NBB appeals to commercial banks to sponsor purchase of Statute


The National Bank of Belarus (NBB) addressed commercial banks of the country with the proposal to raise money for purchasing the unique original edition of the Statute of the Great Principality of Lithuania (1588) written in the old Belarusian language.

There is no copy of the original edition of the Statute of the Great Principality of Lithuania in old Belarusian in the territory of present-day Belarus/place>/country-region>. The collectioner who set the edition for an auction wants $45,000 for it. The edition can be bought off if 10 per cent advance payment is granted.

In his letter Deputy Head of the NBB Siarhei Dubkou requests banks to consider sponsorship to the Mahiliou/placename> History/placename> Museum/placetype>/place> for purchasing the original edition of the book and inform customers of the current charitable action. Museum workers started raising money but anticipating to miss the deadline they asked NBB Head Nadzeya Yermakova for financial support.

Historians say that the 1588 Statute of the Great Principality of Lithuania is the greatest civilisation achievement of the old Belarusian legal thought, the basis of the whole judicial system and one of the most progressive documens of then Europe/place>.

The Statute in old Belarusian was published triply: in 1588, 1592-1593, 1594-95. 29 copies of the Statute are known to be in the world: the books are mainly kept in the national libraries of Lithuania/country-region>, Russia/country-region>, Ukraine/country-region>, Poland/country-region> and Great Britain/place>/country-region>.

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