glory museums. There are 46 house-museums of Heydar Aliyev in Azerbaijan. 23 of 193 museums under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism locate in Baku, others in various regions and Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. There are three Azerbaijani house-museums of Jalil Mammadguluzadeh, Mirza Fathali Akhundov and Nariman Narimanov in Tbilisi, Georgia. 22 museums with totally 100 thousand exhibits locate in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.
All museums have a paid entrance. Azada Huseynova said local visitors should pay one AZN and foreigners – 2 AZN to watch exhibits in the museums. Nearly 3000 employees are working in museum sector of Azerbaijan.
Though there are no special Azerbaijani museums in the world, there are corners on Azerbaijan in Pakistan Ethnography Museum, Eastern Kazakhstan Province Architecture – Ethnography and Nature-Landscape Preserve Museum, Nizami Ganjavi Museum o Tashkent Pedagogical University named after Nizami Ganjavi in Uzbekistan. A number of normative documents have been worked out on museum in Azerbaijan, the main of them is the instruction on the registration and protection of the resources in the museums. According to the instruction, exhibits are accepted to the museum on certain acts and are documented. Then, depending on their historical, artistic and scientific importance, they are accepted to the main or auxiliary fund. A great deal of exhibits of artistic, historical and scientific importance is kept in these museums. And of course, necessary condition should be created for their protection.
In this respect, protection of the museums is very important. The ministry installed alarm systems for security and against fire. As regards the interest of audience, about 100,000 people viewed the exhibits in the museums in Baku this year.
Director of Azerbaijan State Art museum Israfil Israfilov told APA that the Art Museum was opened in 1936, but had never been repaired.
“The first overhaul started last year, repair in one part of the building will finish by November this year. There will be something new in the museum after the overhaul. Until that time there will be a special entrance to one building of the Art Museum through the other,” he said.
As regards the visitors, Israfil Israfilov underlines that their number has increased compared with the previous years.
“About 5 million people visited our museum since 1936. We are waiting for the 5 millionth visitor. We have got a surprise for him. We have about 22,000 visitors every year, half of them are foreigners and tourists. Entrance is free of charge for war veterans, handicapped people, participants of war, martyrs’ families, pupils of primary schools, other visitors have to pay AZN 2.40. The museum has 89 employees. Their salaries are AZN 60-200,” he said.
Israfil Israfilov said that the salaries of the museum employees were low.
“Specialists knowing foreign languages do not agree to guide foreign visitors for this salary. Therefore the problem should be solved.
This problem has been reflected in State Program on “Development of Museum” (2008-2012)”, he said. Museum workers master museum management studies in Azerbaijan State Culture and Art University and study of art in Azerbaijan Academy of Arts.
Azerbaijan State Art University and Museum Center are being reconstructed at present. Azerbaijani Carpet and Applied Art State Museum will be constructed as well. Memorial houses of Jalil Mammadguluzadeh, Mammad Said Ordubadi, the Rostropovich, Uzeyir Hajibayov have been reconstructed. Memorial houses of Samad Vurgun, Jafar Jabbarli, Abdulla Shaig will be reconstructed. After trial on the case of memorial house of Sattar Bahlulzadeh, the museum will be reconstructed.
Azerbaijan Literature Museum named after N. Ganjavi, Azerbaijan National History Museum, and Memorial House of Huseyn Javid function under Azerbaijani National Academy of Sciences. Azerbaijan National History Museum has been opened after reconstruction. Azerbaijan Literature Museum named after N. Ganjavi is under major repair. Military History Museum functions under Azerbaijani Defense Ministry. Azerbaijan Agriculture Museum, Azerbaijan Medicine Museum, History of Nature Museum named after Zardabi, Azerbaijan Education Museum, and Azerbaijan Geology Museum receive their audience today. Aghdam Bread Museum, the only museum in the world, has been destroyed by Armenians and its rare exponents have been ruined.
Azerbaijan has preserve museums as well. Here includes extraordinary constructions of special style in open air, monuments, springs, mausoleums. For example: Shaki Khan Sarayi, Gobustan rocky places, Shirvanshahlar Palace, Momina Khatun Tomb and other monuments.
International Museum Day is marked in several museums of Azerbaijan on May 17-18.
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