|
U.S
supports
preservation
and
restoration
of
Sveti
Spas
Church
 Macedonian
Information
Agency
(Aug
13,
2004,
6:53:16
PM
(GMT+01:00)) (MIA) -
The
U.S.
Ambassador
Lawrence
E.
Butler
and
Macedonian
Minister
of
Culture
Blagoj
Stefanovski
on
Friday
signed
a
grant
awarding
U.S.
$30,000
to
the
Ministry
of
Culture
for
preservation
and
restoration
of
the
Church
of
the
Holy
Savior
(Sveti
Spas)
in
Skopje.
The
grant
was
made
possible
by
the
U.S.
Ambassador's
Fund
for
Cultural
Preservation,
in
response
to
a
proposal
submitted
by
the
Ministry
of
Culture
on
behalf
of
the
Institute
for
Preservation
of
the
City
of
Skopje.
The
American
assistance
will
facilitate
needed
restoration
of
the
roof
and
walls
of
the
church,
one
of
Macedonia's
most
important
and
widely-visited
cultural
and
historic
monuments.
The
restoration
project
will
be
carried
out
under
a
cost-sharing
arrangement
with
the
Ministry
of
Culture.
The
project
should
be
accomplished
by
the
end
of
October.
The
U.S.
Embassy
in
Skopje
was
one
of
41
U.S.
diplomatic
posts
selected
for
funding
in
this
year's
competition
held
by
the
Ambassador's
Fund
for
Cultural
Preservation,
which
is
administered
through
the
U.S.
Department
of
State.
Proposals
for
cultural
preservation
projects
in
nearly
100
countries
were
reviewed
in
the
competition.
The
total
amount
of
funding
made
available
by
the
U.S.
Congress
was
U.S.
$1
million.
This
is
the
third
year
in
which
Macedonia
has
been
awarded
funds
through
this
program.
Previous
grants
were
for
conservation
and
restoration
of
the
"Stoa"
public
building
in
Vardarski
Rid,
Gevgelija;
excavation
and
restoration
of
the
Roman
Forum
at
Stobi;
preservation
of
the
double-winged
door
that
stood
at
the
entrance
of
the
Faik
Pasha
Mosque
in
Skopje;
and
for
repair
of
ceramic
tiles
at
the
Ilinden
Monument
in
Krusevo.
The
Ambassador's
Fund
for
Cultural
Preservation
was
established
by
the
U.S.
Congress
in
2001.
It
is
the
only
U.S.
Government
program
to
provide
direct
small-grant
support
to
cultural
preservation
projects
in
developing
countries.
The
fund
seeks
to
assist
countries
in
preserving
and
maintaining
their
important
national
cultural
sites,
and
to
demonstrate
that
the
United
States
of
America
values
the
contributions
of
cultures
throughout
the
world,
as
part
of
our
common
heritage.
©
2000
MIA
-
Macedonian
Information
Agency.
All
Rights
Reserved.
This
material
may
not
be
published,
broadcast,
rewritten
or
redistributed
in
any
form
except
with
the
prior
express
permission
of
Macedonian
Information
Agency.
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