archnetwork :: Bulgaria April 2009 by Tobe Gardner

The author of this report is Chairman of the Dunfermline Heritage Community Projects organisation. This group was formed to research and publish local history and heritage related to Dunfermline. It also acts in an advisory role to the local and regional councils with regard to local museums and liaises with government organisations such as Historic Scotland and the Royal Commission for Ancient & Historical Monuments of Scotland.
The city museum in Dunfermline has been closed for many years – funding being one of the major issues – but an application had been made for lottery funding to match the £6 million to be made available by the council for a new museum. Unfortunately this grant application was turned down. The main purpose of the trip for the author was to find out how Bulgarian museums were funded and run to see what could be learned and brought back to Scotland to help continue the fight to set up and successfully operate a new community museum. This report therefore concentrates on the museums and their contents and finances. However, the author made copious notes and took well over 100 photographs over the week’s visits and the plan is to do an extended presentation in September on the museums, customs etc of Bulgaria and relate them to the history and heritage of Scotland at both national and local levels. This presentation is to be done in the local heritage centre in Dunfermline, Abbot House. More information on the author’s organisation and its role in the heritage scene in Dunfermlne can be found at www.dunfermlineheritage.org

Gabrovo

This fairly sizeable town dates back to the middle ages and legend has it that it was founded by a blacksmith. It therefore became a centre for smithies, armouries and other commercial activities. Gabrovo developed into a major manufacturing town, particularly in the mid-19^th century when it was know as Bulgaria’s “Manchester” and was the largest industrial town in Bulgaria for over 100 years. Etara Heritage Village
Lazar Donkov saw the old craft traditions disappearing for good and he was instrumental in the setting up of this open-air museum at the heart of Bulgaria to preserve the material and spiritual culture of the Balkan people. It has 3 main sections a) old time water-powered machinery b) a recreation of a street of craftsmen’s workshops and stores and 3) sites of social significance.

History

The Etera Open Air Heritage Museum was the first in Bulgaria and first opened in 1964. The museum is a Regional Museum and over 40,000 objects connected with the region round Gabrovo have been collected for the museum. These objects can be accessed for research and made available for outside inspection but written permission must first be sought and obtained from the Museum Director. There is also a photographic archive to illustrate old buildings. The photographs are less readily available but at some time in the future – when the Ministry of Culture state heritage website becomes a reality – the plan is to upload a selection of their best photographs to this publicly-available website. The main aims of the museum are to preserve the culture of the region – both intellectual and hardware. Much store is set on continuity where children are taught from an early age of the local customs, dances and songs so that their heritage can be passed on through future generations.

Physical situation

When the museum was conceived one of the aims was to integrate several old water mills into the proposed complex. The site near Gabrovo is in a steep-sided valley with a reliable small river – the Sivek - running through a relatively narrow, flat area and which had convenient road access. Three original mills stood on this site where the original mill-stream system had been in operation since the end of the 18^th century. The layout of the whole complex is extremely compact, efficient and ideal for the museum’s purpose. The water system supplies power for the artisans as there is no electricity in the heritage village (other than their hotel). The houses in the museum village have been relocated from elsewhere or have been specially built copies. The church is an example of this having been built less than 10 years ago.

Current activities

Etara is now established as a national scientific centre and hosts 2 or 3 conferences per year. These have international participants e.g. historians and ethnographers. Some conferences are annual and themed and proceedings are published after the events e.g. Folk Crafts past, present & future..

It is worth noting that volunteer labour – except during activities such as St Lazar celebrations – is not used at all. The concept is not popular in Bulgaria – more on this later. Conservation is not an activity directly engaged in at the museum. The directors prefer to hire in specialists when required. The director stated that they are up to date with their cataloguing.

The museum has had a successful joint venture with a Japanese expert (Chikako Sado) on the subject of extraction of dyes from natural plants. They have produced a pamphlet and a booklet on the subject and these sell for L0.4 and L4 respectively in the museum shop. Both acknowledge the support of JICA in their publication. Both the pamphlet and the booklet are beautifully produced in superb artwork on high quality, glossy art paper and are only two of a whole raft of publications researched, produced and sold by the museum to generate income. These publications are self financing and aim to make a profit for the museum.

