Celebrations marking the 1150th anniversary of Polotsk will take place from May 25 to June 5.
05/01/20120 views
On January 5, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. Celebrations for the 1150th anniversary of Polotsk will start on the evening of May 25 and last until June 5, the Polotsk City Executive Committee informed a BELTA correspondent.
The festivities promise to be bright and memorable. A directorial and staging group, including renowned specialists in the field of culture, is working on the script. The concept of the celebration has been defined, which can be summarized in three theses: Polotsk is the cradle of Belarusian statehood, Polotsk is a spiritual, educational, and cultural centre, and Polotsk is a modern European city.
It is expected that during the festive weeks, the medieval culture festival "Rubon" and an international scientific and practical conference at Polotsk State University, as well as an interactive festival of museum collections, will take place. Polotsk residents and city guests will be delighted by the international festival "Masterpieces of Opera Art at the Walls of Ancient Sophia". In addition, the jubilee city will showcase its economic potential, introduce guests to achievements in sports and art, and talk about its youth. Delegations from Polotsk's twin cities will arrive for the celebration. In addition to officials, their delegations will include creative groups, folk masters and craftsmen who will demonstrate their skills at the traditional craft fair.
Polotsk is a city of rich Orthodox traditions. During the jubilee days, an international Orthodox conference with the participation of representatives from the cities of the three Holy Sofias – Novgorod, Kyiv, and Polotsk – is planned to be held here, along with a religious procession and a joint service of church hierarchs, and international festivals of bell ringing and Orthodox creativity.
The jubilee city will prepare many pleasant gifts for the participants of the celebrations. Among them is an exclusive festive certificate for visiting the geographical centre of Europe (as is well known, the geographical centre of Europe is located in Polotsk – Editor's note by BELTA), the sketch of which is already being worked on by local designers. Preparations for tourist routes have begun, which will allow visitors to get acquainted with the rich historical and cultural heritage of the ancient city.
As reported, UNESCO has included the 1150th anniversary of Polotsk in the calendar of memorable dates for 2012-2013. An exhibition will be held at the headquarters of this international organization in Paris in October 2012. Preparations for the exhibition, which will include photographs depicting the past and present of Polotsk, have now begun. Also, with the financial support of UNESCO, an international scientific and practical conference "History and Archaeology of Polotsk and the Polotsk Land" will be held in Polotsk.
Polotsk has a rich and glorious history. One of the oldest cities in Eastern Europe is first mentioned in the "Tale of Bygone Years" under the date 862. The advantageous geographical location "on the route from the Varangians to the Greeks" contributed to Polotsk becoming one of the significant trading and cultural centers of medieval Europe. The city gave the world Euphrosyne of Polotsk, Francysk Skaryna, Symeon of Polotsk. Hero of the defense of Port Arthur, General Roman Kondratenko, and the founder of Belarusian cinema, Yuri Tarich, are from here. Polotsk is home to about 150 historical valuables, including the unique monuments of ancient architecture, St. Sophia Cathedral and the Transfiguration Church.-0-
BELTA