Summary Expert Meeting Afghanistan

27 December 2007

On the 21^st of December 2007, the Centre for International Heritage Activities organized an international expert meeting concerning the renovation and rehabilitation of the National Museum in Kabul. A summary of this meeting is now available online. Go to the summary

Expert meeting Afghanistan

18 December 2007

On the 21st of December 2007, the Centre for International Heritage Activities organized an expert meeting on the restoration and refurbishing of the National Museum in Kabul, Afghanistan. The Center is working on a large project -funded by the Dutch government- in Kabul and the project will enter a new phase. A recent visit to Kabul resulted in new -international- initiatives for the National Museum. The expert meeting will take place in The Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam. 

For more information, please contact Alexandra van Dijk- van der Moolen at
a.vandijk@heritage-activities.nl

Presentation of the Avondster-Project Publications

20 November 2007

On November 28th 2007 the the Excavation Report & the Artefact Catalogue of the VOC-ship Avondster(1659) will be presented to Mrs. Pamela J. Deen, the Ambassador of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka,  and Mr. Jan C. Henneman, Netherlands’ Ambassador for International Cultural Cooperation. Learn more about the Avondster-Project

Ancods website
Just released: the new Ancods website.
ANCODS stands for the Australian Netherlands Committee on Old Dutch Shipwrecks and was set up in 1972 following a bilateral agreement between the Australian and Netherlands governments regarding the wrecks of Dutch East India Company (VOC) ships off the coast of Western Australia. Learn more about ANCODS and visit the ANCODS website.

Stanley Sidoel at CIE Heritage Day Suriname
The Director General for Culture in Suriname, Mr. Stanley Sidoel, was present on the Suriname Heritage Day organised by the CIE, which was held at the National Archives in The Hague.
He gave a presentation about the heritage policies in Suriname and the possibilities of working together with the Netherlands, wherein he suggested certain concrete aims. One of these is the rehabilitation of the open-air museum, New Amsterdam, in a joint venture with the Zuiderzeemuseum in Enkhuizen, the Netherlands. A second one is the nomination of the former Jewish community 'Jodensavanne' and the Cassipora graveyard to be placed on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
Besides these, efforts are being made to place the unique frescos (petroglyphen) near the island town of Kwamalasemutu, on the UNESCO World Heritage list. The last aim is the preservation of the World Heritage site in the historical part of Paramaribo.
Mr. Sidoel also talked about certain problems concerning heritage policies, such as the lacking of a restoration fund, the lacking of a maintenance plan for monumental buildings and the need for setting up a restoration training.

‘Expert meeting: a shared history – a shared past: monument care in development on the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba’

11 December 2008

On 9th December 2008 the Centre for International Heritage Activities (CIE) organized in cooperation with the National Restoration Fund (NRF) an expert meeting concerning monument care, public housing and spatial planning on the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba. Read more.

Day-report CIE Heritage Day Sri Lanka

28 November 2008

On Thursday the 27th of November 2008 the Centre for International Heritage Activities organised a CIE Heritage Day on Sri Lanka, which took place at the Museum of Ethnology in Leiden. This day was organised to bring the Dutch field of Sri Lanka together to further improve bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and the Netherlands to be able to finish the projects successfully.Read more

Willemstad Curaçao, architecture and urban development: 2 parts documentary series

20 November 2008

This documentary diptych is no `main stream' television programme, but a creative document in which several `layers' in history and in culture are exposed. The films give insight in the urban and architectonic development of Willemstad and the recent revitalisation of the historical town heart that was placed on the World Heritage List of UNESCO in 1997. Filming and assembly will take place in 2009. The documentary will be broadcasted in 2009/ 2010.

The films are used as a core of a broader awareness-raising programme in which both experts, designers, students and a general public participate. The screenings and distribution of the films about Willemstad World Heritage City will increase the international promotion of the historical town. The films also transmit the notion that the monuments and urban structures of Curaçao are part of the Dutch heritage overseas - and therefore part of the monuments of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.Because texts of local poets are processed in the film the production additionally contributes to spreading of the immaterial oral heritage.

For further information please check the presentation.

