Câteva proprietăți fundamentale ale muzeului, indispensabile în context contemporan

Author(s): Liviu Răzvan Pripon / Language(s): Romanian Issue: 1/2022

What is the strength of the museum? The answer can be summarized briefly by listing two strong and distinctive points that define this institution in its essence. The museum is a device that generates time and, on the other hand, operates with the authentic object, giving the possibility of a direct interaction with the reality of visitors. Even in case of considerable intervention by contextualization of the museum object, the visitor has the possibility to establish a direct, present and sufficiently intimate connection with at least a fraction belonging to the object itself, which intervenes in the knowledge of the truth. In contrast stand replicas or copies of objects with which we are continuously bombarded in a time of constant processing and manipulation of reality through computers and their software. In this paper I argue for the two fundamental features of the museum and I try to prove that they have an indispensable role from a cultural point of view, which cannot be replaced by other media, considered by some, competitors.

ДРЕВНОТО ЕВРАЗИЙСКО ЕТНИЧЕСКО ПРОСТРАНСТВО И ДОЛЕН ДЕСЕН ДУНАВ КАТО ЕТНОГЕНЕТИЧНА ЗОНА

Author(s): Petar Petrov,Boris Kazakov / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 11/2015

The article represents an attempt to outline thе areas in Eurasia, where the landscape and environment conditions supposedly were the most optimal for the development of ancient human communities of different ranks, including ancient human civilizations. By analyzing the contemporary natural and climatic conditions, as well as through paleo-landscapei reconstructions of the region of the Danube Valley (Lower Right Danube), a hypothesis of the existence of optimal living conditions for growth of the human population in this part of the Balkans and Europe is proposed, which area therefore is referred to as "ethnogenetic zone”.

ГЕОГРАФСКО РАЗПРОСТРАНЕНИЕ НА ВЪЗРОЖДЕНСКИТЕ АРХИТЕКТУРНО-ЕТНОГРАФСКИ КОМПЛЕКСИ В ПЛАНИНСКИТЕ И ПОЛУПЛАНИНСКИТЕ РАЙОНИ НА БЪЛГАРИЯ

Author(s): Maria Grozeva,Nadezhda IlIeva / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 11/2015

National Revival architectural and ethnographic complexes and sites are an essential part of Bulgarian national culture. The aim of this study was to analyze the spatial concentration of the main reserves and complexes of this type in the mountainous and hilly areas of the country. To achieve this aim are used cartographic and comparative geographic method (Arc GIS 92) and historical approach. As a result, a map of these sites is geographically identified cultural and historical localizations and major axes of the monuments of this age. An architectural and historical assessment of their importance for cultural tourism is done.

МЕНХИРИ В БЪЛГАРИЯ И НА БАЛКАНИТЕ – ПРОБЛЕМИ И НАЛИЧНОСТ

Author(s): Lyubomir Tsonev / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 14/2017

The present study deals with a specific type of megalithic monuments – with menhirs in Bulgaria and on the Balkan Peninsula. At the beginning, some important methodological issues are discussed: definitions of megalithic sites in general and menhirs in particular – individual as well as grouped in various sets. Then information about menhirs on Bulgarian territory from the end of XIX till the beginning of XXI century is collected and presented in detail. Individual menhirs, menhir rows and cromlechs from North-East and South-East Bulgaria are described. They are compared with similar sites on Crimea Peninsula and in South Ireland. In this sense, Bulgarian megalithic area represents a significant transition region from West European and Mediterranean megalithic world in east direction towards the big Black sea megalithic arc: Balkan Peninsula – Crimea – Caucasus – Armenian Mountains Zangezur. The main methodological problem discussed here is the formal resemblance between prehistoric menhirs and medieval Islamic tombstones. Turkish researchers assert that nearly 2,000 orthostats registered in the area between Edirne and Lalapasha are menhirs and significantly differ from Islamic tombstones. Within the limits of Europe, this problem occurs only on the Balkan Peninsula and – if neglected – it can distort the overall picture of megalitism in the whole region. After a critical review of a number of similar sites in northeastern Bulgaria and Rhodope Mountains, this report comes to the opposite conclusion: The Edirne orthostats are most probably abandoned medieval Muslim gravestones and not prehistoric megaliths – menhirs.

