Professor Krzysztof Kazimierz Pawłowski, Vice-President of the Polish Committee of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), is the winner of the 7th edition of the Award presented in honor of Professor Aleksander Gieysztor. The Award is granted by the Citibank Handlowy's Citi Handlowy Leopold Kronenberg Foundation for outstanding contribution to the preservation of Polish cultural heritage. The gala ceremony was held on February 9 at the Royal Castle in Warsaw.
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This year's Professor Aleksander Gieysztor Award has been made to Professor Krzysztof Kazimierz Pawłowski for his numerous achievements in the restoration of monuments in Polish cities, and in particular for his efforts which led to the recognition of the reconstruction of the Old Town in Warsaw as the most important post-war restoration project. As a result, the Old Town was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List, which was founded to protect the most valuable cultural and natural sites in the world. Currently, twelve Polish monuments are considered World Heritage sites.
Professor Krzysztof Kazimierz Pawłowski also contributed to the listing of the Old Town in Kraków, the historical Wieliczka Salt Mine, the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp and the Białowieża National Park as UNESCO World Heritage sites. He initiated the work which led to the inclusion of the Old Town in Zamość, the medieval town of Toruń and the Castle of the Teutonic Order in Malbork in the UNESCO list. He also initiated the establishment of the Fund for the Conservation and Restoration of Warsaw Monuments.
He is an unquestionable authority in the field of restoring cities and monuments as well as with regard to the history of Polish and European town planning. Apart from his notable academic achievements, he contributed to the preservation of cultural heritage in Poland and abroad. He chaired the international committee of experts who worked out the principles for the development of the area adjacent to the former Auschwitz and Birkenau concentration camps in 1998 and 1999. In 1997, he promoted the establishment of the Standing Conference of Historical Central and Eastern European Cities with its seat in Zamość. Professor Pawłowski also initiated the drafting of the Declaration of Human Rights and Obligations towards Heritage, which forms an Annex to the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. From 1974 to 1982, he was Deputy General Conservator of Historical Monuments; he also twice presided over the Polish National Committee of ICOMOS, of which he is currently Vice-President.
Previous winners of the Professor Aleksander Gieysztor Award were: the Public Committee for the Protection of the Stare Powązki Cemetery (the 1st edition in 2000), Professor Tadeusz Chrzanowski - Chairman of the Public Committee for the Restoration of Kraków Monuments, Stefan Sutkowski - Director of the Warsaw Chamber Opera, the Society for the Protection of Monuments, Professor Stanisław Waltoś - Director of the Museum of the Jagiellonian University, and Professor Kazimierz Piotr Zaleski -Director of the Polish Library in Paris.
The Professor Aleksander Gieysztor Award, which is made annually, was established by The Citi Handlowy Leopold Kronenberg Foundation in order to honor individuals and institutions who act to protect and preserve cultural heritage. The Award was named in honor of the former President of the Polish Academy of Sciences, member of the Council of the Citi Handlowy Leopold Kronenberg Foundation, and an outstanding Polish humanist of international distinction. The Award, which amounts to PLN 50,000, is granted for special achievements in the following fields: activities related to the work of museums, archives and libraries as well as the conservation of monuments; the preservation and protection of Polish cultural heritage abroad; local government projects aiming to protect cultural heritage; individual and collective initiatives aiming to collect and protect the traces and remnants of cultural heritage; disseminating knowledge about the need and methods for protecting cultural heritage in Poland.
