Danish Institute documents life in Syria in 1960s

 The Danish Institute in Damascus in coordination with Department of Cross-Cultural and Regional Studies (ToRS) in Copenhagen University and Orbis publishing house has issued a book entitled ‘Eyes on Syria’.

The 144-page book comes within efforts being exerted by Syrian and world heritage experts to shed light on Syria’s deep-rooted history that has faced heavy losses over the past six years caused by armed terrorist gangs’  attacks, according to Tishreen newspaper.

 The paper quoted  the archeological researcher Nibal Muhesen, who is working in (ToRS) and has translated the book into Arabic, as saying that the idea of the book emerged after discovery of an album including 150 photos taken in Syria and Lebanon during a journey made by three Danes, two of them photographers, in the 1960s.

“The old negatives include information and details protected by Lars Schmidt who had created a method to develop the photos,” the researcher added, stressing that the book revives the Syrian memory in order to create hope for the future and to formulate the Syrian people’s national identity.

Muhesen pointed out that Orbis publishing house held a mobile exhibition bearing the same name of the book in Denmark.

“The book and the one-year exhibition aim to acquaint Danish people with Syria’s deep-rooted civilization and the barbaric destruction of Syrian heritage by terrorist organizations,” he clarified.

Several lectures on changes in Syrian community during the current war, Syria’s modern history, peaceful co-existence, threat of extremism, Syria’s cultural heritage and repercussion of the destruction of Syrian heritage were given by archeological experts on the sidelines of the exhibition.

Basma Qaddour