ДЕВТАШЛАРИТЕ КРАЙ ПЛИСКА – ПРЕДЛОЖЕНИЕ ЗА РЕИНТЕРПРЕТАЦИЯ

Author(s): Lyubomir Tsonev / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 14/2017

The devtashlari are numerous objects of megalithic character. The official opinion interprets them as proto-Bulgarian monuments which are created in VII–VIII cent. AD. The author examines the devtashlari in two contexts. Compared with the early Christian architectural monuments of Byzantine 122 origin in Bulgarian lands (IV–VI cent. AD) as well as with the temples in the old Bulgarian capitals Pliska and Preslav (built in IX–X cent. AD) the devtashlari appear as extremely primitive objects. The official interpretation is shown to be impossible from the point of view of a normal architectural evolution. On the contrary, the devtashlari find their adequate place among the numerous monuments of rock-cut and megalithic character in Bulgaria originating from III–II millenium BC. So the present analysis gives a more convincing dating and interpretation of the devtashlari. The devtashlari are in fact classic menhirs. Some of them are grouped in rectangular grids exactly like the famous menhirs in Menec, Brittany, France. Such specific grouping happens very rarely in the megalithic world. The mechanical treatment of the devtashlari and the state of their surface are also identical with the Menec menhirs.

АРХЕОАСТРОНОМИЯ И АРХЕОУРБАНИСТИКА – ОБЩ ПОГЛЕД И НЯКОИ ПРОБЛЕМИ

Author(s): Lyubomir Tsonev / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 14/2017

This study aims to clarify numerous interdisciplinary problems that arise at the interface between arhаeo-astronomy and ancient Roman Urbanism. The general scheme of a Roman city as well as its concrete implementation in the new cities built during the territorial expansion of Ancient Rome is described. The author discusses in detail various situations where it is possible to make mistakes in interpreting the street system orientation of the Roman cities. Referred to are those weaknesses in the description and publication of archaeological sites that do not allow adequate and reliable archaeoastronomical analysis. All the published data about the street orientation in Roman cities in Bulgaria are collected and presented here for the first time. Several classical Roman cities in Bulgaria are commented that have inherited earlier Thracian or Roman settlements (Ulpia Escus, Serdica, Philipopol, Seuthopolis).

АНТИЧНИЯТ АНСАМБЪЛ СТЪЛПИЩЕ, РУСЕНСКО – ЕЛЕМЕНТ ОТ ТРАКО-ФРИГИЙСКАТА КОНТАКТНА ЗОНА

Author(s): Lyubomir Tsonev / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 14/2017

The locality Stalpishte / Dikili-tash (Russe) presents a combination of natural and historical objects which have a noticeable cultural and touristic potential. The present study collects all the data concerning the historical monuments from the Late Antiquity and the early Middle Ages including photographs and original descriptions. An interpretative analysis is proposed of two monuments in the locality Stalpishte / Dikili-tash: (1) a rock reflief of a horseman and (2) a cave sanctuary crowned with a rock-graved pediment. The figure of the horseman has a Thracian origin, but its rock-cut representations have been spread over the whole Thracian-Phrygian region in Roman times. The Thracian horseman is depicted on the reliefs in various compositions (the hunter-god Heros, the war-god Ares, the local king possessing a god-dignity etc.) but always in the frames of the thracian mythology infiltrated into Phrygia. The cave sanctuary with a rock-cut pediment is a more complicated object. Rock temples and graves are created in Thracia as well as in Phrygia. Pediments are also widely used in both regions. Pediments graved over rock (or cave) temples or over rock facades are a typically Phrygian phenomenon. In this sense the rock sanctuary in Stalpishte / Dikili-tash is unique on the Balkan peninsula, i.e. for the Thracian area, and it has been built possibly in Roman times under the influence of the Phrygian architecture. However, the pediment over the cave sanctuary in Stalpishte / Dikili-tash contains a typical Thracian element – four graved trapezoidal niches which are known in the East Rhodope Mountain (i.e. in Thrace) only. We can conclude that the monuments in Stalpishte / Dikili-tash (Russe) demonstrate in an very impressing and convincing way the cultural interactions between Thracia and Phrygia in Roman times.

