The large-scale annual book festival - XXV Minsk International Book Fair opened in an administrative complex on Prospect Pobeditley, 14 on February 28.
Traditionally, the National Library of Belarus has prepared for the forum guests a rich program with the most interesting, exclusive and valuable. A book treasury of the country has being really enriched over the last year. In the year of the 500th anniversary of the Belarusian and East Slavonic book-printing the last volumes of facsimile Book Heritage of Francysk Skaryna was published and the project was successfully completed.
That was the main theme during the presentation of the 500 years of Belarusian book printing: Results and Achievements, held today at the central stage of the National stand of Belarus.
Roman Motulsky, director of the National Library of Belarus told guests of the event, how the idea to make such ambitious and large-scale project appeared and expressed gratitude for the support of BelVEB, the reliable partner bank. During his speech, Roman Motulsky stressed the significant moments that allowed to implement successfully the project and to be recognized at the highest level, to get the President of the Republic of Belarus’ Award "For Spiritual Revival".
During the five-years project the National Library of Belarus has organized a range of activities to promote the Book Heritage of Francysk Skaryna both in Belarus and abroad. Tatiana Sapego, head of the research and design sector of the bibliology research department and Marina Valchak, head of the International Relations Sector of the Public Relations Department told the guests about the most memorable of these events.
The culminating of these festive events dedicated to the 500th anniversary of Belarusian Book-printing became an international congress 500 years of Belarusian Book-printing and the exhibition Francysk Skaryna and his epoch. Alexander Susha, deputy director for Research and Publishing activities, remained about these September events of the last year.
In the frameworks of the completion of the project on a facsimile Book Heritage of Francysk Skarina, director Roman Motulsky thanked and awarded the media representative for the immediate and high-quality reportages during the project: Zhanna Kotlyarova, BelTA reporter; Elena Levkovich, first deputy director-chief editor of the Zvezda publishing house; Ludmila Rublevskaya, literary columnist of the SB journal, Galina Shablinskaya, head of the literary and art programs department of the First national channel of Belarusian Radio; Alexander Matyas, ONT correspondent, Natalia Bordilovkaya, ATN journalist; Stanislav Androsik, columnist of the Sputnik Belarus news agency.
The thematic exhibition Francysk Skaryna. The spirituality projection. is open till today on the stand of the National Library of Belarus.
The first part of the exhibition represents the publications of the National Library of Belarus, selected for the 500th anniversary of Belarusian book-printing. The greatest interest of visitors causes a multi-volume facsimile edition of the Book heritage of Francysk Skaryna.
The second part of the exhibition is dedicated to the celebration of the 400th anniversary of the publication of the first Bukvar. There are some of the oldest Bukvar in Belarus: a facsimile edition of the first book titled Bukvar in eastern Belarus, made by Spiridon Sobol in the famous Kuteynskaya publishing house in 1631 and the original facsimile reproduction of one of the most characteristic of textbooks of the XVIII century (Vilna, 1767). Nearby there are the best Belarusian books for learning reading of the beginning of the XX - XXI century: the famous Bukvar by A. Klyshko, the Belarusian writer.
On the opening day of the XXV Minsk International Book Fair the stand of the National Library was visited by Maxim Ryzhenkov, first deputy head of the Presidential Administration; Alexandr Karlyukevich, minister of Information of the Republic of Belarus; Igor Shunevich, minister of Internal Affairs of Belarus; Grigory Rapota, State Secretary of the Union State of Belarus and Russia; Nikolay Cherginets, chairman of the Union of writers of Belarus.