To run the museum there is a director with assistant directors responsible for the following:

Way of Life – textiles, furniture etc Accountancy – artefacts, storage etc Librarian – documentation, Russian language guide, natural dye processes PR – cultural events, interface with the public e.g. St Lazar’s celebration, children’s events Photograph archives & associated documentation: Plus 3 or 4 others.; Buildings and ateliers of note in the heritage village of Etar; Buildings using water power; 1 A “washing machine” for carpets and blankets; 2 Saw mill for wood planks; 3 Dyeing vats for wool; 4 Grain mill for corn; 5 Spinning mill for braid; 6 Woodworking lathe for bowls & plates; 7 Rotor-powered grindstone for cutlery; 8 Drying racks for carpets and blankets; Buildings for ateliers and crafts; 1 Covered display area for implements, wagons & carts; 2 Bagpipe & whistle manufacturing; 3 Almond oil extraction & storage; 4 Cowbell casting; 5 Harness and belt leather working; 6 Traditional confectionery manufacture; 7 Traditional metal working; 8 Icon painting workshop and display; 9 Braid making; 10 Weaving maize leaves to make bowls, plates etc; 11 Making artefacts out of animal hides; 12 Blanket making from spun goat hair; 13 Dying with natural dyes extracted from plants; 14 Rope making; Some other sites of social significance; 1 Church; 2 School; 3 Café; 4 Traditional wood-fired oven for bread and whole lamb (lamb is traditionally eaten on St George’s Day); 5 Restaurant with working wood-fired bread oven

Finances

The artisans working in the village pay rent for their workshops and sell their output to tourists. These artisans are obliged to allow tourists to enter their ateliers for free and watch them at work. They also have to put on demonstrations to groups such as ours from time to time but these demos are sponsored by the museum. Previously these artisans were full-time employees of the museum (during the Socialist era). However, the current situation is better all round. The artisans make more personal money and it is more cost-effective for the museum to reduce their direct headcount. Two of the crafts are disappearing completely from everyday life – braid making and making blankets from goat hair – so the museum sponsors and pays for these artisans.

There is also an on-site hotel & restaurant belonging to the museum which generates income. The hotel also runs another restaurant with its own wood-fuelled bread oven. This is situated in the middle of the complex and serves lunch al fresco as well as being available for hire for private functions in the evening. The museum also rents out the traditional-costumed band/players/singers for E50 a pop. The normal admission fee to the museum is L4 (~£2) – considered “reasonable” in Bulgaria – and there are the usual concessions for school children, groups etc..

Since the museum is a Regional rather than a State Museum the funding from the state only amounts to about 20% of its income. The other 80% is generated by the museum itself and includes about 1% from private donors.

St Lazar’s Celebrations
On our first day in the complex Lazarovden - the central area of the museum was set aside for ceremonies and rituals associated with The Day of St Lazar. These ranged from parades of children and adults in traditional dress through songs, dances, short skits, poetry and audience participation in traditional dancing. Regional Historic Museum
We had been specially invited to the closing ceremony of a large, multi-roomed display in the museum which told of Bulgaria’s fight for freedom from the oppression of the Ottoman rule and explained the lead up to the Bulgarian uprising of 1876, the part Bulgarians played in the Russo-Turkish war and particularly the battle of Shipka Pass in 1878. The museum director made a very impassioned and well-received speech using as a prop the original sword of a Bulgarian diplomat deeply involved in the Treaty of San Stefano (which defined a free Bulgaria’s place in European politics and led to Bulgaria’s freedom again in April 1908. This diplomat had been born very near to Gabrovo. The main themes of the director’s speech alluded to the Bulgarian peoples’ national fervour, their centuries old nursing of a feeling of need for independence and their pride in finally achieving this freedom. It certainly struck an emotional chord with a patriotic Scot…myself!
Elsewhere in the museum the freedom display showed Bulgaria’s centuries-long fight using interpretation boards, maps, photographs and artefacts of the period. Another facet of the background to the war of independence was the financial and economical inter-relationship with Bulgaria, Turkey, Bosnia/Herzegovina, Greece Austria and Romania. Many banks in Bulgaria had money in Turkish banks and the Orient Express Railway was also involved as it then ran through this area. Of particular note was the amount of original material and documents on display – all over 100 years old – which were on loan from other countries such as France, Great Britain, Russia etc. This whole exhibition had been specially prepared by the museum staff and was a fine example of what could be achieved by a relatively small museum with enthusiastic staff under a visionary director.
Tryavna
Tryavna dates back to Thracian and Roman times. However, like Gabrovo, land was scarce and barren so this also led instead to the rapid development of traditional crafts. The crafts that Tryavna is most famous for are woodcarving and icon painting.

Icon Museum
Although the museum was interesting in its own right we couldn’t take any photographs inside. Although the interpretation boards were all in Cyrillic the curator did explain the significance of several of the key icons. I think you would need to be Bulgarian and fairly religious in order to fully appreciate such a fabulous display of religious iconography.

