A conference on cultural heritage, titled “Bridges of Peace” was held Friday in the Italian city of Turin, as part of the activities of the third day of the “Damascene Rose… From Syria to Turin” .

The event is organized by the Royal Museums in Turin and Syrian Trust for Development, in cooperation with Fondazione Santagata for the Economics of Culture.

Deputy Director General of the Directorate of Antiquities and Museums Hammam Saad alongwith elite Italian archaeologists, including the discoverer of the site of ancient Ebla in Syria Paolo Matthiae who has been awarded the Syrian Order of Merit of the excellent degree recently participated in the conference.

Saad stressed that despite the terrorist war against Syria and the unfair coercive economic measures against the Syrian people, the Syrians remained creative in various fields of life.

Saad reviewed the most important archaeological sites distributed throughout the Syrian geography, explaining that more than 100 archaeological missions of different nationalities were working within these sites.

He pointed out the number of foreign, national and joint missions from 1960 to 2011, indicating that the seasons number of joint missions reached at 673 seasons, and the number of foreign missions reached at 610 seasons, while the number of seasons of national missions reached at 291 seasons.

He also reviewed the latest archaeological discoveries of the mosaic painting in Rastan in Homs province, indicating the importance of its discovery at the global level and the need to establish a museum in the same place.

Consultant expert at the Syrian Trust for Development, Reem Saqr underscored that the Damascene Rose project in Turin built a bridge of friendship and peace between different cultures and nations, expressing her appreciation for the efforts of the Royal Museum, the Fondazione Santagata and all sides that contributed to the success of this important cultural project.

Source: Syrian Arab News Agency