Cardahi Museum
Bringing Byblos’ Treasures to Life Cardahi family donates Byblos heritage foundation and museum to LAU By Dalila Mahdawi The picturesque coastal city of Byblos has long been cherished for its cobbled streets, charming port and idyllic beaches. A UNESCO World Heritage site, it is believed to be the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world. In order to extend quality education to students outside Beirut, LAU opened a campus in the Byblos hills in 1991. Thanks to a recent donation, the university now has a presence in the heart of Byblos’ old city too. In February, the Cardahi family announced the donation of the Louis Cardahi Museum and Foundation to the university. Comprising a beautiful stone house and surrounding land with extensive views of Byblos, the Cardahi premises and mission will now be under LAU’s charge. Born in Byblos in 1929, Louis Cardahi was an engineer who established the Entreprise de Bâtiments et de Travaux Publics. His passion for preserving his home city’s history, architecture and culture led him to co-found the Cultural Council of the Jbeil [Byblos] Region. He was committed to the social, cultural and economic development of Byblos, said his son and former Telecommunications Minister Jean-
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Louis Cardahi, who noted that his father initiated and financed the building of Byblos’ first secondary school in the 1960s, believing an “educated and cultured youth would contribute positively to establishing a pluralistic and tolerant civil society.” The museum and foundation were set up in his memory by his wife Mona, Jean-Louis and daughter Suzy following his death in 1992. It holds a number of historical artifacts, works of art and documentary films about Byblos. The premises also contain a library with over 1,500 works charting the city’s historical evolution. “It encourages heritage conservation by providing visitors with an appreciation of the port city’s past,” said Jean-Louis. “Tonight is a very exciting night because two institutions are coming together to pursue most noble causes,” said LAU President Dr. Joseph G. Jabbra at a donation ceremony held on the Byblos campus attended by foreign and Lebanese dignitaries. “The Louis Cardahi Foundation has long been dedicated to education and to the pursuit of knowledge about our beloved Lebanon.” A slideshow presentation by LAU graphic design student Joyce Khalifeh
provided a history of the foundation and the treasures it houses. As part of the agreement, a governing board of five LAU representatives and two Cardahi family representatives will be established to oversee the foundation’s strategic planning. LAU will provide the budget and the human resources, including financial aid students, to run daily operations. Students from the School of Architecture and Design and from the School of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Department will have the unique opportunity to do internships at the museum. “We will be indefatigable in our efforts to ensure that the foundation continues to grow, expand and benefit our community, our youth and our beloved Lebanon,” said Jabbra. Jean-Louis Cardahi expressed his hope that the LAU Louis Cardahi Foundation, as it will now be known, will continue to encourage Lebanese youth to respect their country’s rich heritage. “After all, culture is what remains when we have forgotten what we learned in the classroom,” he said. Located in the heart of Byblos’ old town, the Cardahi foundation holds a number of historical artifacts, artworks and documentary films