The Bleek-Lloyd Collection and the Memory of the World

International Register

Jan BosCape Town, 14 August 2015

UNESCO

• 1972 World Heritage Convention

• 2003 Convention for Intangible Cultural Heritage

• 1992 Memory of the World Programme

Memory of the World Programme

“World Heritage Convention forDocumentary Heritage”

Vision: •… belongs to all•… should be preserved and protected for all•… should be permanently accessible to all

Mission

• To facilitate preservation

• To assist universal access

• To increase awareness worldwide of existence and significance of documentary heritage ->

Memory of the World Registers

Documentary Heritage

Carrier and content can be equally important

•Textual items•Non-textual items (maps, prints, music scores)•Audiovisual items (films, sound disks, photos)•Virtual documents

Single document or group of documents

Memory of the World Registers

Showcases of the Memory of the World programme

•Items of documentary heritage that are part of the inheritance of the world•Their significance transcends boundaries of time and culture•They should be preserved for present and future generations•They should be made accessible to all peoples

Showcase

International Register: Africa

23 out of 305

•Africa (general): Christopher Okigbo Collection•Angola: Ndembu Archives•Benin: Colonial Archives on political affairs

International Register: Africa• Egypt: Deeds of Sultans

and Princes• Egypt: Memory of the

Suez Canal• Egypt: Collection of

Persian Illustrated and Illuminated Manuscripts

• Egypt: The National Library of Egypt's Collection of Mamluk Qur'an Manuscripts

International Register: Africa

• Ethiopia: Treasures from National Archives and Library Organizations

• Ghana: Dutch West India Company Archives*

• Madagascar: Royal Archives

• Morocco: Kitab al-ibar manuscript

International Register: Africa• Mauritius: Records of the

French Occupation• Namibia: Letter Journals

of Hendrik Witbooi• Namibia**: John Marshall

Ju/'hoan Bushman Film and Video Collection (Smithsonian Inst. USA)

• Senegal: Fonds of the Afrique occidentale française (AOF)

International Register: Africa

• Tanzania: Collection of Arabic Manuscripts and Books

• Tanzania: German Records of the National Archives

• Tunesia: Archives of the Regency of Tunis in the 18th and 19th centuries

International Register: Africa• South Africa: Archives of the

CODESA and of the Multi-Party Negotiating Process

• South Africa: Archives of the Dutch East India Company*

• South Africa: Criminal Court Case No. 253/1963 (State vs Nelson Mandela & Others)

• South Africa: Liberation Struggle Living Archive Collection

• South Africa: The Bleek-Lloyd Collection

African Nominations 2014-2015

• Côte d’Ivoire: Louis Normand's photography collection

• Côte d’Ivoire: Colonial historical archives

• Egypt: Coins’ collection• Ethiopia: Bahire Hassab (Sea

of Comptus - Calendar)• Ethiopia: Degua (6th century

hymns’ book)• Mauritius: Indentured

Labourers documents

African Nominations 2014-2015• Niger: Collection of Arabic

and Ajami manuscripts• Senegal: William Ponty

School Collection of Papers• Senegal: Collection of old

postcards from French West Africa

• Uganda: Records on the martyrdom of the Uganda Martyrs

• Zimbabwe: Nehanda and Kaguvi mediums’ judgement dockets

Nomination procedure

• Anyone may submit a nomination• Two nominations per country per 2 years

(exception: joint nominations)• Next deadline: 31 March 2016• Assessment by Register Subcommittee• Conclusive recommendation by International

Advisory Committee• Decision by Director General

Selection criteria: Bleek-Lloyd

Selection Criteria: Bleek-Lloyd

• Authenticity• World significance, uniqueness, irreplaceablity• Additional critera:– Time– Place– People– Subject and theme– Form and style– Social, spiritual and community significance

Bleek-Lloyd Collection

“These collections provide the only means of hearing one of the most fascinating

of the 'lost voices' of humanity.”