EUROPA NOSTRA AWARD FOR RENOVATION OF ARMENIAN CHURCH AND MONASTERY
APRIL 14TH, 2015 CYPRUS2 COMMENTS
The Armenian Church and Monastery in the northern part of Nicosia
has won a Europa Nostra award, the European Commission said on Tuesday.
The Commission and Europa Nostra on Tuesday revealed the winners of the
2015 European Union Prize for Cultural Heritage / Europa Nostra Awards,
considered Europe’s most prestigious prize in the heritage field.
The 28 award winners, selected from 263 applications submitted by
organisations and individuals from 29 countries, are honoured for
outstanding achievements in four categories: 1) conservation, 2)
research and digitisation, 3) dedicated service to heritage, and 4)
education, training and awareness-raising.
The European Heritage Awards Ceremony will take place on June 11 at
the Oslo City Hall and will be co-hosted by Fabian Stang, Mayor of
Oslo, Tibor Navracsics, European Commissioner for Education, Culture,
Youth and Sport, and Plácido Domingo, the renowned opera singer and
President of Europa Nostra.
At the ceremony, seven of the selected winners will be named as Grand
Prix laureates, receiving â~B¬10,000 each, and one will receive the
Public Choice Award, chosen in an online poll conducted by Europa
Nostra.
“Cultural heritage is one of Europe’s biggest assets. It brings
countless cultural, economic, social and environmental benefits to
all of us. I would like to congratulate the winners of the 2015 EU
Prize for Cultural Heritage / Europa Nostra Awards, who are the
perfect example of what dedicated and competent Europeans can do
for heritage – but also for our European identity, contributing to
a sense of belonging. We all need to keep working together to help
communities and citizens take ownership of our heritage, make it
part of our daily lives and preserve it for the generations to come,”
said Commissioner Navracsics.
“This year’s winners are powerful examples of creativity and innovation
at work for Europe’s cultural heritage. They also demonstrate that
heritage matters to Europe and its citizens. We trust that, under
the leadership of President Juncker and Commissioner Navracsics,
the European Union’s strategy for an integrated approach to cultural
heritage will be further developed and implemented,” added Plácido
Domingo.
The Armenian monastery and church are located in the Arab Ahmet area
of northern Nicosia.
The architectural compound comprises three Armenian school buildings,
the premises of the Armenian Prelacy, an important historical mansion,
courtyards and openâ~@~Pair areas, all fenced by a boundary wall. The
restoration of the Church aimed to preserve a masterpiece of gothic
architecture that, since 1963, has suffered from misuse and neglect.
Despite several imperfect interventions over the years and its
desperate condition at the onset of the project, the Church
contained significant architectural and decorative elements
from the original 14th century construction, including frescoes,
carved bosses and capitals, tracery and metal elements belonging
to the stained-glass–some of which were only discovered during
the restoration. Using traditional materials and techniques and
appropriate landscaping methods, the ancillary buildings and courtyard
area have also been rebuilt and refurbished for appropriate use,
Europa Nostra said.
The project was begun in 2007 as part of a larger peace-building
effort in Cyprus. It was designed both to restore one of the most
noteworthy parts of the island’s cultural heritage and to provide
Armenian, Greek and Turkish Cypriots with the opportunity to work
together with international experts to preserve their common heritage.
Europa Nostra said the jury saw the project as a definite success
story, partly of conservation, with high quality research and
meticulous conservation techniques, but also as an exercise in the
even more challenging process of rebuilding a community.
The US embassy in an announcement welcomed the news.
It said that through its partnership with the United Nations
Development Program (UNDP), the United States Agency for International
Development had funded the multi-year, multi-million dollar renovation,
which Armenian Cypriots, Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots worked
together with international experts to accomplish.
Between 2006 and 2013, architects, engineers, planners and crafts
people restored the site to international standards, ensuring that
it is preserved for future generations, the announcement said.
“Fundamentally, there is no greater reflection of respect than
assisting others to preserve their heritage. That respect is manifest
in the work that was done at this site,” said US ambassador John
Koenig in his remarks at a March 2014 event at the site, which included
representatives of all of the island’s religious communities.
“The United States is a longstanding supporter of initiatives like
this that demonstrate in the most tangible way how conservation and
heritage can build bridges between fractured communities. Sharing the
responsibility for preserving such incredible places builds trust
and, through projects like this, Cypriots are building a better,
more peaceful, future.”