ПО ПЪТЯ НА СРЕБЪРНИЯ ЧЕРПАК ОТ СТРУГА ПРЕЗ СОФИЯ ДО АНХИАЛО

Author(s): Ana Kocheva / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 19/2021

БЪЛГАРСКИТЕ ОБЩНОСТНИ ОРГАНИЗАЦИИ В ЧУЖБИНА В УСЛОВИЯТА НА ПАНДЕМИЯ

Author(s): Vladimir Penchev,Anelia Avdzhieva,Tanya Matanova / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 19/2021

Results from an online research and observations of Bulgarian migrant communities’ organizations within and outside Europe due to Covid-19 pandemic. Main pillars are the 123 connections with the homeland, the hosting country, and with the local community, mechanisms for support, as well as forms of activities, festivity, and communal consolidation.

ЕНОРИЯТА КАТО ЕДНО СЕМЕЙСТВО: БЪЛГАРСКАТА ЦЪРКОВНА ОБЩИНА В ЖЕНЕВА

Author(s): Sandra Kerelezova / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 19/2021

The text presents the Bulgarian church community “Nativity of the Vir-gin Mary” in Geneva, which is part of the Western and Central European Diocese of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church. It contains thoughts shared by Bulgarians participating actively in the development of the newly-created church community. The article focuses on different aspects of parish life: church services, social initiatives, educational activities, etc. It also exam-ines the question of how restrictive measures during a pandemic affect a young church community.

Проф. д.ф.н. Албена Георгиева-Ангелова (1954–2024)

Author(s): Mariyanka Borisova / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 1/2024

In memoriam

Проф. д-р Магдалена Елчинова (1962–2024)

Author(s): Valentina Ganeva-Raycheva / Language(s): Bulgarian Issue: 1/2024

In memoriam

STRUKTURA ARKITEKTURORE E SANXHAKUT TË NISHIT GJATË PERIUDHËS OSMANE

Author(s): Mead Osmani / Language(s): Albanian Issue: 03-04/2021

The Ottoman Empire administered Nis and its surroundings for a very long period, more precisely from 1389 to 1878. Based on Ottoman archival sources, published works, and field studies, many cultural and social monuments of that period come to light. The number of waqf monuments that were built and registered in Serbia, Montenegro, and Sandzak (Novi Pazar) (New Yugoslavia) during the Ottoman period is 1,140. While the number of monuments that have managed to survive until today it is only 30. In Nis alone, it is mentioned that a total of 23 mosques, 2 madrasas, 4 schools, 7 tekkes, 2 public canteens (imaret), an inn, 2 hamams, 3 fountains, a castle, and a bridge have been destroyed. Therefore, the figures given in the paper do not necessarily mean to extract all the monuments of that period, because there are still many documents in different archives that researchers are expected to use in the future in order to complement the historiography, however, we hope that this study will help to fill a part of that gap.

The City beyond the Words. A Personal Approach of Calcutta

Author(s): Mihaela Gligor / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2024

Calcutta (Kolkata) is usually considered the cultural capital of India. The extraordinary cultural effervescence of the city, the numerous descriptions of the metropolis in the literary writings, memoirs or films place Calcutta among the most inspirational cities in the world. I have visited Calcutta many times and I am always impressed by the city’s ability to reassert itself, and to give a voice to all its residents. During festivals, the city is like a fairytale; it vibrates with people’s lives and is part of the festivities. But during the rest of the year, Calcutta charms visitors and takes over their lives, making them return again and again. This is how I see, experience, love and read the city of joy, beyond the words in which it is often described.

Customary Practices and Law in India: A Case for Legal Pluralism?

