The National Carpet Fair, the 9th edition, was inaugurated at the National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History. Traditional craftsmen and local artists from different parts of the country participate in the fair.
The event also includes the Exhibition “Saving Valuable Wall-carpets: Restoration and Replication”. It contains a number of old carpets restored in recent years.
Andrei Chistol, state secretary at the Ministry of Culture, said that “this is an event of our identity, through these wall-carpets we read history, culture and tradition. It is gratifying that we have reached the ninth edition. I am very happy that this event is also replicated in our localities, the craftsmen are involved, where local events are organized”.
Petru Vicol, director of the National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History, thanked in particular the wall-carpet restorers, who never tire of giving a second life to the carpets that can be admired in the exhibition.
“I think that this event deserves to be organized within the National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History because we are the institution that has a very rich collection of carpets. Moreover, we at the museum know how to popularize our collections on paper, so that it reaches as many people as possible. The carpet restorers are the ones who need to be brought to the fore, they are people who rightly deserve all the credit”, said Petru Vicol.
Silvia Zagoreanu, director of the National Center for Conservation and Promotion of Intangible Cultural Heritage, stated that the National Carpet Fair is a celebration of the whole nation.
“Once the traditional wall-carpet has come to be appreciated by specialists all over the world, it would be a shame for us not to promote it at home. I think it was the biggest mistake to remove these wall-carpets from our walls, out of a desire to be more modern. We are glad that they are back on the walls of houses and agri-tourist guesthouses in the country”, said Silvia Zagoreanu.
On 1 December 2016, traditional wall-carpet craftsmanship in Moldova and Romania was recognized by UNESCO as a piece of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
