In a solemn ceremony on May 18 the delegation of the Foundation Metropoli transfered the photo Album Cities Heirs of Byzantium to the mayor of Velikiy Novgorod CityYuri Ivanovich Bobryshev.

Velikiy Novgorod City has the unique cultural objects, created in the tradition of Byzantine culture, such as the Cathedral of St. Sophia and the Cathedral of St. George's St. George's Monastery. The Photo-album "Cities Heirs of Byzantium" was created by art critics and historians of Russia and Italy, to show, on the basis of studying the traditions of the Byzantine Empire, the beauty of Italy and Russia and to attract to them tourists and investors.

The joint work of Italian and Russian scientists for the first time showed to the general public an overview of the historical and architectural Byzantine monuments of Italy and Russia, which demonstrated the close relationship between the two cultures. After all, the history of Byzantium - this is the historical period of about 1000 years, when the culture of Italy and Russia jointly developed under the creative influence of Byzantine culture. In Italy, as in Russia remained a significant number of cultural monuments of Byzantium.

The first album "Cities Heirs of Byzantium 2013" includes 24 cities, including 12 cities in Italy: Genoa, Rome, Naples, Venice, Trani, Palermo, Ravenna, Rossano, Messina, Bari, Reggio Calabria, Otranto, and 12 Russian cities: Moscow, St. Petersburg, Tver, Pskov, Staraya Ladoga, Rostov, Vladimir, Velikiy Novgorod, Suzdal, Nizhniy Arhiz, Sochi, Smolensk. The album 2014 will include 60 cities in Italy and Russia, and among them, in addition to those already listed, such as Voronezh, Ekaterinburg and Yaroslavl. The broad coverage of the objects of Byzantium culture was made possible thanks to the close cooperation between the Foundation Metropoli and the administration of the Cities in Italy and Russia. Scientists of Oxford, University of Rome, Moscow State University and the University of St. Petersburg have worked on the Album. The album "Cities Heirs of Byzantium 2014" is a high quality publication with the author's texts in two languages?? and unique photographs. In each city, with the help of experts, 2-3 architectural object of greatest historical and cultural value in the aspect of the study of culture of Byzantium were selected.

During the meeting between the administration of the Velikiy Novgorod City and the Foundation Metropoli bilateral cultural exchange between the Italian cities and Velikiy Novgorod City was discussed.