Tryavna Museums
In 2008 Tryavna celebrated 200 years of woodcarving and icon making in the district. They were the main crafts in the town in the 19^th century and by the early 20^th century it was realised that this was a regional treasure so in 1920 a school was opened for traditional woodcarving. People started collecting old examples of carved artefacts and a museum was created in 1928. A modern one was created from a converted house in 1963. Gradually other old buildings were added to the museum for specific purposes e.g. the icon museum was added in 1984.
The purpose of the museum(s) is to get in locals and outsiders to the town and the museum to generate interest and revenue. In addition to admission charges they put on special evening demonstrations for which they charge.. At these events they can also have special traditional food not generally available anywhere else. They also present historically-based plays and drama. Some of these are presented outdoors for tourists between May and October. Some of their old period houses are rented out for marriage ceremonies and they also offer introductory training for payment in crafts such as woodcarving e.g. spoons and small boxes. However, they do not offer further more advanced training for amateurs who wish to improve their technique. This can be done in the local School of Woodcarving where 5 year courses are available for students, particularly those wishing to become professional woodcarvers. The museum also collects old photographs and interview old people to collect and record their memories of past times. It seems that there is a national plan for a State-sponsored database
The museum is community-owned and is funded with district and local taxes with a substantial contribution from the state. Approximately 66% of their revenue comes from the state with the rest from local taxation. About 60,000 tourists visited Tryavna last year however this compares badly with the 250,000 they have had during the Socialist era.
The museum has no general problems with local politicians interfering with the general operation of the museum (unlike the situation in my own area) but the national government has been working on heritage laws which are proving less than helpful. For example business people with wealth can buy up private artefacts and archaeological remains unearthed by treasure hunters and the new acts are not punitive so cannot counter this loss of heritage. They have no equivalent act to those in the UK. Some treasure hunters make a living from stealing artefacts.


Museum of Woodcarving
Woodcarving has been a tradition in this area for a long time and there is an active woodcarving academy in the town. Two graduates of this school gave us demonstrations of their craft within the museum. The building itself was built in 1804-8 for a merchant who dealt in roses . The museum is divided to reflect three types of carving. The simplest carving was done by shepherds who created articles such as decorated spoons and spoon boxes. Slightly more complex and advanced was the domestic ware for use in houses. Practical examples of this were distaffs for use in spinning wool whilst walking around doing other chores and at the same time carrying a baby. A fine example of female multi-tasking! The most complex and technically demanding woodcarving was done to decorate the interior of churches. Very fine examples of this are found in the museum and include oak leaves to symbolise eternity with fruit, such as grapes, and birds intertwined amongst the leaves. Some of the more elaborate carvings of, for example, screens took over a year to finish. Most of the finer work is carved from lime wood due to its fine grain and relative ease of carving. Many of the wooden figurines around the museum’s walls were carved round about 1900 by famous local craftsmen.

Museum of Roses
This small museum tells a little of the story of the importance of roses in the regions economy and culture. The area was formerly known as “The Valley of the Roses” but is now more commonly known as “The Valley of the Thracian Kings”. A fine example of a hand-made rug – called a kitenik - with roses as its decorative theme adorns one of the walls. These rugs are made on a frame with warp cords only and the weft cords added two lines at a time and the wool knotted. A paper pattern is used to aid the composition. There is also a display of various rose-based cosmetics available for sale to supplement the museum’s income. A curator was available for information on the gallery and told us that Palm Sunday – the day of our visit – was also “Name Day” where people who are named after a saint have effectively another celebration day in addition to their actual birthday.

Icon Painting
The museums in the region were of a universally high standard with most interpretation boards available with an English translation. Another very impressive thing I noticed was the large number of very high quality, informative brochures, pamphlets and booklets available for the tourist. The region appears to have an excellent tourist organisation capable of generating multi-lingual information which must be extremely valuable in helping Bulgaria attract visitors from abroad.
In conclusion the exchange visit was very informative and educational and gave me lots of ideas to bring back home and try out. It was most enjoyable and left me with a respect and admiration for the Bulgarian people. The trip was extremely well organised by the business partners ArchNetwork and the Stara Planina Regional Tourist Association.

Alan Gardner
1^st May 2009

Posted to:

Bulgaria

"Museum directors who “think out of the box” in Bulgaria have overcome many obstacles to the success of their museums and there are many examples of this and lessons learned that I can bring back to my own heritage arena in Dunfermline." Tobe Gardner

Introductory Background Information

Gabrovo

Etara Heritage Village

St Lazar’s Celebrations

Regional Historic Museum

Shipka Pass and Museum

Kazanlak

Golyama Kosmatka Thracian Tomb

Mummers Museum, Kazanlak

Sofia

National Technology Museum, Sophia