(日本語) 文化遺産国際協力コンソーシアム　
会長就任インタビュー

Third chairperson of the Japan Consortium for International Cooperation in Cultural Heritage
Professor Emeritus of the University of Tokyo

Masanori Aoyagi

Born in 1944 in Dailian (China). As a prominent figure in research into ancient Greek and Roman art history, Mr. Aoyagi has carried out excavation surveys of Mediterranean ruins for more than 40 years. After graduating from the University of Tokyo’s Literature Department Faculty of Art History in 1967, he attended the University of Rome between 1969 and 1972 where he studied ancient Roman art history and archeology. He is a doctor of literature, and his experience includes being the chair of the Tokyo University Literature Department, vice president and director general of the National Museum of Western Art, chairman of the National Museum of Art, and Commissioner for Cultural Affairs.
He is currently a professor emeritus at the University of Tokyo and serves as director of the Yamanashi Prefectural Museum of Art and specially appointed professor at Tokyo University of the Arts. He is also a member of the Japan Academy. In 2011 he was awarded the NHK Broadcast Cultural Award, and in 2017 he was awarded the Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold and Silver Stars.

There are always new discoveries to be made in research on ancient ruins. In South America, it is still getting more interesting all the time!

Deputy Director-General
Professor, Department of Modern Society and Civilization
National Museum of Ethnology, Japan (Minpaku)

Yuji Seki

Deputy Chair, Japan Consortium for International Cooperation in Cultural Heritage (JCIC-Heritage)
Specialist in Andean archaeology and cultural anthropology. He became actively involved in the preservation and development of cultural heritage while conducting archaeological excavations in ceremonial centers in the northern highlands of Peru since 1979 to study the formation of Andean Civilization.

Keeping the flame of hope alive in a critical situation

Technical Adviser, Archaeological Institute of Kashihara, Nara Prefecture

Kiyohide SAITO

Member, Subcommittee for West Asia, Japan Consortium for International Cooperation in Cultural Heritage
A specialist in archeology of West Asia, Mr. Saito served previously as Deputy Director of the Archaeological Institute of Kashihara and as Chief Curator of the Institute’s Museum. For the 22-year period from 1990 through 2011, he visited Palmyra, Syria every year to take part in excavation of tombs along with their recovery and restoration.

It’s no exaggeration to say that
the future of humanity rests on international cooperation activities in cultural heritage.

Director, Sophia Asia Center for Research and Human Development
Professor (By Special Appointment), Sophia University

Yoshiaki Ishizawa

Chairperson, Japan Consortium for International Cooperation in Cultural Heritage
Areas of specialization: Southeast Asian history, cultural heritage, and monument inscriptions. While devoting many years to research and study of the ruins at Angkor in Cambodia and related human-resources development, Dr. Ishizawa is also involved in international cooperation activities with specialists and researchers in Japan and around the world and leading the JCIC-Heritage with its over 400 members.

The Japan Consortium for International Cooperation in Cultural Heritage:
Another path charted by Ikuo Hirayama

Professor Emeritus, Wako University

Kosaku Maeda

Vice-chairperson, the Japan Consortium for International Cooperation in Cultural Heritage
A specialist in the history of Asian culture and philosophy, Dr. Maeda has participated in field work in the regions of West Asia and South Asia for many years, starting with an archaeological study of the ruins of Bamiyan in Afghanistan in 1964.
He has played a major role in preservation projects, particularly at Bamiyan, and he continues to send messages to the world the importance of protecting cultural heritage under conflict.

International Cooperation with Bahrain — The Land of Pearls, Oil and Burial Mounds (II): Archaeological Investigation by a Japanese Team and Its Discoveries

The Japanese team has been engaging in the archaeological investigation of Bahrain's oldest burial mounds in Wadi as-Sail, of which construction started in this period around 2200 BCE, to elucidate where the founders of Dilmun came from

International Cooperation with Bahrain — The Land of Pearls, Oil and Burial Mounds (I): A Study Tour on the Preservation and Presentation of Burial Mounds in Japan

Bahrain is a small island country in the Persian Gulf about as large as Tokyo's 23 special wards. Though the name Bahrain may conjure up such images as pearls, oil or the Formula One World Championship, there is one more thing that Bahrain is famous for -- that is, burial mounds. Bahrain has been known as the island of burial mounds since long time ago.