Greenland’s Heritage, Herrnhut’s Legacy – at denkmal in Leipzig for the First Time
Greenland at Leipziger Messe! For the first time, the cultural heritage of the world’s largest island will play a central role at denkmal. And there are close links to Saxony: a considerable part of Greenland’s cultural heritage today can be traced back to the Moravian Church in Herrnhut.
It has been almost 300 years since Moravian missionaries first arrived in Greenland. Today an international church, the Moravian Church originally emerged from the Bohemian Reformation. In the 18th century, its members settled in Upper Lusatia in Saxony and became known for their active missionary work. Their activities in Greenland have left traces that remain visible to this day. Inge Bisgaard, museum curator at the Greenland National Museum and Archives in Nuuk, explains: “Today, 160 buildings in Greenland are listed as protected monuments. Around 20 of them are part of the Moravian legacy. They are spread across 14 different locations on the island, particularly along Greenland’s west coast.” Indeed, photographs reveal the distinctive timber-framed architecture familiar from Herrnhut, set against Greenland’s rugged landscape.
What is particularly important to Bisgaard about Greenland’s participation in the trade fair in Leipzig? She begins by emphasising that Greenlanders have inhabited the country for 4,500 years but have only lived in European-style houses for the past 350 years. For millennia, despite the barren, resource-poor landscape, there was no need to import anything. Bisgaard continues: “We have a talent for finding creative solutions when building houses. We used this same creativity to transform European houses and adapt them to Greenlandic conditions and to our needs, such as hunting or retaining heat inside the buildings.”
Between Herrnhut, Nuuk and Leipzig: Tangible and Intangible Heritage in Dialogue
Dr Uwe Koch has played a key role in creating a trade fair presence that brings together Greenland’s cultural heritage in general and the Moravian legacy in particular. Dr Koch is President of Europa Nostra Germany, the civil society organisation dedicated to protecting Europe’s cultural heritage. Together with Europa Nostra Denmark, he has worked persistently towards Greenland’s participation in denkmal in Leipzig: “Through denkmal, we want to intensify the exchange between Herrnhut and Greenland and establish it on a lasting basis. Immediately after denkmal, we will travel on to Upper Lusatia with Inge Bisgaard and visit the Moravian Church in Herrnhut.”
Alongside the influence of the Moravians, the legacy of Danish and Norwegian settlers will also play a major role at denkmal. Particular attention will, of course, be devoted to the techniques that Greenlanders have preserved over thousands of years. The conservation of entire murals using whale and seal oil, for example, is likely to be a largely unfamiliar technique on the European continent. This method will be demonstrated as part of the “European Mosaic of Heritage Practitioners”, a project implemented in cooperation with European Heritage Volunteers.
The connection between Herrnhut and Greenland is not solely tangible. It remains evident in numerous Greenlandic songs to this day. This intangible Moravian heritage in Greenland will also be brought to life through music at denkmal.
Greenland’s Emerging Conservation Professionals Seek Exchange in Leipzig
Beyond presenting Greenland’s cultural heritage and establishing lasting ties with Herrnhut, Bisgaard has another aim. She will be accompanied by a couple of craftpeople from Greenland who are highly interested in getting trained in the techniques used in restoration and heritage conservation.
