The presentation of the book "Polotsk - the Father of Belarusian Cities" took place in the cultural capital of Belarus

September 26, Minsk /BELTA/. The presentation of the book "Polotsk - the Father of Belarusian Cities" took place in the cultural capital of Belarus, as reported to BELTA by one of the authors of the publication, Chairman of the Polotsk Community in Minsk, Director of the "Belarus" radio station, renowned poet and publicist, honorary member of the Union of Writers of Belarus Naum Galperovich. "We started with Polotsk not by chance, as this city is the cradle of our history and culture, and this year it bears the proud title of the cultural capital of Belarus," the interlocutor noted. This means that for the entire upcoming year, the city will become a venue for performances by the best ensembles of the republic, exhibitions of artists' works, festivals, and other events. Naum Galperovich recalled that any city or district can become a participant in the "Cultural Capital of Belarus" project. Each year, this title will be awarded to a new settlement. This initiative will allow residents of small towns to engage with cultural values and get acquainted with the best examples of Belarusian art. "Polotsk was the first to have the honorable right to officially bear this title. And this is not surprising - every schoolchild has heard about the St. Sophia Cathedral, Euphrosyne of Polotsk, and the role this city played in ancient times. Polotsk remains one of the historical and cultural centers of the country even now," noted Naum Galperovich. "The new book became the first in the series 'Cities and Historical Places of Belarus'," said Natalia Vanina, Director of the "Pachatkovaya Shkola" Publishing House of the Ministry of Education, journalist, and co-author of the book, at the presentation. The first presentation of the publication took place in Moscow at the international book exhibition-fair, then participants of the Day of Writing in Khoyniki got acquainted with the book. And now, the solemn presentation of the unique publication took place at the Polotsk Museum of Belarusian Book Printing. According to the director of the publishing house, the new series is intended for extracurricular reading for students. "It is our duty to pass on to them the moral values that have existed on our land since time immemorial: knowledge of their history and loyalty to their country, diligence, and the desire to creatively develop what was done before them," said Natalia Vanina. The publishing house plans to cover all significant and interesting regions, cities, and towns of our Motherland so that children gain a complete and systematic understanding of Belarus, its cultural and historical heritage. The presentation was attended by Ales Savitsky, honorary citizen of Polotsk, writer and laureate of the State Prize, veteran of the Great Patriotic War and Hero of the Order of Glory; Sergey Vecher, Director of the National Historical Museum; Vladimir Tochilo, Chairman of the Polotsk City Executive Committee; representatives of the public, teachers, museum workers, and students of Polotsk schools and gymnasiums. -0-