Safeguarding traditional craftsmanship : a project demonstrating the revitalisation of intangible heritage in Murad Khane, Kabul

The paper summarises the primary activities of Turquoise Mountain’s project to revitalise the craft traditions of Afghanistan within the historic quarter of Murad Khane in Kabul’s Old City. It lays out the primary methods and approaches employed to safeguard intangible heritage within the commercial crafts sector in both the national and international spheres through a holistic approach to economic and educational development. Particular focus is given to the development of vocational training programmes that act to safeguard the social structures and traditional knowledge of the country’s intangible heritage whilst also responding to contemporary educational systems and the demands of modern commercial markets. The paper summarises the main challenges that have been addressed during the first year’s activity and lays out project-based solutions of relevance to practitioners working in similar fields. The discussion aims to set the project within established widertheoretical frameworks and indicates where advances have been achieved based on existing theory, methods and recommendations. The paper forecasts how the project may develop, how it may expand its activities in the coming years and highlights the markers of futuresuccess.