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International awareness of Afghanistan’s rich cultural heritage was heightened by the willful destruction of the fabled Buddhas of Bamiyan province, demolished by Taliban extremists in 2001. Iconic symbols of the region’s shared multicultural history along the ancient Silk Road caravan route through the Hindu Kush and other regions of Asia, the landscape of Bamiyan is a UNESCO World Heritage Site of international significance. Other areas of Afghanistan share similar notoriety due to the legions of explorers, traders, religious pilgrims, and warriors who left examples of their cultures and way of life behind, many of which are safeguarded in Kabul and museums around the world. In the wake of war, foreign occupation, internal strife, and international pressure for resource development, Afghanistan’s cultural resource managers face ongoing challenges to preserve the country’s tangible history for its people and for the world’s patrimony. The National Museum of Afghanistan has been ransacked, looted, and much of its collection destroyed. These three professors from Afghanistan will discuss the work of Kabul University in meeting the conservation challenges through their roles as educators, scholars, conservators, and diplomats, and the efforts underway to protect and preserve Afghanistan’s rich heritage in Kabul and around the world.Arian, Muzhgan, and Ahmad Omar currently teach courses in anthropology, archaeology, and ethnography at the University of Kabul, Afghanistan. Their areas of expertise include the physical and cultural history of people and civilizations around the world. They will be working at the University of Arizona through December alongside faculty from the Heritage Conservation program in the College of Architecture, Planning, and Landscape Architecture (CAPLA), and faculty from the School of Anthropology, Arizona State Museum, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, and University Libraries, as well as conservation professionals from the National Park Service and the Tucson community. The goal of the program is to build Kabul University’s teaching and research capabilities for preserving Afghanistan’s rich cultural heritage.ARIAN QEYAME, MUZHGAN HAMRAZ, AHMAD OMAR HAMIDPROFESSORS, UNIVERSITY OF KABUL, AFGHANISTANMENAS Colloquium Series, Fall 2013Friday, October 4, 20133pm in Marshall 490Click here to return to main Colloquium pageWatch the video