Alexandra Jansse Producent /director © XELA FILMS

Workshop ‘Shared Heritage Surinam-Netherlands’

17 November 2008

Friday November 14th the workshop ‘Shared Heritage Surinam-Netherlands’, organised by the Directorate Culture Suriname in cooperation with the Centre for International Heritage Activities, took place in Paramaribo. The interesting lectures and project presentations as well as the very active and involved participants made this day a great success. A report of the day will follow soon.

Heritage Day Sri Lanka 27 November

5 November 2008

Invitation for the Heritage Day Sri Lanka organised by the Centre for International Heritage Activities (CIE), which will take place at the Museum of Ethnology, Steenstraat 1, Leiden. You will find the programme and outlines of the workshops here. More information on the CIE Heritage Days can be found in the partner countries section on this site.

New publication: Dutch colonialism, migration and cultural heritage. Gert Oostindie (ed)

This book, with contributions by a number of Dutch scholars, provides state-of-the-art discussions on these migration histories. It also presents reflections on the ways this past and its repercussions are remembered (or forgotten, or actively silenced) throughout the former colonial empire. Read more

Switi Sranan: Surinam between myth and reality

October 30, 2008

The foundation Institute to Promotote Surinam Studies (Stichting Instituut ter Bevordering van de Surinamistiek (IBS)) organises its annual colloquium on November 8th. This colloquium is aimed at 'myths in and about Suriname'. Different meanings on the conception of 'myth' will form the basis of this colloquium. Read more (dutch)... 

Afghanistan ‘A program for Culture & Development’. The Bagh-e Jehan Nama Palace complex Khulm (former Tashqurghan)

(Update October 2008)

Since May of this year the Centre for International Heritage Activities, partnering with the team of AFIR Architects in Kabul, has been working very intensively towards the startup of the renovational work at the Bagh-e Jehan Nama Palace complex in Khulm, North-Afghanistan.
Local teams have been identified and contracted, a local site office was designed, built and opened and the restoration works have started large scale.
For more information about the progress: Read more...

Publication: Verbannen uit Indië (1936-1945)

Nico Vink was born in 1928 in Soerabaja on Eastern-Java. His first book Verbannen uit Indië (Banished from the Indies) 1936 – 1945, was published by Walburg Pers, in August 2007, Zutphen. It is a personal story about a boy that, in 1936, is send from the Indies to the Netherlands and doesn’t see his mother again until the end of the war in 1945.

Presentation Monument Map Paramaribo

On August 14th the Monument Map of Paramaribo was officially presented at Fort Zeelandia, Paramaribo. This map was compiled by the Dutch architect ir. Aimeé de Back, who presented the first copy to de Surinam Minister of Education and National Development Edwin Wolf. Press release (Dutch) 

Monument award 2008 goes to Temminck Groll

The jury of the Prince Bernhard Culture Fund Monument Award has granted this years’ award to Professor Dr. Ir. C.L. Temminck Groll, who can be considered the Nestor of the Dutch monument preservation. He has a great number of articles and publications to his name, including 'The architecture of Suriname (1667-1930)' and, in cooperation with three other authors his last great publication, in 2003, 'The Dutch Overseas', concerning  the heritage overseas. The award is 50,000 euros and will be presented on November 25th at the Muziekgebouw at ‘t IJ in Amsterdam. Press release

Lecture on the country houses of Curaçao

5 August 2008

On August 15th 2008 the ‘Antillean Network’ organizes a lecture on country houses on Curaçao. During this meeting Marjon Wegman will talk about the architecture, the construction and the history of the country houses on Curaçao. The last couple of years a lot of attention and money went into restoration of these country houses. As a result the buildings are preserved from further decay. These country houses are built in colonial style and are usually former plantation houses. The houses are monuments in the Curacao’s landscape and play an important roll in the history of Curaçao. 

Location: NH Amsterdam Centre Hotel

Address: Stadhouderskade 7 (near the Leidseplein), 1054 ES Amsterdam

Doors open: 19:00
Start program: 20:00 
Entree: members free, non-members 10 euro p.p.
The amount of available places is limited.
You can register by sending an e-mail to info@antilliaansnetwerk.nl with your surname and your last name. 
For more information: www.antilliaansnetwerk.nl/agenda

Afghanistan at the World Archaeological Congress

During the 6^th World Archaeological Congress, recently organized in Dublin, many very interesting presentations were being held about ‘War, Ethics and Cultural Heritage Management’. Followed by interesting discussions about the role and interventions of the military in regions as the Near and Middle East. Read more...

