Khaled al-Asaad (photo upon kind concession of the Department of the Antiquities and Museums of Damascus)
“Khaled al-Asaad is a martyr of Palmyra, and must become a symbol of the struggle against terror”. These are the words that Maamoun Abdulkarim, diector of the Department of Antiquities and Museums in Damascus, uttered a few days after the brutal assassination of Palmyra's keeper.
With the destruction of the city's ancient relics, the ISIS fanatics sought to strike a deadly blow to the values represented by those ancient remains, showing the total despair for the different cultures and human civilisations that left their millenary heritage over there.
Three months after Khaled al-Asaad's passing, Milan does not forget his example in the defence, that cost him his life, of the inestimable heritage of Palmyra.
On 18 November we therefore plan an entire day dedicated to the Syrian archaeologist, in two stages.
11 a.m., Giardino dei Giusti di tutto il Mondo on Monte Stella Hill
SPECIAL CEREMONY
Garden of the Righteous Worldwide (Giardino dei Giusti di Tutto il Mondo), Monte Stella hill
Dedication of a tree and a memorial stone to Khaled al-Asaad
"slaughtered by ISIS for defending in Palmyra the archeological heritage, civil memory of the Humanity, while the world stood still"
5.30 p.m.
Alessi Room, Palazzo Marino - admission only upon booking
International Conference The moral example set my Khaled al-Asaad. Save Palmira, civil heritage of the Humanity.
Greetings of the Authorities
Speeches by:
Eva Cantarella, jurist, historian and essayist
Luciano Fontana, director of the Corriere della Sera
Maria Teresa Grassi, professor of Archaeology of Roman Provinces at the Università degli Studi di Milano, director of the archaeological mission Pal.M.a.i.s. to Palmyra (2007-2010)
Paolo Matthiae, Professor of Archaeology and History of the Arts in the Near East at the Università “La Sapienza” of Rome and the discoverer of Ebla
Gabriele Nissim, Gariwo chairman
Moderated by Antonio Ferrari, Corriere della Sera editorialist
With the participation of Serena Maria Cecchini, director of the Italian-Syrian archeological mission to Arslan Tash and deputy director of the Italian mission to Tell Afis (Saraqeb - Idlib); Davide Ciafaloni, arts historian; Gabriella Brusa-Zappellini, Archaeological Association of Lombardy; Vittorio Emanuele Parsi, politologist and professor at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore
Organization curated by Gariwo, the forest of the Righteous non-profit organization on behalf of the Association for the Garden of the Righteous in Milan, of which Gariwo is a part, with Milan City Hall and UCEI.
Info and booking: [email protected] or phone no. 02 36707648/49