(MENAFN- AzerNews) The statue of prominent Azerbaijani poetess KhurshudbanuNatavan, one of the outstanding representatives of the 19th centuryAzerbaijani poetry, a descendent of Panah Ali Khan, the founder ofthe Karabakh Khanate, was re-erected in the courtyard of theCultural Center of the Azerbaijani Embassy in France, Azernews reports.

The unveiling ceremony of the statue, brought from French cityof Evian-les-Bains, was held as part of the 101st anniversary ofNational Leader Heydar Aliyev.

Addressing the ceremony, Azerbaijani Ambassador to France andthe Principality of Monaco Leyla Abdullayeva highlighted thehistory of the monument, saying that the re-erecting of the statueof the Azerbaijani poetess Khurshudbanu Natavan on such a historicday is of symbolic importance.

She noted that under a charter on friendship and cooperationsigned between French Evian-les-Bains and Azerbaijan's Ismayillitowns, the official opening ceremony of the Azerbaijani park heldon the bank of the lake of Leman, in the city of Evian-les-Bains.“Simultaneously, Azerbaijan's Ismayilli city presented the statueof Khurshudbanu Natavan as a gift to the city of Évian-les-Bains monument was unveiled in the Azerbaijani Park back in 2017, the statue of Khurshidbanu Natavan was vandalized byradical forces in December of last year. Evian-les-Bains CityHall's prejudiced position continued for several months, and nosteps were taken to restore and clean the monument. Also, becausethe mayor's office did not guarantee that the act of vandalismagainst the monument would not be repeated in the future, theAzerbaijani side took that monument back. The statue, which wascleaned and restored in a short time, was re-erected in thecourtyard of the Cultural Center of the Azerbaijani Embassy,located next to the Eiffel Tower in Paris,” Abdullayeva added.

The event then featured performance by Azerbaijani opera singerTimur Abdikeyev, who resides in France.

MENAFN11052024000195011045ID1108200750