Opening Twinning Facillity Suriname - Netherlands

The Netherlands plans to work more closely with Suriname in a variety of areas, including language, culture, education and health care. To this end the Berenschot agency has set up a Surinamese-Dutch twinning facility, known as UTSN. From the first of July till the first of September the counter will be open to submit project proposals for the twinning facillity. Read more...

Underwater Cultural Heritage Convention needs to be implemented

The World Archaeological Congress expresses its appreciation for, and recognition of, the first 17 nations to ratify the UNESCO convention on the protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage (2001) and its Annex. Read more...

Underwater Cultural Heritage, the Governments of South Africa and the Netherlands, the South African Heritage Resources Agency, the Centre for International Heritage Activities and Iziko Museums have developed a project outline to focus on geophysical survey, conservation,excavation and education regarding maritime remains. This stimulating international program is expected to increase the development of maritime archaeological infrastructure throughout the southern African region. Read more...

Leiden University honours President Karzai for rebuilding Afghanistan

President Karzai of Afghanistan was honoured with the Willem van Oranje medal by the University of Leiden, last week. He has received the medal for his outstanding activities regarding the rebuilding of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.

CIE Heritage Day South Africa; more than a meeting

8 June 2008

On June 5th, 2008, the Center for International heritage Activities organized the third CIE Heritage Day, which took place at the beautiful location of the RACM, (State Service for Archaeology, Cultural Landscape and Monuments) in Zeist. Click here for a report of the day

Dutch Secretary of State Mr. Timmermans encourages cooperation with Poland
regarding the preservation of Dutch and mutual cultural heritage

The Dutch government has expressed the intention to support the Polish government with the preservation of Dutch and mutual cultural heritage in Poland. This was recently stated by the Dutch Secretary of State, Mr.Timmermans, during a meeting with the Polish minister of Culture, Mr.Zdrojewski. Read the whole article

KITLV workshop ‘Migration and culture in the Dutch colonial world’, in Cape Town

15 March 2008

From the 24^th till the 28^th of March the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV) and the University of Stellenbosch will organize the workshop ‘Migration and culture in the Dutch colonial world’ (http://www.kitlv.nl/voc-wic.html), in Cape Town, South Africa. The workshop will take place at the University of Stellenbosch and will be hosted  by dr. Siegfried Huigen.

This workshop with experts on the field of colonial history and cultural heritage is the second part of the KITLV program 'Migration and culture in the Dutch colonial world'. There will be participants from Brazil, Ghana, India, Indonesia, the Netherlands, the Netherlands Antilles, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Suriname present.

The CIE will attend this meeting and contribute to the publication ‘Migration and its cultural legacies in the Dutch colonial orbit: past and present’.

3 April 2008

On the 31st of March the meeting ‘Grenzeloze nieuwsgierigheid – naar een werkelijk internationaal cultuurbeleid –’ on international cultural policy takes place in Rotterdam. The aim of this meeting is to create more awareness for Culture and Development and to increase political attention on this subject. Click here for the complete programme

The Centre for International Heritage Activities is one of the initiators of this meeting. The CIE is mainly interested in what ways cultural heritage contributes to the development of a country. Keywords in this discussion are identity, social cohesion and economical development. 

Preliminary to this meeting the CIE organized on the 5^th September a ‘Diner Pensant’. This dinner was about the future of Culture & Development and in the context of the signing of the ‘Schokland agreement’ between seventeen Dutch cultural institutions and the Dutch Minister of Development Cooperation. The main theme was the position of cultural heritage in development work. Guests from all different sectors (museum, administration, development funds, science and commerce) contributed to a fruitful discussion and a successful evening. A report of this dinner.

