Greece Wins Triple for Cultural Heritage at 2015 EU/Europa Nostra Awards
Greece is one of the 28 award winners of the 2015 European Union Prize for Cultural Heritage/Europa Nostra Awards.
The winners of the award, considered Europe’s most prestigious prize in the heritage field, were announced on Tuesday by the European Commission and Europa Nostra.
The 28 award winners, selected from 263 applications submitted by organizations and individuals from 29 countries, are honored for outstanding achievements in four categories: 1) Conservation, 2) Research and Digitization, 3) Dedicated Service to Heritage, and 4) Education, Training and Awareness-raising.
Greece scored three awards in the categories of “Conservation” and “Research and Digitization”.
“This year’s winners are powerful examples of creativity and innovation at work for Europe’s cultural heritage”, said Plácido Domingo, President of Europa Nostra.
“They also demonstrate that heritage matters to Europe and its citizens. We trust that, under the leadership of President Juncker and Commissioner Navracsics, the European Union’s strategy for an integrated approach to cultural heritage will be further developed and implemented.”
2015 EU Prize for Cultural Heritage/Europa Nostra Awards for Greece
Award for Conservation
Antouaniko Mansion in Chios
“The rehabilitation project of the Antouaniko mansion, situated in one of the most distinctive and characterful cultural landscapes of Europe, succeeded in reinstating a complete example of the unique mixed character of this historic complex, combining residential and agricultural uses. The Jury especially appreciated the high quality of the restoration work, which comprised the recovery of traditional building techniques and pre-industrial agricultural systems, the employment and enhancement of local craftsmanship, as well as the renewal of the original relationship between built and natural environment. The Jury regarded the project as a model for similar works, which will be necessary if the authenticity of this valuable historic area is to be maintained.” – Europa Nostra
Award for Research and Digitization
HERMES: Hermoupolis Digital Heritage Management, Syros
“The scientific and technical sophistication of this project commended it strongly to the Jury. The relatively short history of Hermoupolis does not make its architectural value less significant, and has enabled an amazingly detailed and accurate set of data to be compiled. The project is a model to promulgate the value of digitisation in the collection and maintenance of intelligence about Europe’s architectural heritage, and ways in which our understanding of the complexity of the past and our response to it in future can be developed and become a basis for action.” – Europa Nostra
Award for Research and Digitization
Restoration of Lasithi Plateau’s Windmills with Perforated Sails
“The Jury were full of admiration for this ingenious idea for improving the efficiency of a remarkable collection of windmills – and possibly also restoring many redundant mills to new life and productivity. The careful methodology of the improvements means that the holes in the sails are virtually invisible to the naked eye below. It is clear that the renewed use of these windmills, spinning round across the landscape, would not only improve local agriculture and aesthetic, but also provide an ecologically sound technique for mill restoration and re-use elsewhere in Europe.” – Europa Nostra
“Cultural heritage is one of Europe’s biggest assets. It brings countless cultural, economic, social and environmental benefits to all of us”, said Tibor Navracsics, European Commissioner for Education, Culture, Youth and Sport.
“We all need to keep working together to help communities and citizens take ownership of our heritage, make it part of our daily lives and preserve it for the generations to come”.
The European Heritage Awards Ceremony will take place on June 11 at the Oslo City Hall and co-hosted by Fabian Stang, Mayor of Oslo; Tibor Navracsics and Plácido Domingo.
At the ceremony, seven of the selected winners will be named as Grand Prix laureates, receiving 10,000 euros each, and one will receive the Public Choice Award, chosen in an online poll conducted by Europa Nostra.