Today, the museum branch, the Bosnia and Herzegovina Jewish Museum, was visited by a high-level Austrian delegation led by the President of the Republic of Austria, Alexander Van der Bellen, accompanied by his wife, Doris Schmidauer. The President was welcomed by the Director of the Sarajevo Museum, Indira Kučuk Sorguč, who introduced him to the Sarajevo Museum and its five branches, one of which is the Jewish Museum, preserving artifacts from the history of Sarajevo’s Jews. She also presented him with a museum monograph that reflects the heritage of our fellow citizens spanning nearly five full centuries.
Alongside the Director, the delegation was welcomed by the museum curator for the Jewish collection, Dr. Edin Veletovac, and museum educator and historian Senada Ahmić, who guided the President through the entire exhibition. The culture of Jews in Bosnia and Herzegovina, their history, life in Sarajevo after their expulsion from Spain—where they were warmly received—the construction of the first synagogue in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which now houses the Jewish Museum (the Old Temple), the persecutions and mass exterminations during the Nazi regime, the rescue of Jewish families, and the present-day life of the Jewish community in Sarajevo and Bosnia and Herzegovina were all themes presented to the distinguished guest as part of the exhibition.
After the tour, President Van der Bellen, deeply moved, wrote a dedication in which he emphasized that he was impressed by the building, the artifacts, and all the new insights into Jewish history.