Update Maritime Cultural Heritage

27 November 2009

See the maritime cultural heritage section to read more

Launch Maritime Archaeology Development Programme South Africa

16 October 2009

The Maritime Archaeology Development Programme is officially  launched on the 16th of October 2009 in Cape Town at a function  hosted by South Africa’s Minister of Arts and Culture, Ms Lulama  Xingwana. Accompanied with a special two days youth educational  awareness programme that is designed to interest youths from  diverse backgrounds of South Africa in maritime archaeology (a.o. on Robben Island, Oct 15th & 16th). 

Heritage Day Brazil

15 October 2009

The Brazil Heritage Day took place on Wednesday October  7^th at Museum Boijmans van Beuningen in Rotterdam. This was already the fifth Heritage Day organised by the Centre for International Heritage Activities (CIE). This time the day was organized with the cooperation of the Atlantic World and the Dutch (AWAD) and the Netherlands Institute for Heritage.

Read more

Open Lecture Historical Archaeology and the European Expansion

14 October 2009

The CIE and the Faculty of Archaeology, Leiden University, organise an Open Lecture at the University Leiden. Dr. Bill Jeffery from the James Cook University and Maritime Heritage Coordinator at CIE shall lecture on Colonial Expansion in the Pacific and Jackie Wang, PHD candidate University Leiden, will lecture on Dutch East Indiamen around Formosa.

Date: 20 October 2009
Time: 12.00 - 14.00
Location: University Leiden, Lipsius Building, room 147

The announcement can be downloaded here

Summer Renovation and Restoration at Bagh-e Jehan Nama Palace, Afghanistan

24 September 2009

During the spring and summer the renovation of the garden walls and towers is resumed with the traditional pakhsa system. Next to this wooden peacock windows in the palace are restored and several walls and ceilings have been cleaned. The garden is freed from concrete war elements so te way is paved for a historical reconstruction of the eight terrace garden. Read more

PRESS RELEASE ‘Dutch Manhattan 1609-2009’

Celebrating the Henry Hudson Year 2009 with double Lecture Series in
Amsterdam and New York

18 September 2009

This Fall the Centre for International Heritage Activities organizes in cooperation with the Amsterdam Centre for the Study of the Golden Age (University of Amsterdam) a lecture series accompanied with music in Amsterdam, Lloyd Hotel, which celebrates the fourth centenary of Hudson’s arrival in New York. With a clear focus on Dutch Manhattan in the seventeenth century, specialists from various academic and cultural fields will provide fresh insights into different aspects of the short-lived Dutch colony in the New World. Speakers are Michiel van Groesen (UvA), Jaap Jacobs (independent scholar), Janne Nijman (UvA), Martine Gosselink

(Rijksmuseum) and Frans Blom (UvA). Read more

Invitation

In cooperation with: Nieuw Amsterdam Publishers & Boom Publishers.

Read more:

New York National Museum of the American Indian: Fall Lecture Series
Presents Native Viewpoint on Henry Hudson.

Invitation Heritage Day Brazil 7 October 2009

On the 7th of October the Centre for International Heritage Activities (CIE) will organise, in
cooperation with The Netherlands Institute for Heritage (Erfgoed Nederland) and the
Atlantic World and the Dutch (AWAD), a Heritage Day Brazil.
The day will take place at Museum Boijmans van Beuningen in Rotterdam. More information on the Heritage Days can be found in the partner countries section on this site.

Invitation
Programme
Outlines of the workshops

1^e Data Coordination Workshop Dutch Relic Return

On the 6^th of August 2009 an informal workshop is organised to share information and develop further collaboration with the Australian counterparts to develop a high quality online ANCODS collection database. The involved organizations also want to explore opportunities to establish a Netherlands-Australian online ANCODS database that includes also the other parts of the collection in the future. The main topics will be classification methods, international access, cooperation and most importantly, how to reach and prepare the physical and digital repatriation of the artefacts and content out of the database.

More information about ANCODS can be found on the following ANCODS website.

Tanzania, Netherlands to strengthen cooperation in maritime heritage management

27 July 2009

Tanzanian and The Netherlands is expected to strengthen cooperation in training and capacity building in maritime heritage management, the local media reported on Sunday. Read more

The Netherlands returns remains Badu Bonsu II to Ghana

23 July 2009

July 23^rd 2009, the Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Verhagen, Ghana's chargé d'affaires in The Netherlands Odoi-Anim and Ahante-tribe leader Etsin Kofi II signed the Declaration  of Transfer, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in The Hague, The Netherlands. 
Dutch press release

CIE Annual Report 2008

You can download the Annual Report 2008 of CIE here.

