A cooperation agreement between Syria and Russia to restore the Arch of Triumph in Palmyra

Damascus, (ST) – The Syrian Trust for Development, the General Directorate of Antiquities and Museums and the Institute for the History of Material Culture at the Russian Academy of Sciences signed an agreement to start the second stage of the project in restoring  the Arch of Triumph in in Palmyra.

In a statement to SANA reporter, Dr. Nazir Awad, Director General of Antiquities and Museums said that the joint tripartite agreement signed today will form the basis for the next stage which will be the reconstruction of the Arch of Triumph . This comes after the completion of the first stage that was funded by the Syrian Trust for Development and which included a set of research and works in preparation for the second stage which will be implemented with different accuracy, methodology and standards that are appropriate  to the historical phase of Palmyra, which is registered on the world heritage list”, Dr. Awad added.

Member of the Board of Trustees of the Syrian Trust for Development, Fares Kallas said that the next step in restoration work will involve three institutions.

“During the second and third phases, the mechanism of restoration and excavation work that is taking place in the ancient and modern city of Palmyra will be determined.It will be in cooperation between the excavators, archaeologists, experts, technicians and the local community”, Kallas added.

He also said that the reconstruction is difficult and delicate due to the very high value of Palmyra as a site registered on the world heritage list.

For her part, the Director of the Institute for the History of Material Culture at the Russian Academy of Sciences, Natalia Solovyova indicated that the project to restore the Arch of Triumph in Palmyra is one of the most important symbolic projects in the world, so all concerned parties have participated in it to come up with the best result and preserve the heritage. She added that during the last stage, many studies and the study excavations were completed at the site, and the results were scrutinized, so that the arch would return to its place after restoration as it was before.

The joint committees of the General Directorate of Antiquities and Museums and the Russian Academy of Sciences had completed their field work within the first stage of the restoration process of the Arch of Triumph in Palmyra in accordance with the agreement signed in this regard.

Raghda Sawas