TEHRAN – The National Museum of Iran and the National Museum of Nicaragua have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to lay the ground for further cooperation including the arrangement of joint online shows during the current coronavirus era.

On Wednesday evening, the signing ceremony of the MoU was held online in Tehran and Managua.

Jebrael Nokandeh, the director of the National Museum of Iran, Majid Salehi, the ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Nicaragua and Isaac Lenin Bravo Jaen, the ambassador of the Republic of Nicaragua to Iran were present in Iran National Museum meeting room, an official with the museum told the Tehran Times.

The Minister of Culture of the Republic of Nicaragua, Luis Morales, and Javiera Pérez Guerra, the director of the National Museum of Nicaragua attended the event online at the National Museum of Nicaragua in Managua.

Majid Salehi’s welcome was the initiator of the ceremony. He considered museums as an important factor in expanding cultural relations and friendship between the two countries.

Nokandeh called the event, “a turning point” in the cultural and museum relations between the two countries and said: “Despite the circumstances caused by the coronavirus disease, the signing of this memorandum shows the determination of the two countries to deepen the cultural relations between the two nations.

He added: “In the first step and until the situation normalizes, the two museums will try to get acquainted with each other's potentials  through webinars, to be able to plan for future practical collaborations.”

“Iran is one of the oldest civilizations in the world and it is an honor that the 125th anniversary of the National Museum of Nicaragua has coincided with the signing of this memorandum,” said Luis Morales, the Minister of Culture of the Republic of Nicaragua.

It is an honor to be present at the signing ceremony of this Memorandum of Understanding and I consider it an important step in strengthening relations between the two countries,” said Javiera Pérez Guerra, the director of the National Museum of Nicaragua.

She explained that the National Museum of Nicaragua, with the support of the Ministry of Culture, has added new galleries to the museum and that the country's cultural diversity, especially its African roots has had a great impact on the enrichment of the National Museum.

The Ambassador of the Republic of Nicaragua to Iran, Isaac Lenin Bravo Jaen said: “The signing of this memorandum will strengthen the relations between the museums of the two countries and shows the interest of the two countries in peace and stability in the world.”

“This document is a clear message to the world that in such difficult circumstances, world peace can be strengthened.”

At the end of the ceremony, Majid Salehi, ambassador of The Islamic Republic of Iran in Nicaragua, stated that both embassies will make every effort to implement the issues agreed upon in this memorandum to be a key step in strengthening cultural relations between the two countries.

Chock-full of the nation’s rich history, the National Museum of Iran showcases hundreds of collections including ceramics, pottery, stone figures, and carvings, mostly taken from excavations at Persepolis, Ismailabad (near Qazvin), Susa, Rey, and Turang Tappeh to name a few. Its structure was completed in 1928 based on the design by French architect André Godard who was also an archaeologist and historian of French and Middle Eastern Art.

The National Museum of Nicaragua is located in the old National Palace of Nicaragua, one of the most spectacular buildings of Nicaraguan architecture in the capital. The collection of the National Museum is nowadays housed in a monumental building and it offers a great variety of exhibitions, ranging from prehistorical bones and pre-Columbian ceramics (4,000 years old) to modern paintings and recent sculptures.

AFM/