On April 6 2017, at 18:00, at the premises of the Synodical Center close to the Resurrection of Christ Orthodox Cathedral in Tirana, the publication of a special issue of the “Art & Heritage” periodical magazine was promoted; with the theme “Orthodox Heritage in Albania “.
The event was attended by Archbishop Anastasios and the members of the Holy Synod, renowned scholars of various fields, representatives of other religious communities, diplomats, political figures etc. The promotion was conducted by a panel of authors who contributed to this publication.
The activity started with the word by Mr. Andrea Rembeci, lecturer at the University of Tirana and scholar of Byzantine texts. Then His Grace John, Metropolitan of Korca, spoke about the importance of Orthodox heritage in the culture of our country and the remarkable contribution of Archbishop Anastasios in its revival and preservation. Next, it was the turn of Prof. Dr. Pirro Thomo and Mrs. Ilda Mara, Director of “Argjiro” Foundation, which published the journal.
“Orthodox heritage in Albania” is the first issue of a special “necklace” of periodical publications that the “Art & Heritage” cultural magazine devotes to the cultural and historical heritage of religious communities in our country. This publication was made possible thanks to the cooperation of the staff of the “Art & Heritage” magazine with the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania and the Albanian Association of Byzantine Studies.
Renowned personalities in the fields of history, religion, architecture, restoration, archeology, applied arts, musicology, paleography, codicology, history of art and literature, such as Archbishop Anastasios, His Grace Joan Pelushi, Aleksandër Meksi, Pirro Thomo, Kostantinos Giakoumis, Dhori Qiriazi, Lida Miraj, Shaban Sinani, Andi Rembeci, Skënder Muçaj, Sokol Çunga, Vladimir Myrtezai, etc have contributed with their writings to this endeavor, offering thus to the readers a valuable historical publication on the Orthodox heritage in Albania.
“The most significant contribution of the Byzantine and Orthodox traditions in the creation of culture and a modern Albanian identity appears in the content of this publication. The great variety of selected topics reflects the presence of Orthodox Christianity in the spiritual life and material culture in Albania. This publication, as a whole, illustrates a common concern in an instructive and well-structured manner. I hope that it will serve as a cornerstone for further research on the Christian Culture in Albania “, writes in his foreword the Academician Johannes Koder, a member of the Austrian Academy of Sciences.
“Art & Heritage” is a bilingual edition in English and Albanian, which promotes cultural heritage, history and fine arts in Albania. It contains information, historical articles, analysis, reflections and essays written by outstanding personalities of each field.