Workshop Mutual Heritage in Galle

19 May 2009

The Secretary of Cultural Affairs and National Heritage Sri Lanka and the director of CIE wish to invite you for the Mutual heritage Workshop to be held on 12^th June 2009 at 9.00 a.m. at the event hall of the Maritime Archaeology Museum in the World heritage city of Galle.

The Workshop is jointly organized by the Ministry of Cultural Affairs and the Centre for International Heritage Activities (CIE) in collaboration with the Departments and institutions which come under the Ministry. The objective of the Workshop is to share the knowledge and experience gained in implementing the Mutual heritage projects and to built up a net work of heritage professionals in both countries Sri Lanka and Netherlands to enhance further co-operation in the field of Mutual heritage.

Report Pilot Project Atlas of Dutch Brazil Part 2 published

8 May 2009

The aim of the Atlas of Dutch Brazil is to map all military defence works related to the Dutch presence in Brazil. In 2007 a short-term pilot project was set up to test the methodology (Report Pilot Project Atlas of Dutch Brazil 2007, Part 1). After completion of this pilot it become clear that more research was needed. The second part of this report has now been published. 

Since the end of the 16th century have the Dutch been searching for trading possibilities along Brazil’s coastline. Little was known about the built cultural heritage from this period. Along the northeast coast of Brazil at least 48 forts or fortifications were built by the Dutch. 

For the website of the Atlas of Dutch Brazil, click here 

For part 2 of the report, click here

MOA signed between CIE and NHTV

24 April 2009

On April 24th CIE and NHTV School of Tourism signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA).
The organizations are convinced that they can strengthen each other with their expertise in the field of heritage management and tourism. The MOA stems from this conviction. This formal cooperation offers both organizations the advantage of sharing a network, expertise, infrastructure and facilities.

Registration of ANCODS collection has commenced

23 April 2009

Since March 2009 CIE takes care (temporarily) over the ANCODS collection. This collection consists of a very diverse group of objects that were recovered from the shipwrecks of the Dutch East India Company off the coast from Australia. The findings that stem from those shipwrecks have been scattered among several Dutch museums for the past years. Now, the collection is brought together in order to facilitate the repatriation to Australia.The CIE works on the registration of the objects. In time, the collection will be prepared for their return to Australia.

World Digital Library online

The World Digital Library, a project initiated by the Library of Congress and Unesco, was launched on April 21^st.
The online library aims to promote international and intercultural understanding and awareness. A total of 33 institutions, libraries and archives, - among which the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and the Caribbean Studies (KITLV) - have contributed to the website.
Materials such as photos, manuscripts, maps, rare books, prints and other cultural materials are accessible free of charge. On the site many documents can be found on the subject of the European expansion and colonialism, such as prints and maps of the Dutch colonies in Indonesia. 

To access the site please check: http://www.wdl.org

Afghanistan ‘A program for Culture & Development’. The Bagh-e-Jahan Nama Palace complex Khulm (former Tashqurghan) 

(Update April 2009)

Winter has passed in the north of Afghanistan and spring is on her way. This means that the structural and interior work on the palace and the work on the garden can continue in full extent.In the winter, amongst others, important research has been done on the historic material of the  Bagh-e-Jahan Nama palace with very intersting new outcomes. For more information on the planned activities for the structural and interior work in the palace and the work in the garden and the results of the historic research: Read more

First Caribbean Docomomo Seminar ‘ The Impact of Caribbean Modern Architecture’

April 27^th – 29^th 2009

The University of the Netherlands Antilles (UNA) will be hosting an international seminar about modern architecture in the Caribbean region in the end of April 2009. The event, which will take place from April 27^th until April 29^th, is organized by the Faculty of Technical Sciences at the University of the Netherlands Antilles and do.co,mo.mo (documentation and conservation of the modern movement) Curacao. Various regional and international experts in the field of modern architecture will be participating.The question of ‘in what measure modernism in the region was applied to achieve social and democratic values?’ will be central in the seminar.  