Author(s): Praveen Verma / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2024

This essay explores the interactions between customary law and state governance, revealing the complex relationships among power, identity, and law in contemporary India. It highlights the evolving nature of customs and the challenges faced by both dominant and marginalized communities. The analysis focuses on the Jat community's demand for the inclusion of sagotra marriage prohibitions in state law, illustrating how this demand exemplifies formal legal pluralism that reinforces their dominance in local politics. In contrast to marginalized groups seeking recognition of their norms, Khap Panchayats work to uphold traditional authority amid changing social dynamics.

review at William Dalrymple, The Anarchy: The Relentless Rise of the East India Company, London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2019, 522 p., ISBN: 978-1-4088-6439-5.

Author(s): Florina Dobre-Brat / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2024

The rise of the East India Company (EIC) as the main, unrelented and not once reckless player on the economic market along with their increasing political power that largely contributed to the collapsing of the Indian Mughal Empire is what the Scottish historian William Dalrymple writes about with accomplished art in The Anarchy.

review at Aanchal Malhotra, The Book of Everlasting Things, Gurugram: Harper Collins, 2017, 480 p., ISBN: 9789356999152.

Author(s): Cătălina-Ioana Pavel / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2024

The Book of Everlasting Things written by Aanchal Malhotra is a chronicle of fragrance, loss, longing, and the ability of memory to endure and preserve the past through an invisible realm: smell. It is a treasury of intangible, everlasting things that are stronger than material, physical borders, more powerful than a place, a country, or even physical death.

review at Radhika Iyengar, Fire on the Ganges: Life among the Dead in Banaras, Gurugram: HarperCollins, 2023, 346 p., ISBN: 978-93-5699-467-6.

Author(s): Mihaela Gligor / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2024

Fire on the Ganges, by Radhika Iyengar, an Indian journalist, writer, and recipient of the 2018 Red Ink Awards in the category of human rights, is a masterpiece that describes, in an unprecedent manner, “the life among the dead in Banaras.” The book is based on almost eight years of research on the Dom community of Varanasi, a group of people that have a remarkable importance for the Hindus.

NATURA ARTIS MAGISTRA. REPREZENTACJE PRZYRODY W ŁEMKOWSKIEJ SZTUCE WSPÓŁCZESNEJ

Author(s): Michał Szymko / Language(s): Polish Issue: 7/2023

The aim of the article is to present the representation of nature in contemporary Lemko art. The motif of nature in Lemko art is not the subject of many studies and scientific studies. After Operation Vistula, Lemko villages were deserted. Currently, Beskid Niski is called the land of tourists, because young Lemkos leave for larger agglomerations, and older generations pass away. With the displacement of the Lemkos, the perception of nature changed - young Lemkos, working through the topic of loss, take abandoned Lemko villages and the wild nature accompanying them as their main research point. They notice the void left by their ancestors and ask clear questions about responsibility for Operation Vistula. The aim of the article is to analyze the issues of Lemko socio-cultural changes and the metaphor of nature - a symbol of the variability of fate and duration. The text was created based on collected materials, i.e. interviews, sociological research and selected examples of contemporary art dealing with the topic of the Lemko region. The works of Epifaniusz Drowniak (Nikifor Krynicki), Natalia Hładyk, Władysław Rewak, Andryj Suchorski, Ewelina Kogut and Michał Szymko were analyzed.

ЧОГО СЯ НАВЧЫШ, ВОДА НЕ ЗАБЕРЕ, ОГЕНЬ НЕ СПАЛИТ - О УЧЕНЮ У ПРИСЛОВКОХ ЗОЗ ЗБИРКИ БОЛЕСЛАВА (ВАСИЛЯ) БАВОЛЯКА

Author(s): Tomasz Kwoka / Language(s): Ukrainian Issue: 7/2023

The analysis of folk proverbs from Bolesław Bawolak’s book Lemko proverbs and sayings from Swiatkowa Wielka and the surrounding area provides the basis for the reconstruction of opinions on the role of teaching, learning and education in the life of Lemkos in the past, as reflected in culture and language. The linguistic representation of education in Lemko paremiology is presented based on the analysis of proverbs containing lexemes вчыти (ся) (learn), чытати (read), наука (learning), учытель (teacher), and книжка (book). Proverbs are an important part of folk culture of every nation. Recording and analysing folk sayings, cultural heritage samples, everyday customs, knowledge of the world, and sensibilities of past generations also provides the basis for studying changes these communities underwent over the years.