It is a collection of more than 500 librettos – repertoires of the Montevideo carnival of the 20th century (1919-1988), which testify to the development of popular and street art on the River Plate map
The National Commission of Uruguay for UNESCO and the UNESCO Regional Office in Montevideo delivered the official certificates and memorial plaques to the three institutions whose archives have been registered in the Regional and International Registries of the UNESCO Memory of the World Program during the present management.
One of the collections conserved by the Documentation and Research Center – CENDOC – of the Carnival Museum has been integrated into said Registry. It is a recognition of the commitment to the preservation and dissemination of documentary heritage that highlights the importance of memory and history in the construction of cultural identities.
Originally conceived by carnival groups to be sold and distributed on the stages of Montevideo, each situation in which these repertoires were written transformed them into a ‘“living newspaper” of the popular sectors throughout the entire 20th century. However, and due to various factors, the number of documents that reaches today is very small compared to the annual participation of registered groups. Hence the unique value of the set as a representative sample of the specimens that are preserved. The collection also documents artistic influences from various geographies, social classes and human groups; the heterogeneity of extinct artistic formats, and an endless universe of popular authors.
We celebrate that the Memory of the World Program, created by UNESCO since 1992, recognizes and records the heritage value expressed in carnival repertoires, as a privileged documentary source to access knowledge of our social and cultural history.
Source: Ministry of Tourism of Uruguay.
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