The full press report and instructions on how to register

Interview with Robert Parthesius on the ANCODS project

10 April 2009

Robert Parthesius was interviewed by SBS Radio on the ANCODS project. The Dutch government will return to Australia part of the artifacts from four VOC ships that were lost before the West Australian coast. Anneke Boudewijn spoke to Robert Parthesius, Director of the Centre for International Heritage Activities.

Listen to the interview: http://media.sbs.com.au/audio/dutch-090330-dff.mp3 (In Dutch)

MoU signed between SAHRA and CIE

4 April 2009

During the International Heritage Symposium on the Shared Heritage between South Africa and The Netherlands, that was held in Casteel de Goede Hoop in Cape Town on the 6^th of March, a Memorandum of Understandings (MoU) was signed between the South African Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA) and the CIE. For SAHRA CEO Sibongile van Damme was present to sign the MoU, and for CIE director Robert Parthesius.

In short, the MoU stresses the importance of maritime heritage for the development of southern African and it’s inherent part in South Africa’s history. The parties have committed themselves to the development of a strategic and sustainable Underwater Cultural Heritage management programme in which capacity building, public awareness and the development of Underwater Cultural Heritage curricula are the most important aspects.

Article on presentation of Karin Lachmising in Surinam newspaper De Ware Tijd

4 April 2009

Karin Lachmising, speaker at the International Heritage Symposium on shared heritage in Cape Town, South Africa, was interviewed by De Ware Tijd, a Surinam newspaper. 
Lachmising, with contributions of South African writer Diana Ferrus, spoke in her presentation about the use of language in different groups, the place the Dutch and African languages take in a cultural diverse society and how both countries deal with shared cultural heritage. The essence of her presentation is described in the article as a ‘celebration of languages. To connect, not divide’

Read more on her presentation 'celebration of languages. To connect not divide' in the article of De Ware Tijd (In Dutch)

Afghanistan Summit in The Hague on March 31^st

On March 31st there was an international summit in The Hague on the subject of the situation in Afghanistan. A total of 72 leaders of international organisations and Ministers of Foreign Affairs of several countries came together in The Hague to discuss matters on the subject of the reconstruction and safety of Afghanistan. Among them the American minister of Foreign Affairs, Hillary Clinton, and the Afghan President Hamid Karzai.The summit is held in the light of the presidential elections in Afghanistan next August; the outcome of which could have great consequences on the Afghanistan policy.

Head of Ghanese King will be returned to Ghanese people

20 March 2009

Minister Plasterk has announced that the head of king Badu Bonsu II will be returned to Ghana. Dutch traders killed the king in 1838 as retribution for his killing of two Dutch envoys. His head was taken back to the Netherlands where the University of Leiden has kept it in storage for the past 170 years. It was long forgotten when writer Arthur Japin found and identified the head four years ago when he was doing research for his new book. Last year he raised the issue and advocated it’s return. In October 2008 Ghana requested the return of the head for it to be buried. The government has now agreed and has been in contact with the Ghanese embassy. It is unclear when the transfer of the head will take place.

City Archives Cologne seek practical help with rescue operation

17 March 2009

On March 3^rd the building of the Historical City Archives in Cologne, Germany, collapsed due to work being done on the subway.
The City Archives in Cologne is one of the largest Archives in the north of Europe and has thousands of historical maps, charters, photo’s and other documents in its possession. Historians feared these documents would be lost in the ruins of the building and a rescue operation was set up. Slowly documents are being rescued from under the rubble, but more help is needed. The City Archives call on academic volunteers to help. Especially paper restorers and people with archive-experience are needed.

For more information and to sign up as volunteer please check www.ancbs.org, the website of the ANCBS, the new coordination center of Blue Shield in The Hague in the Netherlands from where the help is coordinated.

New Dutch website on World War II launched

16 March 2009

The website http://www.wo2online.nl has been launched by the Dutch Nationaal Comite 4 en 5 mei (National Committee of 4 and 5 May) and is a cooperation of several Dutch institutes that are specialized in World War II. The site offers reliable information for people interested in different aspects of the war. It also offers information of the flight of Dutch people to others countries, such as Australia, and the role of Asia, Suriname and the Dutch Antilles during and after the war.

