The “Painting of the Ambassadors”, found by accident in 1965, is currently housed in the Afrosiyob Museum. This masterpiece of Sogd art, which dates back to the 7th century, is well known throughout the world. Unfortunately, due to its age, this masterpiece is in danger of disintegrating. Because of its current state of deterioration, it needs to undergo a complete restoration as soon as possible.

Under the initiative of the French-Uzbek archeological mission of Sogdiana and within the framework of an agreement with the Ministry of Culture and Sports of the Republic of Uzbekistan, an “Association for Preserving the Afrosiyob Painting” was established, and international fundraising started.

The project is being executed with the support of the UNESCO Bureau in Tashkent. The restoration work, which is expected to take four years, will be done by an international team under the leadership of French specialist Géraldine FRAY.

The American Embassy in Tashkent is providing support through the “Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural Preservation” along with the South Korea, France and Switzerland.

An opening ceremony will be held at the Afrosiyob Museum on 2 May 2014. Representatives of the Uzbek government and the ambassadors of the countries which made major financial contributions to the project, in particular the Republic of Korea, the United States, France and Switzerland, will be in attendance at the ceremony.