The “Gypsy Girl Mosaic” from the ancient city of Zeugma, now in Gaziantep Province, Turkey. Photograph by Nevit Dilmen.

The 2019 ICLAFI Symposium and Annual Meeting was held in Gaziantep, Turkey, from 23 to 25 October 2019. It was hosted by ICOMOS Turkey with the support of the Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality.

Symposium theme

The theme for the symposium was defining the role of local authorities in managing and propagating cultural heritage. The aim was to discuss the role of local authorities and the legislative and financial structures of different countries at local level on managing and
propagating cultural heritage, and to share experiences and disseminate knowledge through different examples and best practices.

The opening session of the 2019 ICLAFI Symposium at the conference hall of the Zeugma Mosaic Museum in Gaziantep, Turkey, on 23 October 2019. Photograph by Dr. Jack Tsen-Ta Lee.

According to the organizers, “[c]onservation of cultural heritage has been assigned as a major responsibility to central governments. Yet, local authorities, especially municipalities as the territorial administrative units are in more direct contact with the day-to-day life of the local community. Local authorities are responsible for the construction, administration and maintenance of the city, including cultural heritage located within their boundaries. There are different legal and organisational structures of countries regarding the role of local authorities in management of cultural heritage; such as, planning and implementation, legislative and regulatory control, and the use of financial sources. Although the circumstances change from country to country, it is accepted that local authorities have a considerable importance in protection and management of cultural heritage. Thus, the Symposium focuses on the authority and role of local authorities in relation to the conservation, protection, use, enhancement and management of cultural heritage.”

The symposium proceedings are available here.

Heritage tour

The post-symposium heritage tour took in sights such as the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Mount Nemrut, which bears the remains of a first-century B.C.E. tomb-sanctuary built by King Antiochus I of Commagene; and Göbekli Tepe, a Neolithic archaeological site inhabited from about 9500 B.C.E. to at least 8000 B.C.E.

İmam Çağdaş, a famous baklava shop in Gaziantep, Turkey. Photograph by Dr. Jack Tsen-Ta Lee.

The archaeological site of Göbekli Tepe in Upper Mesopotamia, now in modern Turkey. Photograph by Dr. Jack Tsen-Ta Lee.

Past ICLAFI activities

The image at the top shows monumental statues from a tomb-sanctuary dating to the first century B.C.E. built by King Antiochus I of Commagene on the top of Mount Nemrut in southeastern Turkey. Photograph by Dr. Jack Tsen-Ta Lee.