For the third time, Vitebsk State University named after P.M. Masherov hosted the III International Scientific and Practical Conference «Protection and Popularization of Cultural Heritage: Global and National Experience», organized by the Department of History and Cultural Heritage and the Scientific and Educational Center «Heritage of the Vitebsk Land». Faculty of Humanities and Communications in collaboration with the Department of Culture of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee and the Institute of History of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus.

The scientific forum opened with a roundtable discussion entitled «Protection of Historical, Cultural, and Archaeological Heritage: Key Directions, Achievements, Problematic Issues, and Solutions». The roundtable brought together researchers from Belarus and Russia, representatives of regional and local government bodies, archaeologists, practitioners, and museum staff.

First Vice-Rector Andrey Mekhovich addressed the guests of VSU named after P.M. Masherov. On behalf of the university's leadership and the entire staff, he welcomed the conference participants and wished them success, interesting discussions, and productive communication.

Irina Dashchinskaya, Head of the Department for the Protection of Historical and Cultural Heritage at the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Belarus, read a greeting from Deputy Minister of Culture Sergei Sarakach, who noted that the protection and promotion of cultural heritage in our country is receiving special attention at all levels and wished the conference participants fruitful work.

Petr Podgursky, Head of the Department of Culture of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, explained that the conference brought together researchers not only from Belarus–Grodno, Mogilev, and Minsk–but also colleagues from Moscow, Veliky Novgorod, Smolensk, Pskov, Volgograd, Saratov, and Kursk. This is unsurprising, as we share a common historical and cultural space, and only together can we preserve the identity of our peoples.

A special moment at the conference's opening ceremony was the donation of soil from Kazakhstan–the birthplace of Soviet soldier S. Orazbayev, who died during the liberation of the Vitebsk region–for scattering over a military grave. According to Sergei Zhizhiyan, director of the Bykhov District Museum of History and Local Lore, their institution has been conducting searches and organizing memorial vigils for many years. A delegation from Kazakhstan attended one of these vigils this summer, wanting to visit military burial sites in the Vitebsk and Mogilev regions where the ashes of their compatriots rest. They were unable to travel to Vitebsk at the time, so they asked Sergei Filippovich to facilitate the donation of the Kazakh soil to our city, which he did. It will soon be scattered over the military grave.

The roundtable discussion then began, focusing on the most pressing issues of archaeological heritage preservation, methods for combating illegal diggers, improving legislation in this area and law enforcement practices, aspects of cultural heritage registration, prospects for expanding the Belarusian portion of the UNESCO World Heritage List, and the potential for restoring and using heritage sites. The report «Objectives, Approaches, and Possible Mechanisms for Combating the Illegal Search for and Circulation of Archaeological Artifacts in the Republic of Belarus (Considering International Experience)», prepared by researchers from Minsk, generated the most lively discussion.

In the afternoon, the conference continued with plenary sessions II and III, both in person and online. A city tour, including a visit to the Governor's Palace and museums, is also planned for university guests. The scientific forum will continue on Saturday.

More photos are available in the VSU Media Center group on VKontakte.