University signs historic agreement with Georgian National Museum
The University of Winchester has made history by signing a significant agreement with the Georgian National Museum to further strengthen international ties between the two institutions.
The ‘Memorandum of Understanding for Academic Co-operation’ signed recently in Georgia’s capital city, Tbilisi, will allow researchers at the University of Winchester further access to the important collections and artefacts held at the museum as well as facilitate an exchange of expertise between archaeologists at both institutions.
“It is a real privilege for Winchester to be one of the first universities in the world to be signing such an official agreement with the Georgian National Museum,” confirmed Dr Paul Everill, Co-director of the British team of archaeologists involved in the Anglo-Georgian Expedition to Nokalakevi (AGEN), who is also co-ordinator of the agreement.
“The Museum is at the heart of modern Georgia, representing a young and dynamic country with a long and proud history. The University of Winchester has a strong reputation for teaching archaeological methodology and we look forward to working closely with our Georgian colleagues in the teaching of young Georgian archaeologists.”
The agreement will also be used as the basis for a programme of ‘cultural heritage’ seminars both in Tbilisi and Winchester, through which issues relating to the teaching of archaeological fieldwork and heritage protection can be discussed collaboratively.
Prof. Dr. David Lomitashvili, Head of AGEN and Georgian co-ordinator of the agreement, will also take up an Honorary Research Fellowship on behalf of the University of Winchester’s new Centre for Applied Archaeology and Heritage Management.
So far AGEN, now in its eleventh year, has trained over 120 Georgian and British students, including some from the University of Winchester. In 2008 the Georgian Archaeological Commission requested the use of the University’s definitive document for archaeology to use as a model of best practice for teaching applied techniques in Georgia.
“Nokalakevi is one of the key sites to understanding the history of Georgia and it is important to continue research of this site,” said Prof. Dr. David Lordkipanidze, Director of the Georgian National Museum. “It’s crucial for us that the University of Winchester with its traditional approach will be a partner of our institution. For us it’s a pleasure and an honour to work with UK institutions.”
The British Ambassador to Georgia, Judith Gough, was also present at the signing ceremony. “I’m very pleased that two such respected institutions are coming together in this way to work together,” she said. “I know that we stand to learn as much as our Georgian colleagues from arrangements such as this and I very much hope that this type of cooperation will continue to flourish between our two countries.”