Arts et patrimoine de l'Afghanistan, Cent ans de recherches archéologiques 1922-2022" symposium

On the occasion of the DAFA's centenary and as part of the Guimet Museum's Afghan season, a symposium on the arts and heritage of Afghanistan is being organized.

This symposium is part of the project led by the Inalco Foundation to create a chair dedicated to the art and heritage of Afghanistan.

The French Archaeological Delegation in Afghanistan (DAFA)

Created in 1922, it is a French research institute that works hand in hand with Afghanistan in the field of research, study, enhancement and protection of the country's archaeological heritage.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the DAFA, which makes a major contribution to the preservation of Afghan culture, art and heritage, and to bilateral relations between France and Afghanistan.

The symposium

To mark this anniversary and the Guimet Museum's Afghan season, a two-day symposium was co-organized by the Inalco Foundation, the DAFA and the Guimet Museum. It took place on Friday November 18 and Saturday November 19 in the auditorium of the Musée National des Arts Asiatiques Guimet (6 place d'Iéna, 75016, Paris).

This event brought together the French, Italian, Afghan, Japanese and American archaeological schools, and highlighted 2 key points:
1. The great cohesion between these schools and the complementary nature of their work in the field
2. The intense vitality of archaeology on Afghanistan and the desire to project into the future, with most of the debates focusing on the timeliness and temporality of a return to the Afghan field

Far from being the symposium of "withdrawal", this symposium was therefore one of resilience and hope.