Shumen Municipality has a rich cultural and historical heritage. In 681, the First Bulgarian State was founded here.
The cultural institutions of the Shumen Municipality are presented through Stiliyan Chilingirov Regional Library, Vasil Drumev Drama and Puppet Theatre, State Symphony Orchestra and Elena Karamihailova Art Gallery. Out of the 9 museums on the territory of the municipality, the most important ones are the RHM of Shumen, the Madara NHAR, the Pliska NHAR, the Kabiyuk NHAR and the Shumen Fortress HAR.
Hundreds of thousands of cultural heritage specimens are stored in the funds of all the aforementioned museums, cultural institutions, community centres and temples on the territory of the municipality.
Unfortunately, this priceless wealth reaches very few people, and only in Bulgaria.
By implementing this project, we will achieve the following:
– Digitization of 30,000 cultural values, which are part of the rich movable tangible cultural heritage of the Shumen Municipality. The digitization will contribute to a greater participation of the Bulgarian cultural heritage in the pan-European context of cultural exchange, as well as to ensuring its protection and preservation for future generations;
– By creating a “digital lab” we will acquire the necessary capacity, material and technical base and knowledge to conduct comprehensive programmes for digitization of the movable cultural heritage;
– Creating an open online platform will breathe new life into cultural heritage and allow the general public to become acquainted with cultural heritage sites – including the heritage of ethnic minorities;
– Promoting it through a “Digital Exhibition” will allow for wide access and attraction of an audience for the use of the digital content by the general public, education and the scientific community;
– Building a partnership with similar structures from the donor countries, exchanging expertise and good practices in the process of digitization of cultural heritage.
The goal of the Project “Creation and presentation of cultural heritage of the Shumen Municipality made digitally accessible” is:
Preservation and promotion of the cultural heritage of the Shumen municipality and providing online access to it through digitization.
The purpose of the Project contributes to the achievement of the general objective of Result 1 “Improved management of cultural heritage”, Sub-Result 1.2 “Digitally accessible objects of cultural heritage”: To improve the conditions of access to cultural heritage by documenting and digitizing it for the first time in order to promote and preserve it for future generations.
Specific objectives of the Project:
- Creation of a digital laboratory in RIM in the city of Shumen and upgrading the existing one in the “Stiliyan Chilingirov” Regional Library by equipping it with modern digitization technology;
- Digitization of 30,000 items of movable tangible cultural heritage of the Shumen municipality
- Improvement of personnel capacity for digitalization of cultural heritage through training of expert personnel
- Creation of an open online platform to provide access and promote the cultural heritage of the Shumen municipality;
- Strengthening the exchange and cooperation between organizations from the donor countries and Bulgarian institutions in the field of culture
- Integration of digitized content with educational programs through a sustainable partnership with an academic educational institution
- Building a sustainable partnership with a Partner from the donor countries for the exchange of good practices
- Improving awareness and access to art and culture of ethnic and cultural minorities (focus on Roma).
The goals set in the project fully correspond to the goals laid down in the “Cultural Entrepreneurship, Heritage and Cooperation” Program.
The achievement of the main and specific objectives of the Project contribute to the achievement of the general objectives of the Financial Mechanism of the European Economic Area, namely:
- Reduction of economic and social differences in the European Economic Area
and
- Strengthening of relations between the donor countries – Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein and the Republic of Bulgaria.
