OREANDA-NEWS. December 19, 2007. First results of the project for museum professionals "First Publications: Museum Rarities" 2007 have been completed, reported the press-centre of Interros. The project "First Publication…" jointly organized by the "Interros’ Publishing Program and the V.Potanin Foundation was commissioned in October within the framework of the grant contest "A Changing Museum in a Changing World". The project was enthusiastically by museum professionals. Over 50 applications of museums from 20 regions of the Russian Federation were received. 45 museums of federal, regional and municipal level, as well as museums-reserves and national parks participated in the project. The publication offers collections of different kinds – historic, military-historic, regional, archeological, artistic, ethnographic, architectural, environmental, zoological and literary ones.

Yegoryevsk History and Art Museum with its collection of artistic splint, didactic paintings, homemade icons and wooden sculptures of 17th and 19th centuries became the winner of 2007. The founder of the museum, the textile manufacturer M.N.Bardyguin collected it in the second half of 19th century. It contains rare history and art samples of the Russian provincial life of the time, which reflect moral, esthetic, religious values of the middle and lower strata of the Russian society. The publication includes 60 exhibits; some of them are to be restored under the "Interros" Publishing Program.

The M.A.Vrubel Omsk Regional Arts Museum was selected as a runner-up. It presented a series of watercolors by Japanese artist B. Hirosava (1822-1876). These watercolors were created in the middle of 19th century and were depicting the life and traditions of the Ainu people, the indigenous population of northwestern territories of Japan, Lower Sakhalin, the Kuril Islands and Kamchatka. The Omsk collection contains a series of rare artistic testaments of Ainu culture. Four of the 12 exhibits were certified by the international group of experts as unique. This series by the artist is the largest collection in the world. Eight of his paintings are exhibited in museums in Japan, Great Britain and USA. The Russian Ethnography Museum in St.Petersburg is a partner of "Interros" Publishing Program for this issue.

The above-mentioned publications are to be issued by the end of May 2008.

Applications for the "First Publication" of 2007, which did not reach the finals, are registered as participants of the contest of the next year. The beginning of the new contest of 2008 will be announced additionally.

About the "First Publication" Project:

The aim of the project is to give Russian museums an opportunity to publish information on their exhibits, which being stored in the archives, had never had a chance to become public. However these artworks have undeniable artistic, historic and scientific value. They deserve to be included into national and international cultural heritage.

By offering to the museum experts an opportunity to get involved into this project the V.Potanin Foundation and the "Interros" Publishing Program expand the options for the Russian museums to participate in the "A Changing Museum in a Changing World" Contest.

According to Irina Ostarkova, head of the Publishing Program, "introduction of unknown or little known objects of cultural heritage into the scientific and public use increases the capitalization of this domain, while an opportunity to publish information gives an impetus for research in the small and provincial museums".