In the interview with Adam Degler, Prof. Bursche said that the idea of hosting the congress in Poland was spawned in 2003. In the past, the event was held in cities including Paris, Rome, New York, Washington, London, Brussels, Berlin and Madrid. The Congress is held every six years. Polish candidature, as a country - was accepted by delegates of the International Numismatic Council, who gathered at a general meeting at the Palazzo dei Congressi in Taormina on September 20th. The candidature was accepted unanimously. It is already known that the Congress will be held in September 2021, last for five days and be attended by about 1,000 people.

Prof. Bursche emphasised in the interview that the congress will be promotionally important for Polish numismatics as a science, also with regard to institutions awarding grants, such as the National Science Centre or the Foundation for Polish Science. "The Congress, however, will be the most important for our community of Polish professional numismatists" - he emphasised. The scientist said he would hope for the involvement of museum communities - the opening of special exhibitions and providing access to collections.

Prof. Bursche noted in the interview that during the last decade, as a result of joint efforts it was possible to integrate Polish numismatic community in the international circuit, thanks to conferences and monthly doctoral seminars on ancient numismatics with the participation of foreign experts, organized in Poland. The results of these contacts include the symposium to be organized in 2021.

The organizer of the congress is the University of Warsaw and co-organizers are the National Museum in Warsaw, the National Museum in Kraków and the Polish Numismatic Society. The event is co-financed by the National Bank of Poland.

The full transcript of the conversation is available on the website of "Solidarity" at the Ossoliński National Institute.

PAP - Science and Scholarship in Poland

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