Wooden Shipbuilding in the North

The International project of the Northern Maritime Museum «Matitsa : Preservation and Development of Wooden Shipbuilding in the North» was launched in September 2020 in Arkhangelsk.

(Note: Matitsa is a main beam used to support the ceiling (normally in wooden buildings), a keel of a Pomor boat. The word originates from a Common Slavic root «mothen› - the basis and the main source of life.) The project schedule from September 2020 to November 2021 includes: an online kick-off seminar (September 18-19, 2020), a course of open lectures «Matitsa of Meanings» (October 2020 — November 2021), expeditions for museum volunteers to excavate segments of old Pomor boats (summer 2020, 2021), contests, excursions and training sessions (the whole period), international forum and publication of its materials. It is planned that a database of maritime museums, museum shipyards and individual craftsmen who are involved into construction and reconstruction of traditionalvessels will be created on the project webpage. Revival of wooden shipbuilding is not possible without the comprehension of traditional technologies. Understanding and use of such technologies makes it possible to create a professional pool of fixture designers, constructors, as well as renovators, museum workers, and re- enactors. The main task of the project initiators and partners is to establish a community that is interested in demonstrating past and present solutions for preservation, renovation, and study of the wooden shipbuilding specimen and that unites amateurs and experts in both theory and practical aspects of this field. The main project venue is Northern Maritime Museum, and key partners are : Arkhangelsk Regional Ministry of Culture, Norwegian Barents Secretariat, Kenozero National Park, Northern (Arctic) Federal University, the Foundation for Revival of Russian Shipbuilding and Arctic Seafaring Traditions, and the Pomor Shipbuilding Partnership. More than 35 organizations have already confirmed their participation, among them: Arkhangelsk Museum ofLocal Lore, sea club «Polar Odyssey» (Petrozavodsk), sea club «Varyag» (Petrozavodsk), World Ocean Museum (Kaliningrad), Museum of Nomadic Culture (Moscow), Lofotr Viking Museum (Lofoten Islands, Norway), Hardanger Maritime Museum (Norheimsund, Norway), Varanger Museum (Varda, Norway), Sjöhistoriska museet (Stockholm, Sweeden), Maritime Centre Vellamo (Kotka, Finland), and the Penobscot Marine Museum (Searsport, Maine USA). In June 2020 the project was included in the list of grant holders from the Vladimir Potanin Foundation under the program «No Border Museum», This program provides support to experts and organizations who are working to change the image of a museum in the modern world and turn it into an open public institution. Project leader: Northern Maritime Museum E-mail: matitsa2020@yandex.ru Director: Evgeniy Tenetov, tel. +7 (8182) 20-93-44, tenetov at mail.ru

Project coordinators: Valeria Lebedeva +7 (900) 500-54-04, matitsa2020 at yandex. ru Alexandra Kobeleva +7 (952) 306-27-38, matitsa2020 at yandex.ru Project info on the museum webpage: http://northernmaritime.ru/matitsa2020