The works to conserve funeral stones on the Polish graves at the Catholic Cemetery in Chisinau that were planned for this year were completed. Two funeral stones were renovated and a number of conservation works were carried out to prevent the ruining of the Chapel of the Ohanovich family, IPN reports.

There are over 3,000 graves at the Catholic Cemetery, half of which are of Polish people. In the event held to mark the completion of works this year, Ludmila Botan, director of the municipal Funeral Services Combine, said that besides restoring two funeral stones on Polish graves, they also carried out studies for restoring the Chapel and built a roof for preventing the ruining of the architectural monument. This monument was erected on the grave of Iosif Katanovich Ohanovich over 100 years ago and is unique in Moldova.

Polish Ambassador to Moldova Bartłomiej Zdaniuk voiced hope that the Chapel in several years will be a restored nice building that will be a symbol of the Moldovan-Polish relations. “The history of these graves and monuments built over graves is related to the history of the Polish nation, especially of the 19th century. Then the Polish nation was deprived of independence and the cemeteries were the only place where the Polish identity could express itself,” stated the diplomat, noting it is not only about architectural work, but also about the wish to regain the freedom and independence.

The representative of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of Poland Michal Michalski noted it is very important in the Moldovan-Polish relations to pay special attention to the cultural heritage. As to the restoration of the Chapel, he said that step by step this monument will get a new face. For the purpose, a number of experts performed analyses and designing works.

The restoration works are executed within a project agreed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of Poland, the Chisinau City Hall and the Embassy of Poland in Moldova three years ago.