Cultural Heritage Materials and the UNESCO Memory of the World Project

Elhanan Adler

Chair, Israel Memory of the World Committee

Memory of the World Programme - Objectives

• The vision of the Memory of the World Programme is that the world's documentary heritage belongs to all, should be fully preserved and protected for all and, with due recognition of cultural mores and practicalities, should be permanently accessible to all without hindrance.

• To facilitate preservation, by the most appropriate techniques, of the world's documentary heritage

• To assist universal access to documentary heritage

• To increase awareness worldwide of the existence and significance of documentary heritage

Geographic Levels

• The Memory of the World Programme will achieve its objectives by encouraging projects and activities not only from a global perspective, but also from regional, national and local ones. Regional and national Memory of the World committees are a crucial part of the Programme structure. As appropriate, they are encouraged to implement the five key strategies (Identification of documentary heritage, Raising awareness, Preservation, Access, and Structures, status and relationships).

• International

• Regional (currently: Asia-Pacific, Latin America-Caribbean and Africa)

• National

Registers of Documentary Heritage

• International register: cultural materials of world significance and outstanding universal value

• Regional registers (optional)

• National registers (optional)

• Importance: provides a “label of quality” which can be used to advance preservation and access efforts

The Israel Memory of the World Committee

• Committee of the Israel National Commission for Unesco (under the Ministry of Education)

• Committee established 2010

• Submissions to the international Memory of the World register (2012-2013, 2014-2015, 2016-2017 [in preparation]

• Preparations towards setting up a national register.

Submission process to the international register

• Resources of demonstrable universal cultural significance

• Each country can propose two such resources once every 2 years

• Local process: call for proposals, selection, editing etc.

• International process: Technical and content approval (process takes over a year)

• 4 Israeli resources have been approved and appear in the international register

• 2016-2017 proposals will be submitted Spring 2016.

Pages of Testimony Collection, 1954-2004 (Yad Vashem)

Rothschild Miscellany (Israel Museum)

Aleppo Codex (Ben-Zvi Institute)

Isaac Newton’s Theological Papers (National Library of Israel)

Israeli resources in the international register

Examples of a National MOW Register

Setting up an Israeli National Register • Israeli archives, libraries and museums contain many items and

collections which are of great national (rather than universal) cultural importance

• Formal recognition of these resources will contribute to their preservation and accessibility

• A program of proposal and recognition will encourage resource owners to strive to meet the preservation and accessibility requirements

• The Israeli National Register should function as part of the current government-sponsored efforts (Landmarks/Israel Archives Network) regarding the preservation of cultural heritage materials.

Thank you