PRESS RELEASE
Museum of the Bank of Albania launches Museum Nights, a cycle of lectures, October 2022

October 2022 coincided with the 84th anniversary of the inauguration of the headquarters of the National Bank of Albania (1938), as well as with the 7th anniversary of the inauguration of the renovated building and the opening of the Museum of the Bank of Albania (2015). In this regard, on 6, 13 and 31 October, the Bank of Albania launched three lectures as part of the cycle, called “Museum Nights”, which aims to collect and integrate new knowledge that sheds light on the content of the currency exhibited at the Museum of the Bank of Albania.

In the opening speech at this cycle of lectures, Mr Altin Tanku, Head of the Research Department at the Bank of Albania, highlighted that the Museum serves as a bridge between the Bank of Albania and the public. For the 7th year now, the Museum of the Bank of Albania has welcomed many visitors, mainly Albanian pupils and students. In 2017, 2018 and 2022, the Museum of the Bank of Albania is engaged, through Museum Nights lectures, to launch various presentations from distinguished personalities in the fields of numismatics, banking and economics history, financial education as well as other disciplines such as philately, art and architecture, providing the opportunity for visitors to visit the Museum after the Bank's business hours. "Our aim is for the Museum of the Bank of Albania to be a place serving to the visitor for both  enjoying an exhibition and acquiring insights in the financial field, in addition to the sharing of  opinions and ideas.” - said Mr Tanku.

On 6 October 2002, the first lecture was delivered by Dr Gjon Boriçi, researcher at the Institute of History at the Academy of Albanological Studies (AAS), the Department of Contemporary History. Mr Boriçi presented a lecture on "Economic Relations between Albania and China, loans granted to Albania by the giant Asian country, as well as the perspective of these relations" The lecture mentioned the economic aids and loans granted to Albania in the span of 24 years (1954-1978), by the People's Republic of China, which as specified in tis lecture, have been essential for keeping alive the communist regime in Albania.

In this lecture, the participants were introduced to documents based mainly on Albanian and British authentic primary archival sources, most of which were presented for the first time, as well as to facts from national and international literature, which brought interesting data for the period to which this lecture was referred to. The presentation of these relationships is important for understanding whether the loans granted to Albania during the period in question still have an impact today or not.

On 13 October 2022, the second lecture was delivered by Mr Bajram Peçi, publisher and collector of philately and numismatics, currently editor-in-chief of the magazine "Koleksionisti", press media of the Association of Collectors of Albania. Mr Peçi addressed the topic "Venice, the DALMATIA ET ALBANIA coins", and the medals of the Republic for Skanderbeg.

The presentation of Mr Peçi focused on several aspects of coins issued in the 14th–15th centuries, including: explaining the terminology “Numus aureus, numus solides”; discussions related to the transition from one denomination to another; the presentation of facts related to the time when the Venetians first settled in Albania; presentation of "Dalmat Alban" coins in silver and copper, as well as explanations regarding the symbols on these coins. In this presentation, the long history of numismatic ties between Venice and our country was highlighted, including the medals that the Republic of Venice dedicated to Skënderbeu and Albania, as the first in the history of this discipline for Albania.

On 31 October 2022, Mr. Artan Lame, publicist, a well-known collector of Albanian and Ottoman numismatics and medals, vice-president of the Association of Collectors of Albania, researcher of Albanian history, and civil society activist for the protection of Albanian cultural heritage, delivered the third lecture of this cycle in a raw.  In 2010, Mr. Lame was the winner of the "Book of the year" award from MIC London, for the book "Albanian Medals, 1914-2022", and in 2012, in the activities for the 100th anniversary of Independence, decreed by of the President of the Republic of Albania, he was awarded with "Medal of Gratitude".

Mr Lame introduced "Circulation of Ottoman currency in the Albanian territories from the Tanzimat Reform to the beginning of 20th century. The topic of the lecture followed the one addressed by Mr. Lame in the "Nights of the Museum" in 2017. For, the presentation started with a summary of the history of "Minting in Albanian territories during the Ottoman Period", gradually shifting to the minting of the period 1839-1876, during the two reforms of the Tanzimat.

Through photos of the most representative Ottoman coins, discussions evolved about the general historical and economic developments of the Ottoman Empire, which are reflected, among other things, in the image, weight and metal of the coins of the Empire and their circulation in its lands as well as in the Albanian ones. The changes and then the similarities of these coins with the most representative European ones of the XV-XX century. 

The lecture concluded that, as shown in the exhibition of the Museum of the Bank of Albania, the circulation of Ottoman coins almost came to an end in Albania in 1912, after this year, mostly European coins and the American Dollar circulated in Albania.