Activity of Azerbaijani Archaeologists Highly Appreciated at International Congress

International Exhibition Congress on Archaeological and Cultural Tourism “TourismA” Held in Florence, Italy

The “TourismA” International Exhibition Congress on Archaeological and Cultural Tourism was held at the Palazzo dei Congressi in Florence, Italy. This annual international congress serves as a platform that brings together innovations in Italian and global archaeological tourism, new archaeological discoveries, newly opened archaeological tourism routes, as well as the activities of state and scientific institutions and private companies operating in the tourism field.

The congress was attended by Rashad Aslanov, Ambassador of the Republic of Azerbaijan to Rome, representatives of the Ministry of Culture of Azerbaijan, the State Service for Protection, Development and Restoration of Cultural Heritage under the Ministry, and the State Tourism Agency. The Azerbaijani delegation also included employees of the Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology of ANAS, archaeologists Sevinj Huseynova and Lola Huseynova.

At the exhibition, presentations were made about Azerbaijan’s ancient history and archaeological monuments within the framework of organizational support from the State Tourism Agency and cooperation with Azerbaijan’s Embassy in Italy. Visitors were informed about international cooperation opportunities and work being done to develop archaeological heritage as a tourism product.

Fabrizio Conti, Creative Director of ArtCloud Network, and Professor Nicola Laneri of Near Eastern Archaeology at the University of Catania made presentations at the congress about archaeological research and cultural heritage preservation in Azerbaijan. In his speech, Professor Nicola Laneri spoke about the historical significance of the Tavatapa Late Bronze Age monument discovered in the Aghstafa region. It should be noted that the Tavatapa monument was discovered and studied by an international archaeological expedition led by Professor N. Laneri and Bakhtiyar Jalilov, PhD in History, Associate Professor and Head of the “Archaeological Research of New Construction Sites” Department at the Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology of ANAS.

Fabrizio Conti spoke about restoration works carried out in the Karabakh region, including archaeological research and restoration at the Panah Ali Khan Palace and Imaret Complex in Aghdam city. Both presenters highly appreciated the theoretical and practical knowledge of Azerbaijani archaeologists.