An international conference on petroglyphs will be held

INTERVIEW WITH B. BULGANBAYAR, SECRETARY GENERAL OF CHULUUN SHASTIR NGO.

Hello. First of all, I would like to congratulate Mongolia for organizing an international conference that brought together the world's leading scientists of petroglyphs for the first time.

Thank you. Yes, indeed, this meeting is a rare gathering not only in the history of Mongolia, but also for international petroglyph researchers. Leading scientists from North America, Europe, Africa and Asia are invited to participate in our conference. Another thing to emphasize is that this event is held under the auspices of UNESCO and the President of Mongolia.

Please tell us about the international researchers coming to the event, what will be the composition of the conference, and how many people are coming to participate?

The Office of the President of Mongolia, in cooperation with the Institute of History and Archeology of the Mongolian Academy of Science (MAS), is launching the "Rock Painting" project in order to preserve and deepen the research work on rock arts, which are one of the cultural heritage of mankind, to pass them on to younger generations, and to promote them.

As a country that rightfully attracts the world's attention due to the content, design, and historical and cultural value of rock paintings, Mongolia is obliged to pay special attention to the conservation and protection of the Altai Mountains and other rock paintings included in the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage, as well as to deepen the study of rock arts.

Mongolia's rock art complex monuments have been viewed by domestic and foreign researchers as unique in terms of area, number, size, and artistic expression compared to the rock art of other countries.

Based on all of this, an international academic conference on the theme "Rock Art: History, Memory and Dialogue" is being organized under the auspices of the President of Mongolia and UNESCO. In this conference, 15 foreign and 10 domestic scientists, more than 60 researchers and enthusiasts participated, and they exchanged ideas and information about the methodology of studying rock arts that are world heritage, their interpretation and preservation, and the experience of other countries and the rock paintings in the territory of Mongolia. Moreover, researchers will discuss the results of the academic work in the field of study. I believe that this academic conference will be a significant contribution to the study of Mongolian rock arts, and thus will be the first step in the international project of UNESCO. This work that we have started will be an important event that will lay the foundation for many big works in the future.

It will be a truly far-sighted and important meeting for society and humanity. What events will take place within the framework of the conference?

Within the framework of the conference, in cooperation with the National History Museum, the art immortalized in the rocks: Del Mountain rock arts exhibition in the exhibition hall of the National History Museum, in cooperation with the professional teachers and students of University of arts and Culture dance and drama art, the ethnomodern dance called "Inverted Triangle" written by professor S. Dulam, in the Opera Theater of Classical Art. It will be presented in a series of steps, including a photo album of Mongolian Altai rock arts, an art immortalized in rocks: a photo exhibition on historical understanding and discussion, and a collection of paintings based on rock paintings that will be presented as gifts to ASEM's honored guests, heads of state. It is an intensive task for state-honored artist Tengisbold. In the future, we will gradually implement projects such as the draft of the Presidential Decree of Mongolia and the implementation of the National Program for the Protection of Rock Arts. The management and team of our newly established Chuluun Shastir NGO are taking the initiative and taking the lead in all this. So, for this meeting, we present to you the album "Stone Chronicles of Mongolian Altai" initiated by "Chulun Shastir" NGO.

Please tell our readers about Chuluun Shastir NGO

Chuluun Shastir NGO was founded by people who are interested in studying rock paintings of Mongolia through active initiative and volunteering. Although it has not been established for a long time, we are very happy that the activities initiated and implemented by our organization have received the support of many people and are reaching a wide range of people. The activities of Chuluun Shastir NGO are supported by the President of Mongolia, UNESCO, Institute of History and Archeology of MAS, National History Museum and other art and culture organizations. With such good support, it is clear that the work we are doing will receive social support. If there is good social support, we believe that our goal will be achieved and we will be able to leave the rock arts, which are the cultural heritage of mankind, to the next generation. Our goal is to say that the rock arts left on this rock are a unique legacy and code left by the ancestors of mankind thousands of years ago. We can understand this heritage and the elders as the people who are responsible for preserving the code and passing it on to future generations.

Well, I wish you all the best in your future endeavours. I congratulate and thank you again for initiating and implementing a great work that has the potential to enlighten the society.

Thank you!

Source: Montsame

Best Western Tuushin, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

May 30, 2016