The first of ten ‘interpretive heritage’ markers to give snippets of information on the historical background and general significance of the site was yesterday unveiled on the lawns of the High Court.
The markers, which are being done by designer Eric Benjamin of Design Perspective, is being coordinated by the National Trust of Guyana with a $600,000 sponsorship by the German company GFA Consulting Group of Hamburg and represented locally by its Dutch consultant, Ben ter Welle.
The ten sites listed for interpretive heritage markers also include three sites out of the city – the New Amsterdam Town Hall, Damon Monument at Anna Regina and the Christianburg Waterwheel at Linden. The other sites found in Georgetown are City Hall, the Non-Aligned Movement Monument, the 1763 Monument, the Umana Yana, St George’s Cathedral and the National Cultural Centre.
It is expected that the signs would last for a period of five years before they would require some maintenance, Benjamin told Stabroek News.
Representative of the National Trust, Nirvana Persaud told the media at the unveiling ceremony yesterday that the activity is part of an ongoing campaign to sensitise the population on the nation’s heritage.
In brief remarks, Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Dr Frank Anthony urged public and private sector collaboration in similar activities to provide information to the public on the national heritage sites. While the initial phase was planned to coincide with Carifesta X, he noted that the activity would continue countrywide. He said that details were already available but with a little help from private sector companies schoolchildren and the public could learn more from observation.
Also urging private sector collaboration, ter Welle said that the GFA Consulting Group was willing to play its role since a country that does not pay attention to its heritage has no future.
Also present at the ceremony was Supreme Court Registrar Sita Ramlal, who noted that that the court will do its part in the preservation of the High Court as a heritage site as well as the marker.
