May, 2023

Study tour within the framework of the project “Valorisation of the historical and cultural heritage through the development and promotion of the Carpathian Cultural Route”

 

May 11 to 15, 2023, a study tour to Romania was held in the framework of a project “Valorisation of the historical and cultural heritage through the development and promotion of the Carpathian Cultural Route”, implemented by the NGO “Association of Economic Development of Ivano-Frankivsk (AEDIF)” in the partnership with Development Centre for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises Maramures (Romania) and Ivano-Frankivsk National Technical University of Oil and Gas in the framework of the Hungary-Slovakia-Romania-Ukraine ENI CBC Programme 2014-2020.

The project goal is to promote the cultural and historical heritage of the Carpathian Euroregion through the development and promotion of the Carpathian Cultural Route as an integrated tourist product. The Carpathian Cultural Route includes 40 of the most interesting objects of cultural and historical heritage in the Ivano-Frankivsk and Zakarpattia regions of Ukraine and the county of Maramures County in Romania. The developed tour starts in Rohatyn, Ivano-Frankivsk region, and ends in Sighetu Marmatiei, Maramures County, or vice versa. The total length of the route: 822 km.

The aim of the study tour was to get acquainted with the Romanian part of the Carpathian Cultural Route, increase the level of knowledge and professional skills of representatives of historical and cultural objects, travel companies and tourism service providers, government and local self-government institutions, civil society organizations of Ivano-Frankivsk and Zakarpattia regions (Ukraine) in the field of creation and promotion of cultural routes.

The study tour was attended by 18 participants, including 13 representatives of historical and cultural sites, travel companies and tourism service providers, local governments, and civil society institutions from Ivano-Frankivsk and Zakarpattia regions of Ukraine.

The Carpathian Cultural Route includes 40 of the most interesting objects of cultural and historical heritage in the Ivano-Frankivsk and Zakarpattia regions of Ukraine and the county of Maramures County in Romania. The developed tour starts in Rohatyn, Ivano-Frankivsk region, and ends in Sighetu Marmatiei, Maramures County, or vice versa. The total length of the route: 822 km.

The participants of the study tour got acquainted with the following sites of the Carpathian Cultural Route in Maramures County of Romania.

The memorial house of Elie Wiesel, Nobel Peace Prize winner. A house in an area that was part of one of Sighetu's Jewish neighbourhoods, which highlights the personality of Elie Wiesel and documentary reconstructions of the Holocaust in Maramures and Northern Transylvania.

Maramures Museum Sighetu Marmatiei is a regional museum that presents the historical province of Maramures.  The museum functions as a museum complex with ethnological dominance (a museum with a pavilion exhibition and an open-air museum), as well as departments of history-archaeology, cultural history and memorials, natural sciences, and an art gallery.

Memorial to the Victims of Communism and Resistance, Sighetu Marmatiei. The memorial is an institution of memory, unique in that it is a research, museological and educational institute.

The Citadel Square and Stephen's Tower. The historic centre of Baia Mare with historic buildings and monuments dating back to the XVth century, among which are: Freedom Square, the Old Centre, the city's medieval architecture complex built in the 17th and 18th centuries. The basement and ground floor of some old buildings have been preserved, and the sequence of architectural styles (Gothic, Baroque) has been preserved.

The County Museum of Ethnography and Folk Art Maramures, Baia Mare, one of the county's most significant public cultural institutions, is run by the Maramures County Council and comprises two buildings: a pavilion section and a village museum. The permanent exhibition, entitled "Wood in the traditional community of northern Transylvania – from cradle to grave", presents the stages of woodworking, traditional tools, traditional peasant interiors, as well as elements of folk costume, traditional jewellery, religious objects and ceramics belonging to all four ethnographic areas of Maramures. The village museum includes real masterpieces of folk architecture, traditional houses and outbuildings.

"Victor Gorduza" County Museum of Mineralogy in Baia Mare, an institution that originally functioned as part of the Natural Sciences Department of the Maramures County Museum. The museum's heritage, which comes exclusively from the deposits and mines of the northwest of the country, has earned it the status of the largest mineralogical museum with regional representation throughout the European continent.

The Painters' Colony founded in Baia Mare more than a century ago has a unique character, strengthened by the continuity of this guild to this day. Many renowned artists have honed their talent here, becoming part of avant-garde movements and exhibiting their creations alongside big names in the field.

Around 4,500 exhibits, as well as a generous documentary collection (documents, photographs, catalogues, engravings, clichés, medals, graphics), complement the collections of the Baia Mare County Museum of Art "Artistic Centre Baia Mare". The museum also features other exhibits of Romanian contemporary art, as well as works that reconstruct the route of European art over two centuries, from the 18th century to the 20th century.

Teleki Castle, Coltau. For a hundred years, this building was used by a family only to receive guests who came for hunting.  Every year, on the first Sunday of September, Koltau hosts the Petofi Sandor Memorial Festival.

"Saint Anne" Monastery, Rohia. The museum collection of the Rohia Monastery includes the cell of Nicolae Steinhardt, a library and museum of religious art, old Romanian books, icons on wood and glass.

The wooden church of the Holy Archangels The "Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel" from Rogoz, Maramures County. Built in 1663, the monastery is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, being a building with complex architecture and rare beauty.

Bârsana Monastery Complex. The wooden church is impressive, with a height of 57 metres, a length of 23 metres and a width of 12.5 metres, which place it at the top of the tallest wooden structures in Europe. Sacred books and manuscripts dating from the 16th and 19th centuries are a real treasure in the Museum of Icons and Old Books, as part of the Bârsana Monastery Ensemble.

Mocanita – steam train, Viseul de Sus. The railway is used in both forestry and tourism, and is classified as a historical monument. In 2005, regular passenger trains were introduced to transport tourists.

One of the most famous tourist attractions in Maramures, the Merry Cemetery is a unique place in the world that gives a glimpse of optimism in the perception of death. The cemetery is unique because of the many years of work by the master craftsman Stan Ioan Patras, who created this work of art.

The high level of organisation and conduct of the study tour received positive feedback and appreciation from the participants of the tour, and indicates the intention to apply the knowledge and experience gained during the study tour, and has prospects for their implementation.

Reference:

Project “Valorisation of the historical and cultural heritage through the development and promotion of the Carpathian Cultural Route” isimplemented in the framework of the Hungary-Slovakia-Romania-Ukraine ENI CBC Programme 2014-2020 financed by the European Union https://huskroua-cbc.eu/ . Overall objective of the Project is support to valorisation of the cultural and historical heritage in the Carpathian Euroregion through the development and promotion of the Carpathian Cultural Route as integrated cultural heritage tourism product within the cross-border regions of Romania and Ukraine. Specific objectives are: to create an integrated cultural heritage tourism product “Carpathian Cultural Route” that connect places of historical and cultural heritage with other attractions and services; to improve the skills and knowledge of cultural tourism representatives through the training programme; to promote an integrated cultural heritage tourism product “Carpathian Cultural Route” in the regional and international markets through the development of promotional materials, joint online information sources and mobile application.

 

 

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