Băniei House – Ethnography Department
History-Archeology Department
Department of Natural Sciences
On 8 February 2021, a contract worth more than Eur 350,000 was signed at the headquarters of the Museum of Oltenia in Craiova, including VAT, which aims to equip the three departments of the institution with modern equipment for presenting and promoting the cultural offer.
The funds were obtained by the museum institution through a project with European funding, totaling over Eur 1.3 million, implemented in partnership with the Municipality of Varshets, within the Interreg VA Romania – Bulgaria Programme.
The vice-president of Dolj County Council (CJ), Antonie Solomon, participant in the event, declared: “Congratulations to the team from the Museum of Oltenia, congratulations to the colleagues from Dolj County Council who gave their support for the success of this endeavor. We have one of the most prestigious museum institutions in Romania, the owner of a vast treasure […]. At the same time, we are talking about a museum that has fully enjoyed the attention of the county authority and, in recent years, Dolj County Council has invested almost Eur 12 million – from European funds or from its own budget – to restore the department buildings, including here an emblematic building such as Băniei House, to arrange the basic exhibitions and even to erect a building from scratch.
It was necessary, however, for the presentation techniques and tools to also take a decisive step towards modernization, as it was found that the old methods no longer had a strong impact on visitors. We are doing it now, together with this project financed from European funds, which will bring in the near future, to all 3 departments of the museum, state-of-the-art equipment, with the mention that the hologram that will be found at Natural Sciences is a premiere for cultural institutions in Oltenia region”.
In his turn, the director of the Museum of Oltenia Craiova, Florin Ridiche, specified: “Being the most important museum in Oltenia, in terms of heritage, the MOC management team believes that equipping the 3 sections of the institution with innovative tools will increase the awareness of both communities on the cross-border tourist offer in Varshets and Craiova.
The need to purchase such equipment lies in the need to modernize museum display techniques, to advance the museum’s modern and attractive 21st century technology, and to use interactive and virtual techniques to integrate information from both sides of the border.
This contract was signed after a laborious documentation activity carried out by the specialists of the Museum of Oltenia, for a period of almost 1 year, on this aspect of museum development: the use of high-tech technologies in promoting cultural heritage. Equipping with holograms, virtual assistants or interactive totems increases the interactivity with the public and, implicitly, increases the attention and interest for the museum.
It would not have been possible the involvement of the Museum of Oltenia in this project with European funding, for the first time for the museum institution in Bănie, without the support of Dolj County Council, without the permanent advice provided by the European Affairs Directorate and the Public Procurement Service”.
The contract for the supply of presentation equipment signed at the headquarters of the Museum of Oltenia Craiova has a total value of Eur 308,959.18, excluding VAT. The acquisition was made within the project “New destinations in cross-border tourism”, co-financed by the European Union, through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), within the Interreg VA Romania – Bulgaria Programme, Priority Axis 2 “A green region”, Specific objective 2.1 “To improve the sustainable use of natural heritage and resources and heritage”.
The total budget of the project is in amount of Eur 1,364,438.31, of which 85% European Union funding through ERDF, 13% from the national budget and 2% from the local budget. Of the total eligible value of the project, the Museum of Oltenia Craiova has the amount of Eur 459,451.39.