Please check http://www.wo2online.nl/themas/nederlands-indie and http://www.wo2online.nl/themas/nederlanders_wereldwijd.

Most of the information on the website is only available in Dutch.

Huib van Everdingen new chairman of the board of trustees

2 March 2009

On February 17^th Huib van Everdingen was appointed as the new chairman of CIE’s board of trustees. Huib is a senior partner at the International Law Office NautaDutilh in Amsterdam. He has a special interest in historical monuments.

Iraq’s National Museum reopens

On Monday February 23^rd, Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki reopened the National Museum of Iraq in Baghdad. The Museum was closed in 2003 after it was looted in the chaos of the invasion led by the US to overthrow Saddam Hussein. About 15,000 artefacts were then stolen. Only a quarter of this amount has been recovered so far and is now on display in the museum. Even though not all galleries in the museum are open to the public yet, the reopening of the museum is an important milestone in the Iraq’s road back to normality.

International Heritage Symposium, Cape Town, South Africa

On Friday the 6^th of March the South African Heritage Resource Agency's (SAHRA), Western Cape Office and Underwater Cultural Heritage Unit, in cooperation with the Centre for International Heritage Activities (CIE), IZIKO and DAC, will organise an International Symposium on Heritage at Casteel de Goede Hoop, Cape Town.

The central theme of this symposium is the common heritage of South Africa and The Netherlands.

With a programme of lectures, workshops and project presentations we would like to give insight into the current diversity, priorities, oppertunities and challenges and therewith explore and encourage future exchange.

Invitation International Heritage Symposium
Guidelines Poster presentation
Programme International Heritage Symposium

The Maritime Cultural Heritage Management Programme  in Tanzania (MCHM programme) has commenced 

12 February 2009

In August 2008 the Centre for International Heritage Activities (CIE) was requested by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (EKN) in Tanzania to prepare an out- line of a possible capacity building programme to assist the Tanzanian authorities to develop in the field of Maritime Archaeology and Underwater Cultural Heritage Management.

This request was made after discussions between the EKN and various heritage stakeholders about the possibility of Dutch assist in the endeavour to build capacity in the field of Underwater Cultural Heritage Management; and more specific to cooperate in the ‘Integrated Approach to the Protection and Safeguarding of Cultural Heritage of the Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani and Songo Mnara, Endangered World Heritage sites’-programme. For this programme a maritime heritage component has been formulated for the the Kilwa Kisiwani programme.

From 28 October 2008 till 3 November 2008 an identification mission was undertaken to Tanzania by Dr. Robert Parthesius, Director of the CIE. This mission was a follow-up on the discussion paper /concept proposal submitted at the end of September 2008 to the authorities in Tanzania, and to UNESCO.

The first phase of the programme has commenced in February. During this four-month preparation phase the formal maritime archaeological programme will be finalized and the experiences of the identification phase will be taken into account. The preparation phase will also be used to formalize the political commitment and to set up the infrastructure needed for the programme. It will give means to identify the possible candidates for the training and introduce use and possibilities of a Maritime Archaeological Database. A first Nautical Archaeological Society (NAS) certificated training will also take place in this phase. 

Start New York 400 

30 January 2009

Yesterday was the official start of the celebrations of 400 years of friendship between the Netherlands and the United States. The year will be celebrated with all kinds of commemorative activities in New York and Amsterdam. A heritage programme, set up between Dutch and American partners is a natural and necessary contribution to this year. The CIE and the Dutch National Archives took the initiative to formulate a heritage programme, which is focused on the special historical and cultural relationship between the USA and the Netherlands. 

For more information: http://www.ny400.nl

The Netherlands donates maritime collection to Australia

22 January 2009

The Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science disposed in 2006 the repatriation of a group of objects currenlty housed at the Scheepvaart Museum and at the Geld Museum. During a meeting in May 2006, Minister van der Hoeven verbally assured objects would return to Australia. The Centre for International Heritage Activities is the coordinating entity in the repatriation process of the ANCODS collection. In the press release you can find more information about the background of the project. Read more